Pickup Match

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

The contest was between Vissel Kobe U-18 (Hyogo), who would seal the title with a victory, and Cerezo Osaka U-18 (Osaka), whose title hope would vanish with a defeat. As Cerezo’s Kishimoto Takeru said “We don’t want to lose to the same Kansai team,” the contest of wills emerged ever before the match and turned out to be just as an exciting showcase.

The both teams put on intense midfield battles from the start and were not able to connect the ball well. But as time went on, Kobe began creating chances by feeding long balls behind the opposing defensive line. In the 31st minute, goalkeeper Yoshikawa Kenta sent the ball up front promptly after he grabbed it, Yonezawa Rei won the ball in the air and gave it to Fujimoto Yugo, who sent it to the middle. Then Nakasaka Yuya fired a shot but it was denied by Cerezo’s custodian Inoue Seiya.

Kobe kept their pace in the second half. In the 52nd minute, after Fujimoto floated the ball into the area in front of the goal from a free kick on the left side of the halfway line, Yonezawa headed it into the net to open the score. Cerezo fell behind with the goal as head coach Murata Kazuhiro looked back, saying “We could have protected that one.”

In the 74th minute, Cerezo allowed Yonezawa a heading effort again, but it fortunately hit off the crossbar to keep the one goal down. Cerezo aggressively sent a few substitute players off the bench and geared towards a comeback with fresh legs in the closing minutes. In the 84th minute, Maekawa Taiga responded to a tee-up from substitute Okino Masaki and finished one-on-one against the opposing goalkeeper to give his side an equaliser. Despite further goal-scoring attempts of both sides, the score remained at 1-1 until the end.

Comments

MURATA Kazuhiro, Head Coach (Cerezo Osaka U-18)
We needed to get three points from this game. We had good defence throughout the game, but we played carelessly after getting the ball. We could have widened the opposing defence or created a better situation so that we would have had more attacking opportunities instead of defending that long. We rushed our offence too much. The final week will be the contest with the championship at stake, so we will try our best and win the game.

KISHIMOTO Takeru (Cerezo Osaka U-18)
Today’s game was important for the title, so we needed to get a win in the end. In the first half, even though the ball came to me, why I wasn’t able to reach scoring opportunities was that I wasn’t prepared and didn’t have the mind-set to strive for a goal. Strikers are valued by the goals they score. Today, I wasn’t able to make it, but all I can do in the following game is leading my team to a victory and hope for our chance to win the title.

NODA Satoru, Head Coach (Vissel Kobe U-18)
My players tensed up under the situation where a victory would lead us to the championship. That was a big match where the both teams had a chance to win the title, so getting nervous in such a situation is very natural. The first half was like a battle of patience as we both created chances but fell short just a bit away. It’s always better to win a game, but a draw is something we realistically expected. I’m glad we finished the game without losing.

FUJIMOTO Yugo (Vissel Kobe U-18)
If I could have scored at my scoring opportunity, the game would have been easier. When you don’t turn such opportunity into a goal, it results in like this. To be honest, I wanted to win to seal the championship. Some players seemed to be disappointed after we allowed the opponents to score the equaliser, but it’s still big that we added one winning point. The fact the next win will give us the championship has not changed. I want to celebrate with my teammates with a victory at home.

Other results

Kyoto Tachibana High School　0-0 (1st 0-0, 2nd 0-0)  Toyama Daiichi High School
Nagoya Grampus U18　3-1 (1st 1-1, 2nd 2-0)  Gamba Osaka Youth
Higashiyama High School　2-0 (1st 0-0, 2nd2-0)  Kyoto Sanga F.C. U-18
Higashi Fukuoka High School　2-0 (1st 0-0, 2nd 2-0） Sanfrecce Hiroshima F.C Youth

The game between the clubs trying to avoid relegation, ninth-placed Kyoto Tachibana High School (Kyoto) and eighth-placed Toyama Daiichi High School (Toyama), ended up in scoreless draw. Nagoya Grampus U18 (Aichi), desperate to win the match, finished first half tie score but earned three points for scoring two goals in second half. They kept their hope alive for the last section. “The Kyoto Derby” between Higashiyama High School and Kyoto Sanga F.C. U-18 remained scoreless in first half but Higashiyama’s two goals in second half led to win and made one step further to stay in the league. Eighth-placed Higashi Fukuoka High School faced Sanfrecce Hiroshima F.C Youth (Hiroshima) and Higashi Fukuoka won the match 2-0. They pulled within a point of seventh-placed Hiroshima.

The first best goal award for Prince Takamado Trophy Premier League chosen by fans

Twenty clubs in the league chose their own best goal and the best goal award will be decided by the number of video played.
Please access to the candidates of best goal.

Please access to the candidates of best goal