Pick-up Match

Kawasaki Frontale（J1）3-3（0-0, 2-2, ext. 0-1, 1-0, PK4-1）Urawa Reds（J1）

The Round of 16 in the 96th Emperor's Cup All Japan Football Championship was held on Saturday 12 November across the country, and Kawasaki Frontale (J1) met Urawa Reds (J1) at the Todoroki Athletics Stadium.

The match between two teams, which will participate in the ‘Meiji Yasuda 2016 J.League Championship’ at the end of November, was competitive from the beginning. Frontale passed the ball around rhythmically with only a few touches, while Urawa put pressure by swiftly changing between attack and defence. Although both teams displayed different playing styles and strengths, playing fiercely in the centre, neither could find the back of the net before halftime.

The match completely changed in the second half. Attack and defence kept switching between the teams. Urawa, who energised the team by substituting players including LEE Tadanari at the beginning of the second half, succeeded in striking the opener. In the 71st minute, KOHROGI Shinzoh ran through to a ball from MORIWAKI Ryota and slotted the ball into the goal, avoiding the goalkeeper.

On the other hand, Frontale were missing two key players, NAKAMURA Kengo and OSHIMA Ryota. Now being one goal behind, they carefully initiated attacks to go close to Urawa’s goal. After 86 minutes, OKUBO Yoshito’s shot from mid-range resulted in a handball penalty, where he himself scored the equaliser from the spot.

Urawa struck back. In the 88th minute, Moriwaki intercepted the ball up front, sending it to the left side, and initiated an attack. Kohrogi, who reacted to SEKINE Takahiro’s cross, took a shot with a header. Although the shot was blocked initially by the goalkeeper, the deflected ball hit Frontale’s player and went into the goal. Urawa once again built a one-goal lead.

Kawasaki never gave up and continued to attack despite conceding towards the end of the game. In the first minute of injury time, two players, who came off the bench, performed their roles excellently. NOBORIZATO Kyohei received the ball on the left and sent a cross towards the goal, to which MORIMOTO Takayuki reacted to slot into the goal, levelling the match 2-2.

In the 15-minute halves of extra time, Urawa again struck a goal first. After 97 minutes, AOKI Takuya initiated a counter-attack from their area, dribbling and exhanging the pass with Lee to score a goal. They built a one-goal lead for the third time.

However, Frontale at home were surrounded by their supporters and played tenaciously. The team put everything into attack towards the end, even though there was a player who had a leg cramp. Then, in the 117th minute, they achieved their aim. ITAKURA Ko at far side, who reacted to MIYOSHI Koji’s free kick, passed the ball with a header. EDUARDO at the centre pushed it into the goal, levelling the match 3-3.

Frontale came back from one goal behind for the third time, maintaining their momentum through penalty kicks. With goalkeeper Jung Sung Ryong’s superb performance, they beat Urawa on penalties 4-1 and advanced to the quarter-finals.

Match Details (Japanese version only)

Coaches' and Players' Comments

KAZAMA Yahiro, Coach (Kawasaki Frontale)
I believed it’d be good for our future if young players show their skills with confidence. So I used the young ones, and they performed brillantly. We focused on keeping possession and passing the ball around without allowing the opponents to steal the ball from us. Thanks to our supporters and fans, who created an excellent atmosphere, it resulted in a great match. I think you rarely see such a competitive game even abroad. We’d like to continue our performance, proving the J. League can display this kind of match.

Mihailo PETROVIC, Coach (Urawa Reds)
Despite our poor performance in the first half, we found our rhythm in the second half and controlled the game better. However, we let the opponent level the game three times and lost on penalties. It was a shame we couldn’t win the game despite our lead. Since our defenders are comparatively shorter than other teams, the players up front should prevent long-distance balls, chasing after the opposing kickers. In the second half, the players didn’t have enough stamina and allowed the opponents to feed long-distance balls. We need to spend time on improving our game tactics in that kind of situation, including the goalkeeper’s defensive area.

MIYOSHI Koji (Kawasaki Frontale)
I focused on winning, since the game was in the knockout stage and we were preparing for the Championship. Personally, I could have scored on numerous occasions. If I had managed to strike goals then, the match should have been over after 90 or 120 minutes. So I learned the importance of improving the accuracy of shots. Having said that, it meant a lot to us that we all soldiered on without giving up. Facing them with confidence, it was great to earn a victory against Urawa.

KOHROGI Shinzoh (Urawa Reds)
I do feel frustrated, as we built our lead three times in total. We conceded all the goals when the opponents threw everything into attack. So we need to learn how to react to that. Because our defenders have been keeping a clean sheet recently, it was a shame even more that we conceded goals easily. At the same time, if the attackers had built a two-goal lead, we could have played more calmly. Although our Emperor's Cup is over, we may meet Kawasaki Frontale in the Championship again. So I’d like to refresh myself.

Quarter-finals (12/24)

Fixtures and Results (Japanese version only)

96th Emperor's Cup All Japan Football Championship

【Quarterfinals】24 December (Sat.)
【Semifinals】29 December (Thu.)
【Finals】 1 January 2017／ New Years Day (Sun.)

More Information