Category: Match Recaps

Match Day 2 Report: (17) FC Ryukyu vs. (4) Avispa Fukuoka 6/28/2020 #FC琉球

Intro

It was a pretty wild, and at times wacky, re-opening of the J-League this weekend that pretty much had it all. There were great goals, great saves, great celebrations, come from behind victories and even an exposed backside. I think we all expected something like this to occur the first week back – maybe not the nudity- and we may see more of this when the fixtures start to pile up in August and more reserve players are featured each game.

FC Ryukyu were able to earn their first point of the 2020 season last night when they drew 1-1 with Avispa Fukuoka. Though a win would have been nice, it is encouraging to see FC Ryukyu match up well with a tough opponent.

On that note, I think I’ll take the match day reports in a different direction as anyone can watch the highlights online and instead i’ll focus on aspects of the game that may not be captured in the highlight reel. I will still keep the Man of the Match, Keys to Victory, Predictions and around the league parts of the report. And I will now throw in a “Goal of the Week” section in hopes of being able to nominate a goal of the year at the end of 2020.

  1. Game Recap
  2. Man of the Match
  3. Review of my Match Day Prediction
  4. Review of the Keys to Victory for FC Ryukyu
  5. Match Day 2 Takeaways
  6. Match Day 2 in J2
  7. Best goals from Round 2
  8. Conclusion

Game Recap

The weather was perfect to kickoff the home campaign for FC Ryukyu last night, despite the fact that none of us were allowed to attend and enjoy it. There were some notable changes to the FC Ryukyu lineup this week beginning with the replacement of Daisei Suzuki at CB by Ryoji Fukui. I am not sure what spurred the sudden change as Suzuki was on the bench to start, but later came on to replace Fukui in the second half.

Felipe Tavares was dropped completely out of the lineup with a healthy Yuya Torikai returning to his RB position. Kazuki Yamaguchi made his FC Ryukyu debut when he slotted in at the CAM role, replacing Ren Ikeda, who also dropped out of the lineup and reserves. Koya Kazama came in to start for the injured Shuto Kawai at LM with Dany Carvajal making his return to the lineup for the first time this year.

The most infuriating part of the lineup selection each week is that we never know what is going on at the club. We have no clue on the minor injuries of players, drops in form or preferred selections based on the managers assessments of the opponent and game plans for the week. I do not think anyone has asked the manager in a post-game presser about lineup selections, players form or the game plan they tried to execute. Maybe they have but since I do not speak Japanese, I cannot say that it has or hasn’t occurred at some point.

The reason I bring this up is we saw Suzuki replace Fukui at the back and in my mind, Fukui is a versatile defender that can play either position across the back 4 and is better suited as a reserve asset. I would have left Fukui on the bench as a reserve defender, started Suzuki -unless he was not 100% match fit- and then brought Shinji Ono as the 5th sub near the end of the game when we needed the go-ahead goal.

Takuma Abe opened his scoring account at FC Ryukyu with a very impressive solo effort in the first half. The fact that he went 70 yards on his own, starting in the FC Ryukyu end just above the 18-yard box; then had enough gas in the tank to create a sudden burst of speed past a Fukuoka defender to get into position to take a shot at Avispa’s 18-yard box; and then send a bullet past a diving Serantes into the top corner was simply amazing. More of that please!

FC Ryukyu conceded early in the second half when Delgado overpowered Fukui and found himself alone on goal and sent his own missile shot into the top left corner. But once again, FC Ryukyu really limited their opponents as far as possession and shots on net for the remainder of the match. Dany made some timely saves throughout the game as well, none more than the one against Delgado in the first half that would have dramatically changed the trajectory of this match.

Man of the Match

Avispa Fukuoka GK: Serantes. The man was simply awesome to watch last night. His save on the Motegi free-kick in the first half was a thing of beauty and he even got a hand to Abe’s goal which almost sent the shot wide.

Match Day Prediction

I said 2-1 to the visitors and @NavyBlueWasp correctly predicted the 1-1 outcome. Kudos to you sir and that leaves me at 0-1-1 with my predictions on the year.

Review of the Keys to Victory for FC Ryukyu

1. Match the physicality of Fukuoka. Likelihood 4. The Delgado goal indicates that we didn’t do this the whole game but once Fukui was replaced by Suzuki, I think the FC Ryukyu defense played much better.

