Intro
Another road game for FC Ryukyu, another road loss. This one was particularly brutal as Niigata were a side that have been beaten at home and were a side that FC Ryukyu had bested earlier this season. However, the poor run of play by FC Ryukyu continued as they ended up surrendering 4 goals on the night in route to a 4-0 pasting. The result begs the question, is Higuchi the right man for the FC Ryukyu job?
Game Recap
After witnessing this game first hand at the Rycom mall with about 100 FC Ryukyu fans and locals, it is just too hard to sit here and watch the full 90 minutes again in order to write a detailed report of what went wrong and what went right. Needless to say, all the things that have plagued FC Ryukyu over the past 10 weeks or so is becoming more and more noticeable with each passing week. Turnovers, wasteful shots, defending and bad luck all played their part last night.
The match started with the spectacular/obligatory Kazama wide open shot at the top of the 18-yard box that was sent way off the mark. Maybe none of the FC Ryukyu attackers were in a spot to receive a pass, or Kazama just didn’t see them, but Kazama once again sent an early opportunity shot into the oblivion and beyond (not even in the same postal code as Niigata).
It took Niigata only 7 minutes to score the first goal of the game on what could be considered a case of bad judgement on the part of Ishii. Along with a bit of bad luck. Ishii came out to meet a cross with a punch but it was deflected off of Uesato and into the net. The second Niigata goal came from a PK in the 44th minute. It may have been prevented had we defended better or Ishii made more of a commitment to come out and collect the ball. Francis took a heavy touch past our defender and sent the ball within range of Ishii. Maybe the earlier indecision was weighing heavily on the mind of Ishii so he didn’t want to risk another blunder and ended up fouling Francis. FC Ryukyu certainly had their chances in the first half, but it was unfortunate that the ball just didn’t bounce their way from the two Uejo opportunities. In any case, FCR were down 2-0 at half time and had no answers against Niigata.
The second half saw an early goal by Francis that pushed the lead to 3-0 and whatever opportunities came FC Ryukyu’s way after the 3rd Niigata goal can only be attributed to the fact that Niigata let up. It was unfortunate that Suzuki didn’t get on the score sheet despite a couple of wide-open shots in front of net but it was indicative of the night and the bad luck. One nice thing though was Kawai looked very good and needs to be paired with Uejo to start matches. FC Ryukyu had 4 chances this half that could’ve altered the game or at the very least, proven beneficial to their yearly goal difference tally. Alas, it wasn’t meant to be yesterday. The fourth and final goal by Niigata did nothing put push the FC Ryukyu goal difference on the year to -6. A stat that may very well determine the fate of this team near the end of the season.
Man of the Match
#13 MF Francis. The man finished with a hat trick on the night and was unstoppable. He created and finished several opportunities for Niigata and proved too much for the FC Ryukyu defenders. A great solo performance to earn his side all 3 points.
Review of the FC Ryukyu Keys to Victory
1. Execute all the little things correctly. FAIL, see the score sheet.
2. Exploit Niigata’s weakness at defending set pieces. FAIL, see the score sheet.
3. Place well aimed shots on net and crash the box with attackers. FAIL, see the score sheet.
4. Stop the bleeding at the back. FAIL & in glorious fashion. FC Ryukyu were averaging 3.0 goals conceded the past 5 weeks but instead they opted to up the ante by allowing 4 on the night.
5. Start Uejo. PASS. Side looks better when he’s in there. Kawai and Uejo are not natural replacements for one another so both should be starting with fresh legs and speed to burn.
Match Day 24 Takeaways
1. FC Ryukyu are the worst team in the league right now. FC Ryukyu are playing like the worst team in the league right now. Too many goals and not enough answers. This team is only being saved by the fact that the teams below them are also losing each week. After watching the past week’s highlights of the teams below FC Ryukyu, its obvious this side is playing without any confidence and looks worse than the sides beneath them. This is worrying as FC Ryukyu need around 14-16 points for safety and that means at least 3-4 wins with approximately 2-5 draws. I am not sure where the results will come from as it looks like FC Ryukyu cannot beat anyone at the moment.
2. The tactics FC Ryukyu employ are not working. Teams can afford to allow FC Ryukyu all the possession they want as they do not fear ceding a goal to FCR and can wait to hit FCR on the break.
3. Defending. I am not sure if this the byproduct of the tactics and formation but 23 goals conceded in 10 games or most recently, 12 goals in 5 games, is INSERT YOUR OWN ADJECTIVE. Tokumoto did feature in this match so maybe he’ll get the full 90 minutes this Wednesday night.
4. The hung heads, slumped shoulders and disbelief is starting to set in for the players. I commented in the preview that I hadn’t seen any of that yet, but it was on full display yesterday. It is unfortunate as the team is putting in a shift in attack but things are not breaking their way at the moment. With every missed opportunity and goal conceded, the team’s confidence drains a little more and disbelief takes hold.
Conclusion
It’s unlikely that FC Ryukyu part ways with manager Higuchi in the short run up to a mid-week, must win, home game against JEF. However, there are not many winnable games left on the schedule for FC Ryukyu and failing to win against JEF Chiba United should be the final swansong for Higuchi. If not, FC Ryukyu risk returning to the J3 and losing more than just the crowd that departed the public viewing at half time at the Rycom mall this past weekend.
Cover Photo Credit: @sho69463528 ; Kanto Supporters Photo Credit: @basuke_sakkaa JLeague Stat Line, Game Summary and Franics photo courtesy of https://www.jleague.jp.
ryukyuarmy.com 