The 20th International Youth Soccer in Niigata 1st Match vs U-17 Mexico National Team
2016-7-16 (Sat.) - 17:00   Playing Time: 90min. (45min.×2)
SpoIsland Seiro (Seiro/Niigata)

U-17 Japan National Team   2-0 (0-0, 2-0)   U-17 Mexico National Team

Scores
62'   HORI Kenta (U-17 Japan National Team)
66'   TAGAWA Kyosuke (U-17 Japan National Team)

Line-ups
GK: WAKAHARA Tomoya
DF: NAKAGAWA Sou, IRUMAGAWA Keita, ISHIHARA Hirokazu, HIYAMA Yuya
MF: IZAWA Haruki, FUJIMOTO Kanya, HORI Kenta, KOBAYASHI Mao
FW: NAKAJIMA Motohiko, TAGAWA Kyosuke

Substitutes
GK: SARUTA Haruki
DF: FUJIMATSU Kouya, AOYAMA Yusuke
MF: SENBA Taishi, MURATA Masaki, WATAI Masaki
FW: TSUBAKI Naoki

HT   HIYAMA Yuya → MURATA Masaki
HT   NAKAJIMA Motohiko → TSUBAKI Naoki
60'   IRUMAGAWA Keita → FUJIMATSU Kouya
70'   KOBAYASHI Mao → WATAI Masaki
83'   TAGAWA Kyosuke → AOYAMA Yusuke

Match Report

The 20th International Youth Soccer in Niigata opened its matches as the U-17 Japan National Team took on their first match against Mexico starting at 17:00. on Saturday 16 July at Spoisland Seiro.

For the first match in the tournament, Japan started two players who had been called up to the national team for the first time in their career. Early in the first half, Japan dominated the possession and aggressively employed their offence. In the 8th minute, TAGAWA Kyosuke met a cross ball and fired a shot only to see it fail to open the scoring.

On the other hand, Mexico in the 11th minute shot their own out of a scramble in front of Japan’s goal, but it hit the post. Later, they had another close-range attempt off dribble penetration, but Japan’s goalkeeper WAKAHARA Tomoya showed an outstanding save.

In the 32nd minute, Mexico broke through the right flank and found the back of the net, but the goal was cancelled moments later because the ball went out of the goal line. Japan’s defence had more critical moments, but goalkeeper Wakahara led the tenacious efforts to survive out of the first half without allowing a goal. 

At the start of the second half, Japan sent two more new faces onto the pitch. In the 55th minute, a handball penalty by Japan in their own box awarded a penalty kick to the opponents. While many expected Japan to be one goal down, Wakahara put the ball away with his right hand to deny the opportunity. Then Japan’s offence reacted to the goalkeeper’s highlight play.

In the 62nd minute, FUJIMOTO Kanya out of the combination with his teammates broke through the left flank and fed HORI Kenta in the middle, who put it into the unguarded goal for the much-awaited first goal of the match. Japan did not stop there.

In the 66th minute, Hori’s corner-kick was headed powerfully into the goal by Tagawa to extend the lead to two goals. As the opponents kept pressuring Japan with substitutions and intense plays, Japan maintained their composure and tenacity until the match ended with a score of 2-0 in their favour. 

On Monday 18, Japan will play against the U-17 Croatia National Team at the same Spoisland Seiro at 17:00.

Players' Comments

GK #1  WAKAHARA Tomoya (Kyoto Sanga F.C. U-18)
Training with the national team, I felt I still need to practice a lot more. I have been reminded that I need to take care of every catch simulating real matches. Otherwise I can’t do the same in games.

In the game today, we kept talking to each other and were able to concentrate even from the beginning. So we didn’t allow a goal and were able to create our own rhythm. If we don’t push up our defence line a little faster when we have the ball upfront, we can’t execute our offence competently. So in next match, we need to do it faster. At the same time, I want to manage the risk and talk to my teammates from the back line to help them join the offence more effectively.

For the rest of the two matches, we will try to maintain this momentum, help each other and win all the matches without allowing a single goal.

DF #3  ISHIHARA Hirokazu (Shonan Bellmare Youth)
We have players who joined the team for the first time, but they started to get along well with the team early and forged unity out of it. Today I felt Mexico were better than us in terms of individual athleticism including physical strength. During the match, I tried to maintain the quality of passes and to go for the space behind the opponents. Early in the match, they had a long stretch where they pushed us back, but we as a team stayed resilient and concentrated on not allowing a goal, which led to this win, I think. I want to keep working hard to help my team, win two more matches, and finish this tournament well with the championship.

MF #6  IZAWA Haruki (Urawa Red Diamonds Youth)
I think I have been able to pay enough attention to communicating with the players who got on this team for the first time and they were able to blend in with the team. I tried to actively talk to them off the practice as well. It was the first time in about a year for me to play against overseas players, but Mexican players were stronger and more athletic than players I normally play against in Japan. So I tried to start off more focused than I usually would.

In the first half, we had some situations where they pushed us back with long balls, but we defended patiently and we were able to convert the chances we had in the second half and came out with a win. This first match was difficult, but we got three points. We want to keep this good momentum for the rest of the two matches to win the championship with a perfect record.

Schedule

*The schedule is subject to change due to the team condition, the weather, etc.