2. Make quick passes across the pitch to stretch the back 4 of Fukuoka and open some shooting lanes for our LM & RM. Likelihood 3. Our lone goal came from a brilliant solo effort on the part of Abe but FC Ryukyu preferred attacking down the left for a majority of the match. I did not recall seeing any quick passes to change direction on the part of FC Ryukyu last night.

Match Day 2 Takeaways

  1. Early season mishaps. We pretty much expected this heading into the game so hopefully these mistakes will be reduced in time. These included some misguided passes, players expecting players to be in a certain area when they were not and even a minor drop by Dany on a shot with a Fukuoka player bearing down on him.
  2. The momentum in the game was constantly shifting back and forth between each side last night. FC Ryukyu enjoyed the first 3 goal scoring opportunities with Abe converting the 3rd chance. Then Fukuoka had several chances of their own before Delgado converted. There were few chances for both sides after Fukuoka scored and the game sort of ground to a halt.
  3. Missed opportunities for FC Ryukyu. FC Ryukyu had plenty of dead-ball kicks that they could’ve converted. I think it is somewhere around 25-30 chances between the two games this season and we have yet to convert one. Numata came close twice with one header striking the crossbar and another waived off due to a foul on Serantes. And we cannot complain about the spectacular save from Serantes on Motegi’s early free-kick as that may have gone in against lesser goal keepers. Hopefully these chances will continue and hopefully some will start crossing the goal line or else we could find ourselves at the bottom of the table very soon.
  4. I am not sure of Yu’s role going forward as he wasn’t asked to take any of the FKs after he entered the match. Motegi took almost all of the FKs while we used a combination of Uesato, Motegi and Koizumi on CKs. I hope this changes as dead-ball kicks are Yu’s strength.
  5. A fair amount of our corner kicks failed to make it over the first line of Fukuoka defenders last night. That is not great considering we have height in there in the form of Uehara and Yong Jick. We need to get the big boys more involved on set pieces.
  6. We saw all 5 substitutes being used last night. Unfortunately, Shinji Ono wasn’t one of them. A more settled back 4 will allow more attacking players to come on when needed, or more defenders when needed as well.

Match Day 2 Around J2

The Wild: Ehime came back from 3 goals down to beat Vortis 4-3 when former FC Ryukyu defender, Nishioka, scored in the 96th minute. Kofu also tied their match with Niigata with a late (94th minute) equalizer. Finally, even though Kanazawa and Matsumoto ended 0-0, they must have hit the post at least 6 times that game and I cannot recall seeing so many shots ring the woodwork in any one match.

The Whacky: Watching one of the Mito players – who was just subbed off- not even care that his team just scored their second goal as he was standing directly behind the net and did not even bother to acknowledge that a goal was scored was kind of refreshing. Also, my son and daughter while watching the FC Ryukyu game pointed out the fact that a player’s butt was being shown on TV from the Avispa locker room last night. Whoops!

The Wonderful: Kyoto Sanga beat Jubilo Iwata 2-0 in a game featuring two of the sides tipped to earn promotion in 2020. But that wasn’t the best part. It was the post goal celebrations, especially the bowling pin routine by Kyoto, that made the match.

The Best Goals of Round 2

#1. Takuma Abe of FC Ryukyu for his solo effort and shot.

#2. Luan of V-Varen Nagasaki with his 65th minute goal. Like Abe, he collected the ball in how own end, made a darting solo run forward, executed a nice little give-and-go with Ibarbo -who then sent a back-heel pass back to Luan, who calmly slotted the shot past Nagai of Kitakyushu. Might’ve been top had he not botched the post goal celebration.

#3. Taiki Hirato from FC Machida Zelvia sent a beautiful curler past the Verdy keeper from the top of the 18-yard box.

Some honorbale mentions have to be Delgado’s goal against FC Ryukyu as well as Watanabe’s (Yamagata) goal against Tochigi SC. What do you guys think?

Conclusion

It was a great re-opening weekend for football here in Japan. Maybe we haven’t fully appreciated the game in the past as we’ve been able to watch and enjoy football whenever we wanted. I think the break in action from CV-19 has allowed us to enjoy things, such as sport, a little more since we now realize that it can be taken away from us at any moment.

I was also glad to see the boys from Oki in action as it was 232 days since we last saw FC Ryukyu host a match and that is just way too long. For now, FC Ryukyu have registered their first point and first goal of 2020 and look to notch their first win when they travel to 20th place Giravanz Kitakyushu on Saturday July 4th.  

