Academy Report

Day 4 of the MUNDIALITO 2015 tournament. It was the final day of the group stage, and we played two matches: against CDR Quarteirense from Portugal at 10 AM, and against SC Olhanense, also from Portugal, at 6 PM. Both matches were played in good weather.



Kashima Antlers Junior 3-4 CDR Quarteirense

Kashima Starting Lineup: Koki Numata, Yuto Koide, Hikaru Kusano, Fushin Owa, Shuto Seki, Uta Yamaguchi, Harumu Sumi
Substitutes: Tosei Sugawara, Shota Iwama
Goal Scorers: Yuto Koide x2, Uta YamaguchiCoach Kotani's comments: "We started the game well, but as for our defensive issues, we conceded easy goals due to mistakes. We conceded again after equalizing, but this time we managed to equalize again and reach halftime with a tied score. In the second half, we conceded from a mistake off an opponent's free kick, and then conceded on a counter-attack when we were pushing for a goal. It became 2-4, and we made substitutions and got one goal back, but couldn't get another, so the game ended in a similar fashion to yesterday. Compared to yesterday, we were able to connect passes and create chances, but we couldn't improve on the defensive aspect of conceding easy goals."

After five matches in a tightly contested group, Kashima Junior had 3 points. They no longer had a chance to advance past the group stage on their own merits and needed to win their final group stage match by at least two goals to qualify for the upper tournament. The final group stage match was played at the stadium where the opening ceremony was held.



Kashima Antlers Junior 3-1 SC Olhanense

Kashima Starting Lineup: Koki Numata, Harumu Sumi, Yuto Koide, Shota Iwama, Reo Koarashi, Fushin Owa, Uta Yamaguchi
Substitutes: Tosei Sugawara, Shuma Ishihara, Hikaru Kusano, Shuto Seki
Goal Scorers: Uta Yamaguchi x2, Fushin Owa

Coach Kotani's comments: "The situation before the game was tough, but we had a meeting to emphasize the fighting spirit, the desire to win loose balls and regain possession, especially not to lose out defensively. We strongly focused on this during the warm-up before the game. We started the game well, but once again, we conceded from a careless mistake, repeating a similar pattern. Nevertheless, we took the initiative, equalized in the first half, and managed to take the lead in the second half. Furthermore, we scored an additional goal just before the end of the match and secured the win. We still made many mistakes, but I think the team fought together in this match."

The group stage of the tournament has concluded, and Kashima Junior finished with 2 wins and 3 losses, earning 6 points and placing 4th in their group. They will now advance to the Prata Tournament. Their next match will be against local team CD SanDiego at the Spanish venue.