Training　Match
wednesday 9th April 2014 20:30 Kick Off　20 minutes half
PabellónDeportivoCAJAMADRID（Spain/Madrid）

Japan National Futsal Team　3-3（1stHalf 0-3、2ndHalf 3-0）　Inter Movistar Futbol Sala

Scores
7min  Goal Against（Inter Movistar Futbol Sala）
11min Goal Against（Inter Movistar Futbol Sala）
19min Goal Against（Inter Movistar Futbol Sala）
28min WATANABE Tomoaki（Japan National Futsal Team）
29min SATO Toru（Japan National Futsal Team）
39min WATANABE Tomoaki（Japan National Futsal Team）

Starters
GK：Kawahara Hisamitsu
FP：Hoshi Shota、Takita Manabu、Minamoto Akira、Nibuya Kazuhiro

Substitutes
GK：Fujiwara Jun、Sekigushi Yushi
FP：Inaba Kotaro、Osodo Nobuya、Sato Toru、Watanabe Tomoaki、Nakamura Yusuke、Uchimura Shunta

All players played except GK Sekigushi

Players not listed on the game roster
Nishitani Ryosuke、Yoshikawa Tomoki

Match Report

Japan Futsal National Team arrived back in Madrid on 8th April after a 9-hour bus ride from Santiago de Compostela, a city near the border with Portugal.

Finally on 9th, the team had the last match of this Spain trip against Intel Movistar, one of the best teams in the world and the current Spain League leader.

In the first half, Japan couldn't create their momentum while Intel kept dominating the match. Once Japan allowed the first goal in the 7th minute, they lost two more in the 11th and 19th, and ended up finishing the first half with 0-3 deficit.

But in the second half, Japan started playing more aggressive defence and slowly gaining their rhythm. They narrowed the deficit to one goal with two straight goals, one by Watanabe in the 28th and the other by Sato in the 29th. Even when they gave away the second penalty kick to Intel, goalkeeper Fujiwara showed an outstanding save and defended the goal. Three minutes before the end of the match, Japan began the powerplay. Finally in the 39th minute, Watanabe netted his second goal of the day and tied the match 3-3. The match finished right after with a draw.

Coach & Players' comments

Head Coach: Miguel Rodrigo
A new and young team like us tend to respect an opponent with a great history and records like Intel Movistar a little too much. It just happened in this match. After the bad first half, I told players to look at ourselves and to press our own motivation switches. Then in the second half, they got Japan's futsal style back both offensively and defensively, and performed great as if we were totally different team from the 1st. We dominated some period in the 2nd half, and our powerplay was good. This match summarized our Spain trip well. Maybe we can say that we expressed in this match why we came to Spain. I am very happy with this draw.

WATANABE Tomoaki（Nagoya Oceans）
It was a great opportunity for us to play against the best team in the Spain League and to realise how well we can play against such a good team. The first half showed not only they are simply a better team but also we didn't have right mentality to play. We lost goals one after another, didn't play our style and it was a bad game. I personally was overwhelmed by the level of their play, too. But all of us didn't stay down. After the first half we talked to each other saying we had to start all over again. So we could come out for the second half with the right mentality. The second half turned out to be totally different. We could tie the match by scoring three goals and allowing none. This match gives us a great deal of confidence. Also we learned that the mentality makes a big difference in the outcome of the match. I think we could finish our trip well.   

Fujiwara Jun（Bardral Urayasu Futbol Sala）
Our Spain trip ended. Looking back, it feels both somewhat long and somewhat short, but it was great that we could play against such a great team in the Spain League as Intel Movistar for our last match of the trip. We could finish it with a draw, and we also could experience the difference of levels between world's best and us. I will keep doing what I can not to forget this experience and this feeling and to win another AFC Championship as one team.

SATO Toru（Umacon Zaragoza Futbol Sala）
This was our last match in Spain. To summarize this trip against the Spain League's current top rank, Intel Movistar, and to figure out where we are now, we came out for the match and wanted to leave our all on the pitch. But we couldn't do it in the 1st half both mentally and physically, and gave away 0-3 lead. In the 2nd, we reset our mindset and our play, got our rhythm back from our defence, which is our strength, and could tie the game. In this match, I feel now that we could show some kind of Japanese style of play. It's not just skills and strategies. It's about playing all together and playing as one team. This trip turned out to be very fruitful for us to head for AFC Championship in May. I am not satisfied with the result of (today's) match, but I will take our missed assignments back home and keep working for the goal of Futsal Japan National Team, winning AFC Championship again.