“Do You Remember When?” Match Day 1 Report: JEF UTD Chiba vs. FC Ryukyu 2/23/20 #FC琉球

I wasn’t quite sure how to start this entry as it has been well over 120 days since the opening match for FC Ryukyu and I have seriously procrastinated on writing the Match Day 1 report. Partly because I wanted to see how things played out for the 2020 season and partly because I wanted to have something to write about on my blog in the event that everything dried up and the season was cancelled.

Well, it is time to get moving again as the season is set to resume in less than a week and the fixtures will come thick and fast for FC Ryukyu. If you would like to see what the 2020 schedule looks like, I wrote a piece on the newly revamped schedule earlier so please go check that out for all the new fixture dates and kickoff times for FC Ryukyu.

But in the meantime, sit back and enjoy the first Match Day Report of the 2020 season (120 days in the making so it better be good!)

Match Recap

Leading up to the opening match of 2020, many wondered if FC Ryukyu had addressed their defensive woes from 2019 as well as found suitable replacements for the strike duo of Koji Suzuki and Satoki Uejo. Having to strengthen at the back as well as at the front is not a great recipe for success but FC Ryukyu were the side that surrendered the most goals in J2 (81) last season and needed to replace the 29 goals vacated by Suzuki and Uejo’s departures.

Well, it took exactly 40 seconds to figure out the answer to the first question after JEF opened the scoring when Koki Yonekura split our defenders and pushed a header past Taguchi who was starting in place of the injured Dany Carvajal. That would be the only goal of the game which was a bit disappointing from a FC Ryukyu supporter perspective as it leaves us searching for the answer to the second question.

FC Ryukyu had the majority of possession this game and the best chance to score after the opening goal, yet failed to equalize. Ren Ikeda came close to leveling the match with a header that was just inches wide; Kawai created several chances with his speed and looked really good while both Tavares and Koki Kazama came close to scoring.  The most frustrating part was when Kawai was taken down in the 18-yard box, in a clear foul, yet no PK was awarded allowing the game to end 1-0 in favor of JEF.

There was one moment of brilliance for FC Ryukyu this match and it occurred when defender Yong Jick cleared a wide open shot off the line from a misdirected Taguchi touch that resulted in a wide-open shot from distance by a JEF player. Yong Jick hustled back to clear the ball off the line while going crashing into the side netting which allowed FC Ryukyu to be down just one goal and not two.

Man of the Match

FC Ryukyu RB Felipe Tavares: There was much uncertainty surrounding the player from Brazil when he signed this offseason and was then thrust into the lineup while incumbent RB Torikai, worked his way back to full match fitness. Though it should be noted that Torikai was fit enough to make the bench for the match.

From my vantage point, I watched Tavares win corners for FC Ryukyu, become an asset on corner kicks and take on opposing players in defense. Corners won isn’t an official statistic but Tavares provided plenty of opportunities for FC Ryukyu to equalize while defending admirably this match.

Match Day 1 Prediction

I thought it would’ve ended 2-1 in favor of JEF, and though I predicted the winner correctly, FC Ryukyu were shut out against JEF for the third time in as many games. I’ll score that as a draw thus bringing my season total to 0-1-0.

Review of the Keys to Victory Against JEF

I mentioned in the Match Day Preview that I would associate a level of confidence to each of the keys to victory to indicate the likelihood that it may or may not occur during the match.

The Scale: 5- An almost certainty this will Happen 4-Fairly Certain it will Happen 3-Somewhat Certain it may Happen 2-Very Unlikely that it Happens 1- Requires a Miracle of Sorts

1. Stifle the JEF attack and do not expose the FCR goal keeper. Likelihood: 2. This one was blown apart within the first 40 seconds of the match. The defense did settle down the rest of the match and prevented any more goals from getting past Junto Taguchi on his FC Ryukyu debut.

2. Exploit the JEF back line. Likelihood: 4. FC Ryukyu had several quality chances this match, but none resulted in a goal. In fact they dominated the amount of shots and possession.

3. Capitalize on whatever opportunities are afforded by the JEF defense. Likelihood: 3. The score line indicates all you need to know about this one.

