Academy Report

Expedition Day 7 started with clear skies and a hot day. Similar to yesterday, we had breakfast after a walk.After breakfast, we went to watch the semi-final match between Cerezo Osaka and Sporting Lisbon. Cerezo Osaka was the only Japanese team to reach the semi-finals. They conceded first in the second half but equalized immediately, making it 1-1. Unfortunately, they lost 3-5 in the penalty shootout.In the afternoon, we prepared for the 5:00 PM ranking match. Today's meeting was held at the match venue, where Coach Nakamura discussed with the players what they had built up since their elimination in the Club Youth qualifiers for this tournament, and confirmed tactics, before heading into the final match.Ranking match: Antlers 1-0 Yokohama F. Marinos Oppama
First half 1-0, Second half 0-0
[Scorer: Shotaro Taniguchi, 22nd minute]
[Members]
GK: Akihiro Numata
FP: Shotaro Taniguchi (HT Tatsuya Kiuchi), Sora Okita, Yuto Koide, Ryoma Minowa (52nd minute Kaito Yanagimachi), Hikaru Shimano (HT Yuta Yamaguchi), Ryunosuke Ito (HT Kai Ishizu), Tomoya Miyauchi, Teru Miyauchi (60th minute Akira Iizuka), Kota Taniguchi (Rintaro Umetsu), Fushin Owa

The final match of this tournament was an all-Japanese showdown in Korea. Knowing each other's play from the Kanto League and other competitions, the game started at a more relaxed pace than previous days.
In the early part of the first half, the opponent held possession, but after about 10 minutes, we gradually gained control. In the 22nd minute, Shotaro Taniguchi scored with a long-range shot from about 25 meters, giving us the lead. After that, we maintained control until the end of the match, not giving the opponent any real chances. We had several clear chances but couldn't convert them, and the game ended.

As a result, we finished the "Jeju International Youth Football Tournament 2017" in 5th place.Coach Nakamura's comment:
"Before today's 5th place decider, we reminded ourselves of the privilege of participating in an international tournament in Jeju once again. Watching the intense match between Sporting Lisbon and Cerezo Osaka in the morning, we went into our final match aiming to perform with that same intensity.
The two matches we watched of Sporting Lisbon after yesterday's loss had a big impact, and I saw our players consciously challenging themselves in terms of play intensity, speed, and individual technique. We won 1-0 and finished 5th, but I believe that continuously being aware of the differences in physicality and individual technique that we felt here will lead to growth even after we return."

After that, we returned to the hotel, had dinner, and then rested in our rooms, doing things like creating bookmarks, before going to bed.

Tomorrow, we will be shopping, sightseeing, and watching the final match of the "Jeju International Youth Football Tournament 2017" between Pohang and Sporting Lisbon.