Pick Up Match

Vissel Kobe U-18 1-0 (1st 1-0, 2nd 0-0) Gamba Osaka Youth 

The defending WEST champions Vissel Kobe U-18 (Hyogo) have been struggling at sixth in the table after the first half of the season. As Yoshikawa Kenta saying “we will try to win all the remaining games and revenge for the last year’s championship,” Kobe had Gamba Osaka Youth (Osaka) at home.

Kobe got off to a fine start as Kako Seiya headed home a corner kick from the right just after four minutes from the start. They kept dominating the match over Gamba Osaka with crisp passes. In the 20th minute, after Fujimoto Yugo sent a feed to the open space up to the right flank, Najima Akito broke through and struck a shot, which hit off the post. Yonezawa Rei picked up the deflection but his shot went off target as well.

“We could’ve controlled the match easier if we had had the second goal,” looking back Kobe’s coach Noda Satoru on the match. Against Kobe struggling to extend their lead, Gamba Osaka reinforced their attacking end when they changed their formation to use more individual penetrations including the fast-footed Hirao So on the left side. In the 49th minute, after acquiring a freekick, Maetani Takahiro tapped in the ball fed by Hatsuse Ryo, but it was judged as offside. Despite the clock ticking, Gamba couldn’t create a decisive moment. With sending four players onto the pitch, Gamba aggressively attempted a comeback, but Kobe was desperate to defend at all cost to the end. Kobe notched the back-to-back win against Gamba following the 3-0 Week 1 victory.

Comments

NODA Satoru, Head Coach (Vissel Kobe U-18)
We possessed the ball well until the middle of the first half, but after the break, we failed to keep our midfield tight and allowed opposing midfielders to turn around and move forward to our goal more easily. As a result, we let them possess the ball more often. But anyway, we didn’t have so many situations where we allowed them to completely break through. I would like to have a good word for that.

YOSHIKAWA Kenta (Vissel Kobe U-18)
Today we were trying to defend centre and kick away Gamba’s side attacks. We had some tough time but worked hard together to bear that. I’m happy to keep the score a clean sheet. Our defensive end looked confident as we could see them fighting hard on the ball.

UMEZU Hironori, Head Coach (Gamba Osaka Youth)
I’m disappointed that we couldn’t do what we wanted to do in the first half. In the second half, we caught our momentum after adjusting our positions. Even with the defeat, I felt we were successful in accumulating things we had practiced.

HIRAI So (Gamba Osaka Youth)
We discussed before the match like, “the early set pieces will be the key,” but conversely we allowed a goal. I’m disappointed that we couldn’t convert the chances even though we kept attacking with our rhythm in such tough circumstances.

Other Results

Kyoto Tachibana High School  1-1 (1st 0-0, 2nd 1-1)  Higashiyama High School
Kyoto Sanga F.C. U-18  3-2 (1st 2-1, 2nd 1-1)  Sanfrecce Hiroshima F.C Youth
Toyama Daiichi High School  3-6 (1st 2-2, 2nd 1-4)  Nagoya Grampus U18
Cerezo Osaka U-18  5-1 (1st 1-1, 2nd 4-0)  Higashi Fukuoka High School

“Kyoto Derby” between Kyoto Tachibana High School and Higashiyama High School ended with a draw, which gave Tachibana first-ever point in the league after they equalised the score in the 72nd minute. Kyoto Sanga F.C U-18 (Kyoto) beat Sanfrecce Hiroshima F.C Youth (Hiroshima) 3-2 with Onishi Yuki’s two goals and goalkeeper Tochika Masaaki’s terrific performance. Nagoya Grampus U-18 (Aichi) won the nine-goal thriller 6-3 over Toyama Daiichi High School (Toyama) to keep the top spot. Cerezo Osaka (Osaka) routed Higashi Fukuoka High School (Fukuoka) 5-1 after ripping Higashi Fukuoka apart in the second half. Cerezo have kept up with league-leading Nagoya by just one point.