Match Day 1 Takeaways

Not all doom and gloom FC Ryukyu fans. Yes, we did not score and yes there are some serious concerns if we will be as free scoring as we’ve come to enjoy here in Okinawa.  But the team never quit and they enjoyed so much possession in the JEF end of the pitch, and controlled large portions of the game over a team that some have tipped for promotion.

The new signings Tavares, Ikeda, Motegi, Numata, Yong Jick and Suzuki provide a lot of optimism going forward and as we all know; you cannot put too much stock into one match. It is likely that FC Ryukyu will need a few matches to gel since the season was interrupted and the players were just learning to play along side each other for the first time so expect some more of the early growing pains.

Maybe the biggest takeaway from this match is that it is highly unlikely we see crowds of that size, sitting in that close proximity, creating that great footballing atmosphere, any time soon. And that is pretty disappointing.

Should you care? Not sure. We all know what is in store for the 2020 season so we need not worry about relegation. We should concern ourselves with how FC Ryukyu will finish out the season with the second oldest squad in the J2 (27.9 is our average age for players), and one that isn’t rostering as many players as it has in past seasons (27 in 2020 compared to 35 in 2019). Until then, football is back, for now.

Match Day 1 around the J2

Some of the interesting matches included Renofa Yamaguchi shocking everyone’s promotion favorite, Kyoto Sanga FC, 1-0 and then Tokushima Vortis ripping apart Tokyo Verdy 3-0. Both newly promoted Kitakyushu and Gunma lost their opening fixtures with the newly demoted duo of Jubilo Iwata and Matsumoto Yamaga winning their innagural rounds.

There was only 1 draw on the day and that occurred between Machida Zelvia and Ventforet Kofu.

Conclusion

A quick glance of the table sees FC Ryukyu only above 3 teams: Verdy, Gunma and Montedio. All the teams that finished below FC Ryukyu in 2019 sit comfortably above them (after 1 game). It is hard to read too much into this considering that everyone’s last match occurred just over 4 months ago.

FC Ryukyu should be at, or near, full strength when the season resumes on June 28th but there are still plenty of questions that need answered before we can pass judgement on this squad and this season.

(and we just lost stating LM Shuto Kawai to an ankle ligament injury for at least a month)

I am glad that we’ll see Dany Carvajal back in net and have a full compliment of healthy defenders heading into the 2020 schedule gauntlet. But we still don’t know who will lead the line up front as this year’s talisman and we are down to 2 healthy strikers. We also need to see some better defensive performances from the back line and goalies this year so as to improve on the 6 total shut outs FC Ryukyu posted last season.

Well, the long drought of no football will quickly be behind us and I for one hope that the season can continue uninterrupted. It will be interesting to see if the larger clubs will be willing to loan out players as they’ve done in the past with the possibility of having to isolate players for weeks at a time who test positive for CV-19.  Who knows, we may see FC Ryukyu dip into the summer transfer market and pull some prospects up from the J3.

But for now, stay safe and enjoy the return of football this weekend.

J1/J2 Playoff Final Match Report: (J1) Shonan Bellmare 1-1 (J2) Tokushima Vortis 12/14/2018

Intro

What a disappointing finish to the 2019 J league playoffs. I say disappointing as I think so many of us wanted to see Tokushima Vortis reach the J1. Stuart Smith from the J-Talk Extra time podcast (@sushi_football) said it the best in the latest installment, “The J2 needs Tokushima to defeat Shonan and reach the J1.” But as we’ve all come to expect with such a titled playoff structure, Tokushima couldn’t get the second goal that would see them through and the draw kept them in the J2 for 2020.

Match Report

Tokushima made some very nice early runs in the match and were rewarded with the opening goal in the 20th minute by Tokuma Suzuki. Suzukui redirected a headed cross back into the box from a corner kick with a really nice volley. It was a dream start for the visitors as it meant that the game would really open up for them. The playing field was “leveled,” but they still needed a 2nd goal.

In a testament to how good this Vortis side was yesterday, and all year actually, all the post-match highlights were that of Vortis with only one from Shonan. That one being the Temma Matsuda 64th minute equalizer. Matsuda was able to power his way through several Vortis defenders who were attempting to clear the ball from danger. Temma was able to get past them all in a very bullish run and put a shot into the back of the net.

