The Emperor's Cup JFA 101st Japan Football Championship Final will be held at Japan National Stadium on Sunday 19 December. Here we will share the match review of the final, written by Mr. YUNO Shinya, a sports journalist covering the Oita Trinita.

“This is the culmination of Kata-san's (coach KATANOSAKA Tomohiro) six years. We want to send him off with a victory.”

This comment was made by MATSUMOTO Rei, who has been with the team for nine years and has been a mainstay of the team since coach Katanosaka's first year in Oita. They have gone through good times and bad times together, as the club made their way from J3 to J1. This season, in their third year since being promoted to J1, the team struggled to win matches for a long stint and was relegated to J2. Matsumoto is not the only one who is disheartened by the resignation of coach Katanosaka, who took full responsibility of the matter. Many of the players are keen to give coach Katanosaka a proper send-off.

Looking back on the season that saw Oita relegated to J2 before the final fixture of the season, it was largely due to the fact that they lost a number of key players and were unable to fill in the void. It took a long time to develop the organisational strength and the tactics that do not rely on individual strength in both offence and defence, which they have built up one by one since from their session in J3 and onwards. If the team tries to implement strict rules and commitments, it loses its individuality, and if it tries to show its individuality, it loses its structure. They analysed their opponents closely and tried to change their tactics and line-ups, but the situation did not change significantly.

Coach Katanosaka dropped his shoulders in despair, as he mentioned, “I didn’t have what it takes to bring out the best in the players. I simply was not good enough.” However, the words he has said to the players over and over since taking charge of the helm, never left his mind, “Let's do our best for the supporters of Oita.” Since the team’s relegation was determined, he was able to put everything behind and focus on the match in front of them. “We want to showcase our own football and please the supporters,” and in order to do so, “we need to bring out our full potential from start to end.”

The fact that Oita managed to finish the season with back to back victories brought positive vibes ahead of the Emperor's Cup final and further strengthened the unity of the team. They are now determined to go back to the basics, “run through the entire match,” “fight hard for the ball,” and “make quick transitions between offence and defence.” With their subs actively encouraging the players on the pitch until the final whistle, and the team is aiming to fight as one. MASUYAMA Asahi, who scored the decisive goal in their final match of the season, shared his take on the team’s current vibe, “Everyone on the bench was standing up and shouting. It makes the players on the pitch feel like they have to do more. Our opponents have mentioned that we are playing good football and we are playing with a lot of confidence.”

The semi-final of the Emperor's Cup was a match in which coach Katanosaka's leadership and management skills were on full display. Facing this season’s league champions, Kawasaki Frontale, Oita countered with a combination of organised structure and well-executed tactics. Their 4-4-2 formation with a diamond shaped midfield, which was their ace up their sleeve, also functioned superbly. Going against Kawasaki’s extremely strong “individuality,” led by J1 MVP Leandro DAMIAO and seven players who were selected into J.League’s best-eleven, Oita collectively applied pressure with all 11 players getting involved. “The players were exhausted but showed a lot of heart. Our opponents were better than us, and although we conceded some chances, led by Takagi, we managed to defend tenaciously,” said coach Katanosaka. With Oita prevailing in penalty shootouts, the team came through in a huge matchup between “individual” and “organisation” to reach the final.

In regard to their opponent in the final, coach Katanosaka shared his take, “Coach Ricardo RODRIGUEZ constructs his offence through ball possession. They are also capable of changing their positions based on the opponents. It will be a match between two versatile teams.” Coach Katanosaka has always used different systems, tactics, and players for different opponents, as he mentioned, “It's important that we stay flexible and be ready to make changes depending on the situation. I want to increase our options.” That is why Oita will not get bewildered when their opponents change their system or approach. Ahead of the final, the coach shared his confidence towards his team, “The players on the pitch will need to be on the same page, but we have prepared how to move the ball and how to defend, even when facing three or four players. We will try to make this our best match of the season.” The coach is keen to deliver the club their second title and finish his tenure with the club on a high note.

Emperor's Cup JFA 101st Japan Football Championship

【1st Round】Sat. 22, Sun. 23 May [Backup date: Mon. 24 May]
【2nd Round】Wed. 9, Wed. 16 June
【3rd Round】Wed. 7 July [Backup date: Wed. 14 July]
【Round of 16】Wed. 18 August [Backup date: Wed. 13 October]
【Quarterfinals】Wed. 27 October［Backup date: Wed. 17 November］
【Semi-Finals】Sun. 12 December
【Final】Sun. 19 December

Tournament Information