2018 the 25th International Youth Tournament of Vaclav Jezek
2nd Match vs U-17 Slovakia National Team
Wed. 22 August 2018 Kick-off 17:00 (local time) Match duration 90mins (45mins x2)
Chlumec n/Cidlinou, Czech Republic

U-17 Japan National Team 1-1 (0-0, 1-1) U-17 Slovakia National Team

Scores
77' SAKURAGAWA Soromon (U-17 Japan National Team)
81' goal against (U-17 Slovakia National Team)

Starting Line-up
GK: UEDA Itsuki
DF: SUMI Seiga, HATA Taiga, INOUE Miki, BABA Seiya
MF: MATSUOKA Daiki, TSUKUI Takumi, MATSUMOTO Nagi, MATSUHASHI Yuan
FW: KURIBARA Ibrahim Junior, SOMENO Itsuki

Reserves
GK: SUZUKI Zion
DF: BANGNAGANDE Kashif, KIMURA Seiji, NAKAMURA Takumi
MF: ODA Yutaro, TAKADA Soya, YAMAMOTO Rihito
FW: YAMAZAKI Ryosuke, SAKURAGAWA Soromon

Substitutions
28' MATSUMOTO Nagi → YAMAMOTO Rihito
67' KURIBARA Ibrahim Junior → SAKURAGAWA Soromon
67' SOMENO Itsuki → YAMAZAKI Ryosuke
84' INOUE Miki → NAKAMURA Takumi

Match Report

The U-17 Japan National Team faced the U-17 Slovakia National Team in their second match of the 25th International Youth Tournament of Vaclav Jezek. With both teams earning a victory in their first match, winning another would bring the winner closer to the final. Japan entered the match with strong hopes to gain the advantage ahead of their third match.

The match started off with both teams showcasing steady ball movements as they sought for opportunities. While Slovakia sent long balls to their front line to initiate fast breaks, Japan constructed their offence from their ball movements from the defence line, as they made quick transitions between offence and defence to apply quick pressure to force turnovers. In the eighth minute, Slovakia made an attempt from long distance, but the Japanese goalkeeper UEDA Itsuki (Zweigen Kanazawa U-18) made a fine save to evade this threat. The Japanese goal was threatened once again in the 18th minute when Slovakia broke through the left flank, creating a one-on-one situation. However, the opponent’s shot went over the crossbar, giving Japan a sigh of relief. Despite Japan’s efforts to carry the ball deep in the opposing end, the match entered halftime scoreless.

The second half saw both sides creating opportunities by moving the ball around, but neither side found ways to score a goal. As the match approached the closing minutes, both sides broke their silence. In the 75th minute, Japan came close to scoring the opening goal when MATSUOKA Daiki (Sagan Tosu U-18) delivered a lobbing pass into the space behind the opposing defenders where TSUKUI Takumi (Yokohama F-Marinos Youth) made a run to take a shot, but his attempt was blocked by the opposing defender. Japan’s next opportunity came in the 77th minute, when they earned a freekick at the left side. Matsuoka delivered a cross towards the goal where the second half substitute SAKURAGAWA Soromon (Jef United Ichihara Chiba U-18) showcased a towering header to pierce the net. With the opening goal scored, it was thought that Japan would carry the momentum to close out the match, but Slovakia came back with an 81st minute goal with a superb shot from distance. As a result, the match ended in a 1-1 draw.

Players' Comments

GK #1 UEDA Itsuki (Zweigen Kanazawa U-18)
I’m very pleased that I was selected for the U-17 Japan National Team. It was my debut for the national team. I believe I was able to keep my composure to play as I usually do and communicate well with my teammates. Having said that, it was frustrating that we failed to win, as we conceded a goal at the end of the game. I’d like to prepare well in order to contribute to keep a clean sheet in the next match.

DF #5 BABA Seiya (Tokyo Verdy Youth)
We couldn’t respond well against the opponents who utilised long balls and counter attacks throughout the match. That is something we must work on to improve ourselves. As a team, we need to score more goals and be able to manage our matches easier. We still have two more matches, so if I’m given the opportunity, I would like to improve on what I lacked today and do my best to contribute for the team’s victory.

MF #18 TSUKUI Takumi (Yokohama F-Marinos Youth)
Since it was the first time I had started in a game at this championship, I tried to display my strong points as much as possible. I was taken up by playing too much defence that I couldn’t get myself involved in our offence during the first half. However, after I emphasised on keeping a wider perspective and adjusted my positionings, I was able to contribute more in our offence. I had two crucial opportunities coming my way in the second half, but failed to covert those, so I must improve myself to become more critical in those situations. I will feed off of this experience and give my best to score goals in our next match to contribute to our team’s victory.

FW #10 SAKURAGAWA Soromon (Jef United Ichihara Chiba U-18)
After failing to score a goal in our first match against Ukraine, I came in with a strong intention in this match against Slovakia, to score a goal as the team’s striker. Although I entered the match as a late substitute, I came into the match to make runs for the team and pressed aggressively from the front line, so I am glad I got to score a goal. During the remaining days of this tour, I will see how effective I can be against the foreign national team players and I would like to find out what I must work on to become a more effective player at the world stage.

Schedule

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