Vortis still had time to grab another goal and they had two great opportunities that were just wide. The final insult to injury for Vortis was their last shot on net in the 4th minute of stoppage time was centimeters wide. It curled the side netting, leading some to believe, including me, they had done the impossible. It was a terrible feeling as a neutral and absolutely gutting for the Vortis fans, players and manager.

THE PLAYOFF SYSTEM IS BROKE AND NEEDS FIXED

So many people have taken to Twitter over the past 3 weeks of this competition to voice their frustration at an absolutely one-sided playoff system that favors not only home teams, but the J1 side facing possible relegation in the final match. Let’s quickly review the obvious problems:

1. Home teams have the advantage of only needing a draw to advance.

2. The J1 side, historically, plays less matches than the J2 side.

I am not sure how this ridiculously corrupt system was created and implemented but it needs to be changed for 2020. Consider that there is no longer a playoff requirement between the second place J3 side and the 21st placed J2 side It was abolished in 2017 and the J1/J2 system needs to follow suit. In fact, that system at least allowed for a home & home series between the competitors.

How the playoff system should be changed:

1. Drop bottom 3 of J1 and promote top 2 of J2 as well as the J2 playoff winner. Scrap the game between the J1 & J2 sides.

2. If option #1 isn’t going to happen then eliminate the rule that allows home teams to advance just for earning a draw. If player safety was the concern for not having the games progress to extra time since these sides have already played at least 43 matches this year, then simply go straight to penalty kicks. This would at least force the home team not to sit back on their laurels while putting tremendous pressure on visiting sides to score 2 goals.

3. They need better scheduling of the playoff matches and make them an important event and not scheduled during the same start times of the J1 & J3 leagues who are closing out their season. It would be great to see these games treated like many of the tiers in English Football with the final being held at a neutral ground.

Conclusion

While you would certainly not take umbrage with seeing the fans from the J1 side crying tears of joy at the fact that their side staved off relegation. I cannot get on-board with seeing the J1 players weeping as if they just won some major trophy. I would assume the tears stemmed from the fact that he’ll be playing on a more lucrative J1 contract in 2020, compared to that of a J2 contract, but that was absolutely classless in my opinion. Full credit for Vortis for holding their heads up in the midst of all that adversity.   

J1/J2 Playoffs Round 2 Match Report: Tokushima Vortis 1-0 Montedio Yamagata 12/8/2019

Intro

Tokushima Vortis are moving on the final playoff round after their 1-0 victory over Montedio Yamagata this past Sunday. For Vortis, it means they will play Shonan Bellmare this upcoming Saturday. For Montedio, it leaves them to wonder what could have been. There were some exciting games this Sunday to round out both the final round of the J1 & J3, as well as the playoff semi-final in the J2.

Match Recap

As one has come to expect with these playoffs, Montedio needed to come out on the front foot as a draw would not be good enough to advance. Montedio nearly got the dream start they were hoping for when last weeks hero for Vortis, Jordy Buijs, almost became this week’s goat. He was dispossessed by Yuya Yamagishi just outside the edge of his own 18-yard box. Yamagishi then fired a cross into the box where Haruya Ide was able to get on the end of it. Luckily for Vortis, the bang-bang play, and shot from point blank range, ended up being stopped by the scrambling Kajikawa who was able to get back in time and get a hand to the shot.

From here, Vortis began to take over the match and nearly scored off a beautiful give-and-go with Shimaya in the 32nd minute. Yamagata fizzed a header just wide of the right post from a corner kick but the half would end 0-0.

Tokushima’s breakthrough occurred in the 53rd minute with a beautifully executed play between Namura and Kawata. Namura received a pass after a Montedio giveaway in the Vortis half. Kawata, seeing the wide-open lanes between the Yamagata defenders, began to make a run to which Namura picked him out with a tremendous through ball. The pass put Kawata alone on net with only the Montedio goal keeper to beat. Kawata coolly finished off the play with a beautiful chip over the top of the goalie and thrust Tokushima into the playoff final.

Yamagata had a legit argument for a PK in the 74th minute when their attacker was brought down in the box. But, as I’ve seen with this particular referee throughout the season, he missed the obvious call. However, it wasn’t just his fault as there was the “extra official” on the touch line and he should’ve seen this, and conferred with the referee to make the call, but Yamagata were simply unlucky. Montedio’s last chance came in the 88th minute when a free kick from about 25 yards out sailed just high over the bar and onto the top of the net.

