Even at 7:20 AM when we left the hotel after breakfast, it was still dim, unlike Japan. After about a 40-minute bus ride, the sun had risen and it was completely bright by the time we arrived around 8:00 AM. This match venue is located in the suburbs, different from the main venue where yesterday's opening ceremony was held.
Immediately upon arriving at the venue, we had a meeting. Coach Hashino reiterated the team concept and discussed the opponent's characteristics. Then, coach Koyano provided confirmation points regarding set plays, and we warmed up on the pitch.
The pitch featured new artificial turf. Water was sprinkled on it before the warm-up.
Normally, an 11-on-11 match is played on a 105m x 68m pitch, but this venue is 100m x 60m. The match duration is two 30-minute halves.
The first qualifying match kicked off at 9:00 AM.
[MUNDIALITO Qualifier Round 1 vs XR Soccer-Futstars]
Early in the match, Itami broke through forcefully on the left flank, earning a free kick near the opponent's penalty area. From that sequence, we got a corner kick. Serizawa's kick found Tobita, who scored with his left foot. We took an early lead in the 2nd minute of the first half. Scoring early in the first match gave us a psychological advantage, and we continued to dominate possession and play in the opponent's half.
In the 9th minute, Kiuchi received a pass from Oshima in the space next to the opponent's anchor, dribbled, and scored the second goal. In the 24th minute, Kiuchi received a vertical pass from Oshima in exactly the same way and scored again. We ended the first half with a 3-0 lead.
At halftime, we confirmed our strategy for the second half and were cautioned about set plays.
The match continued with us dominating possession while the opponent sought to counter-attack.
In the 23rd minute, Niibori, who had come on as a substitute, was fouled in the penalty area, earning a penalty kick.
Niibori's penalty kick was initially saved by the goalkeeper, but Serizawa quickly followed up and tapped it in for the fourth goal.
After that, there were occasional counter-attacks from the opponent after losing the ball in midfield, but we ended the match without any major scares.
Niibori received a yellow card, but everyone played, and we secured a victory.
＜Match Result＞
○4-0（3-0/1-0）
〔Starting Lineup〕
GK Fujii / FP Yajima, Oshima, Kosaka, Serizawa, Kato, Ogasawara, Kiuchi, Tsuchiya, Tobita, Itami
〔Substitutes〕
FP Ouchi, Sato, Tsukuda, Niibori, Ebata
〔Goal Scorers〕
Tobita (Serizawa), Kiuchi 2 (Oshima 2), Serizawa
Coach Hashino's comment
"It was good to win a tough first match. But it's only one match down. We want to prepare well for each game and do our best."
After returning to the hotel, we had lunch and then cooled down in the hotel's indoor pool for about 30 minutes from 2:15 PM.
We had a meeting from 6:30 PM. We confirmed the characteristics of tomorrow's morning opponent and what to be cautious about in the match.
We had dinner from 8:00 PM and went to bed early to prepare for tomorrow.
Tomorrow, the second qualifying match will be held in the morning, and the third match in the afternoon.