Pick-up match

Cerezo Osaka Under-18   6-1(1st 4-0, 2nd 2-1)  Higashi Fukuoka High School

The Prince Takamado Trophy Under-18 Premier League kicked off on 11 April. In a marquee matchup between the reigning West champion Cerezo Osaka U-18 (Osaka) and Higashi Fukuoka High School (Fukuoka), the two sides played a see-saw contest from the beginning.

Higashi Fukuoka entered the game with a three-back system trying to focus on their defence. Cerezo geared up as KISHIMOTO Takeru fired a shot early. Cerezo took a lead on 18th minute with a middle shot by INOUE Taito. And on 19th, Cerezo attacked on the right side with their pass works, and HORIE Daiki provided a cross. TATEISHI Kazumi headed it into the net to extend the team’s lead. Cerezo made it 3-0 as Kishimoto kicked a loose ball after Inoue launched a shot on 22nd minute.

As SHOJI Honoya said that the team members have better foot techniques and they can pass the ball better, Cerezo took the pace with their passing game. On 39th minute, Inoue scored his second goal of the day. Cerezo wouldn’t loosen their attacks and Tateishi directly kicked a ball that was cleared by an opposing defender into the left side of the goal on 60th, putting the dagger for the victory.

Higashi Fukuoka was completely overwhelmed by Cerezo and took zero shot in the first half. But they switched to their usual 4-3-3 formation in the second half, attempting to get some offensive rhythm with their passing game in the mid-field. On 62nd minute, NAKAMURA Kento, who later said that he would aim at taking shots looking at the wind directions in the second half, made a free kick directly. But Cerezo took advantage of the fact that Higashi Fukuoka had more men up front. FUNAKI Kakeru scored a goal before the final whistle was blown. Cerezo took a good start of the season to look at repeating the title with a 6-1 win.

Head Coaches’ Comments

OKUMA Yuji, Head Coach (Cerezo Osaka U-18)
I’m happy that we won with a score like this. We could have done better in the period that we got a little loose, but I think that how we entered the game was very good. Especially that we made goals from fast attacks, which we are always aware of, and were able to add some goals afterwards without much problems were what we can be proud of. Now I want our team to be able to play without rests for the entire 90 minutes and raise the level of our plays going forward. We are going to play both offensively and defensively with a one-game-at-a-time mind-set this year, too, developing some players that will be promoted to the top team and get some positive outcomes afterwards.

MORISHIGE Junya, Head Coach (Higashi Fukuoka High School)
It’s disappointing that we allowed goals in a short period of time and weren’t able to make adjustments in the first half. We wanted to make it clear on our defense on their Nos. 9 and 10 from the beginning, and that’s why we applied the three-back system. Against their two men up front, we made a situation that we had an extra defender, but it was frustrating that we let them find a way to capture us. I think that the quality of our individual skills weren’t evenly matching up with their players. But the season has just started. Hopefully, we will reflect on the issues we had from this game and capitalize on them going forward.

Other games

Kyoto Sanga FC U-18   2-2(1st 2-1 2nd 0-1)   Vissel Kobe U-18
Kyoto Tachibana High School   1-1 (1st 0-0, 2nd 1-1)   Oita Trinita U-18
Gamba Osaka Youth   4-1 (1st 0-0, 2nd 4-1)   Nagoya Grampus U18
Riseisha High School   2-4 (1st 0-2, 2nd 2-2)   Sanfrecce Hiroshima FC Youth

Vissel Kobe U-18 (Hyogo), who are looking to seize their first title in two years, took on Kyoto Sanga FC U-18 (Kyoto). Vissel had a two-goal deficit at one point, but managed to end it in a draw as they scored goals in the stoppage times of the first and second halves. Kyoto Tachibana High School (Kyoto), who finished eighth last year, played against the just promoted Oita Trinita U-18 (Oita). Kyoto Tachibana struck first with a goal from TSUTSUMIHARA Tsubasa, but soon after they allowed a goal and the contest ended in a draw. Gamba Osaka Youth (Osaka), who came up short of winning the championship by just one point, took a great start of the season with a lopsided 4-1 win over Nagoya Grampus U-18 (Aichi). Premier League first-timer Riseisha High School (Osaka) couldn’t take advantage of their own scoring opportunities of early, and lost to Sanfrecce Hiroshima FC Youth (Hiroshima) 2-4. Riseisha will look for their first victory against Kobe in the next week.