Final Score: Tokushima Vortis 1-0 Montedio Yamagata

Round 34 Recap in J1

The main games we were concerned with were the Matsumoto Yamaga FC versus Shonan Bellmare and the Shimizu S-Pulse against Sagan Tosu. Shimizu scored in the 68th minute and began to put pressure on Sagan to equalize as Shonan had yet to score and they required a win to put either of Shimizu or Sagan into the playoff relegation bracket. In the 85th minute, Shonan, on the road, scored a massive goal after a rather lackluster performance all day. Whether or not the word of that score line made it back to Sagan didn’t matter as Sagan never equalized against Shimizu and the game ended 1-0. But then the unbelievable happened, Matsumoto equalized in the 90th minute to crush the hopes of Shonan and send them into the final playoff match against Vortis.

Round 34 Recap in J3

Kagoshima fans were intently watching the matchup between Thespakusatsu Gunma versus Fukushima United FC and Fujieda MYFC against Giravanz Kitakyushu. If Fujieda were to finish second in J3, then Kagoshima would not be relegated as they do not hold a J2 license. However, Gunma were able to handily defeat Fukushima 2-1 and relegate Kagoshima United FC despite Fujieda’s 1-0 victory over the J3 champions. 

Conclusion

Yokohama F Marinos are the J1 champions, Kitakyushu are the J3 champions. Gunma will join Kitakyushu in the J2 in 2020 with Kagoshima United FC returning to the J3 after only one season in the J2 and all eyes will be focused on the playoff final between Shonan Bellmare and Tokushima Vortis this upcoming Saturday. There is only more round for the J League and then the semi-finals and finals of the Emperor Cup remain before we close out the 2019 season.

J1/J2 Playoffs Round 1: Match Recaps 12/01/2019

Intro

The first round of the J1/J2 playoffs concluded this past Sunday with both Montedio Yamagata and Tokushima Vortis advancing to the second round. This was contrary to my predictions of Kofu and Omiya advancing, but anybody that regularly reads my blog knows that my match predictions are not that accurate.

For those relatively unfamiliar with the J1/J2 playoff system, it heavily favors the home side in any match. The home side merely has to earn a draw to advance, and as Jordy Buijs so accurately said in his postgame interview, it requires the away team to score at least 2 goals which is never an easy task. With that in mind, it is easy to see why the away team must come out on the front foot and try and score early and often. And why the home team never is out of the match despite a goal disadvantage. A draw is as good as a win in this format. With that, below is a brief summary of the matches and a look ahead to the second round.

#3 Omiya Ardija vs #6 Montedio Yamagata

Omiya entered the match having lost only 3 times at home all season while conceding only 2 goals to their opponents during their last 5 home games. Montedio on the other hand, lost 4 out of the final 10 road games and were conceding at nearly the same rate they were scoring as the visitors. However, there were some visible cracks to the Omiya side as they had only scored 1 goal from open play, the other being an own goal, over their final 3 matches. Meaning, the Omiya attack had dried up and was failing to fire at the worst possible time.

As noted in the introduction, Montedio came out strong and were generating a majority of the goal scoring chances. You wouldn’t know that from the limited highlights on DAZN but Montedio looked like they were going to crack the Omiya defense early. In fact, they should’ve received a dead ball kick from just outside the 18-yard box when the Omiya defender blocked a shot with his arm. However, the call wasn’t given and the half ended with a 0-0 scoreline. What seemed interesting about this half was that Simovic was creating all sorts of problems for the Monetedio defenders but he was not paired up top with Delgado. In fact, Delgado came on in place of Simovic after half time since Simovic had picked up a yellow card. Maybe that was a smart move on behalf of the Omiya manager, Takagi, as we’ll see later from the Kofu match.

Both sides traded some goal scoring chances for the first 25 minutes before the real fireworks took place. I couldn’t tell from the replay if it was #23 or #27 who sent the cross in from a CK but in any case, the cross ended up being sent to the back of the net by #18 of Omiya, Ippei Shinozuka, for an own goal. Now, Omiya, specifically Delgado, began to argue that it was a clear-cut case of off sides. However, the refereeing crew got the call correct in that the Montedio FW didn’t make contact with the ball as it was entering the net or interfere with play. In fact, he did really well to lay off it and let the ball roll past the keeper. Delgado was visibly upset that the offside call wasn’t given and then stupidly bumped into the referee. The ref was then forced to issue a yellow card and this was probably not what Takagi was hoping for when he made the early substitution for Simovic. However, Omiya still had 15 minutes plus stoppage time to level the match and advance.

Unfortunately for Omiya that goal would never come and instead they were shell-shocked from a second goal by Montedio 9 minutes later.  A perfectly weighted and placed cross from Yanagi to the deep corner of the box found Yamada who then headed the cross back across the mouth of goal where Yamagishi had made a nice run between the Omiya defenders. Yamagishi slotted home the second goal for Yamagata and it was visible across the faces of most of the Omiya players that they had could offer no response to get back in the match.

Final Score Montedio Yamagata 2-0 Omiya Ardija.

Yamagata are marching on to face Tokushima while Omiya were left pondering where it all went so wrong. Omiya were earmarked by many to not only be promoted to J1 at the start of the season, but to advance through these playoffs and face the 16th placed J1 side in 2 weeks. Well that isn’t going to happen and after reading a lot of the Twitter posts from the Omiya supporters, it seems that it is time to clean house and start anew for 2020.

Jefferson Baiano informing the Omiya crowd of their chances at advancing. BTW, this is act is considered unsportsmanlike, incurs a fine and suspension in the NFL.

#4 Tokushima Vortis vs #5 Ventforet Kofu

This was billed as the most enticing match up of the opening playoff fixtures as it pitted two very strong sides against one another. Each had overwhelming strengths when it came to winning at home, or on the road in the case of Kofu, as well as scoring goals and preventing their opponent from scoring. In the match preview I had picked Kofu to advance because I am a strong proponent for those teams that have displayed the ability to win against tougher opponents on the road. Maybe that is my inner NFL fan emerging but it is a key factor come playoff time and I certainly thought Kofu could do the job this Sunday.

This was a feisty affair with both sides committing bookable, and hard, offenses early and often. However, it was Kofu that was picking up the yellow cards as none of the Vortis players were booked. As an outsider, it looked a bit harsh that the referee was only issuing the cards to Kofu as Vortis were certainly guilty of a yellow card on one occasion. Kofu had picked up an astounding 3 yellow cards in the first half while Vortis received none. The one booking that never came was when Allano was brought down by a high boot to his upper legs after rounding the Vortis player. I cannot recall what Allano was booked for earlier but his complaint to the referee seemed to indicate that he did the same, or less, to receive his yellow and why shouldn’t the Vortis player receive the same treatment. In any event Kofu were toeing a fine line when it came to fouls as 3 players are sitting on yellow cards before half time.

Much as one would expect, Kofu had to press early in order to overcome what seems to be the invisible, but very present, 1 goal deficit even before they kickoff. However, it was Vortis who struck first from a well taken shout by Jordy Buijs in the 37th minute. Jordy had found some space between the Kofu defense and turned a cross into the upper right corner of the goal just past Kawata. Kawata, who made a spectacular save just a few minutes earlier, could do absolutely nothing on the play. It was strange watching Tokushima celebrate the 1 goal advantage as if they had just scored deep into extra time, but this is what you get in the current construct of the playoff system. It now meant that Kofu are now required to score 2 goals in order to advance.

Kofu were able to respond, and respond rather quickly, from a Peter Utaka goal just 2 minutes later. He received the pass and as he did, the ball bounced up a little and he was able to strike it with his right foot and put some swerve and dip on the shot. Kajikawa was forced to rise to parry the shot over the net but he accidentally swatted the ball into the goal instead of out of danger as he initially intended. This type of response can motivate teams to go on a win but for Kofu, it was not meant to be.

Allano picked up his second yellow card, which obviously would lead to a red card and sending off, for a very poor challenge just after kickoff in the second half. I blame the Kofu manager, Ito, for not substituting Allano at half time. It was obvious to anyone watching the game on Sunday that Allano was angling for a second booking from his rash challenges all half. In fact, he committed a challenge in the first half after his booking and the calls from the home crowd for another card were loud and noticeable. I blame Ito as he should’ve seen that this particular referee was not averse to pulling out the yellow card for his side while keeping it in his pocket for Vortis. He should’ve also noticed that Allano was not making smart decisions at the point of challenges and he should have given his side a chance to advance instead of facing long odds to score when down to 10 men.

Kofu did all they could to go for the second goal but it was never going to happen. Tokushima are advancing and will now host Montedio while Kofu’s season ends in bitter disappointment.

Final score Tokushima Vortis 1-1 Ventforet Kofu

Jordy Buijs Quotes: “1, when we score 1 goal they need to score 2 and it is not easy to score 2 goals on us. 2, We had 3 advantages today, 2 before the start of the game; our home crowd and the point that we only needed a draw to advance. They gave us another when they had a man sent off.” About as accurate as you can get with the post game interview.

Tokushima Vortis vs Montedio Yamagata 12/08/2019

These sides drew 1 all at Tokushima in May with Yamagata getting a 3-1 win over Vortis in late July. Tokushima are entering this match with serous amounts of momentum on their side while Montedio have to be buoyed by their performance this past Sunday against Omiya. There was a strong showing by the Yamagata supporters this past match and I hope they can bring the same amount of people, and intensity, to Tokushima as their boys will certainly need all the support they can get against a very tough, very determined Vortis side.

“Almost Famous” Match Day 42 Report: Ventforet Kofu 2-0 FC Ryukyu 11/24/2019

Intro

FC Ryukyu ended their season on a bit of a sour note this past Sunday when they fell 2-0 to Ventforet Kofu. They nearly pulled of what would have been a very famous upset on the last day of the season but were never able to score. The loss results in an overall record of 13 wins, 10 draws and 19 losses for FC Ryukyu during the 2019 campaign. For Kofu, the win books them a ticket into the promotion playoffs where they will travel to Tokushima to take on a surging Vortis side.

Match Recap

Starting Lineup & Reserves: J League website

FC Ryukyu were simply unlucky. That is all I can say. While Kofu fired the opening salvo in the first minute of the match, the better side on Sunday was FC Ryukyu for much of the match. Uehara had a shot just inches wide that would’ve put Ryukyu out in front in 18th minute. Fukui would’ve doubled their lead, or at least opened the scoring, 4 minutes later but his header hit the post. Uejo’s FK was just a matter of inches wide or Ryukyu would’ve leveled the match in the second half. Song Sun nearly found a wide-open Koizumi in the 85th minute from a header he brought back across the mouth of goal but a Kofu defender beat Koizumi to the ball. Finally, Kawai made an excellent break down the left when he went past the Kofu defender with his speed and his shot, which was a tricky lofted one, required the Kofu keeper to tip it over the bar or it may have ended up in the back of the net.

That is a total of 5 goal scoring opportunities that FC Ryukyu had that unfortunately resulted in 0 goals. FC Ryukyu’s dominance was evident in the possession column as they had an astounding 70% in the first half and ended the match with 69%. Ryukyu did all they could to win this game and they put in quite a shift despite the scoreline.

Kofu had 3 highlights this game and 2 of them were goals. One on a deflection that found a wide-open Soneda and the other off a counter where Uejo was rushing to cover the back line with a very nicely taken finish by Soneda for his second. But these things happen in sports, more often than you would like. It’s not always the better performing, or stronger side, that prevails in every game. Kofu made the most of their opportunities and FC Ryukyu did not, it is as simple as that.

As an away fan, all we wanted to see was 1 FC Ryukyu goal. That is the most unfortunate part in all of this. FC Ryukyu were on the front foot for most of the match and looked the better side. They were not over-matched, not out played and definitely not outclassed. They were however, outscored.

From the JLeague website

Man of the Match

JLeague website photo

Ventforet Kofu. FW #11 Yutaka Soneda. Scored both goals against FC Ryukyu on Sunday.  

Review of the Keys to Victory for FC Ryukyu

1. Play Within Yourselves. PASS: There was nothing in the game that suggested FC Ryukyu had a poor performance. They were simply unlucky.

2. Frustrate Kofu. PASS: Kofu did not score until the added time of the first half and it was only after a deflection fell directly to a wide-open Kofu player. FC Ryukyu controlled the possession and tempo of this match.

3. Park the Bus. FAIL: But in a good way. FC Ryukyu’s game plan was definitely not to sit back, instead, they were attacking early and going for the win all game. Kofu had their first counter attack in the opening minute of the game and only a superb save by Ishii on the Utaka shot prevented Kofu from scoring. Kofu’s second goal stemmed from a counter attack but at that point FC Ryukyu were throwing all they could at Kofu so it is understandable.

4. Score. Fail: 2-0, enough said.

Match Day 42 Prediction

Guessed 4-1 and it ended 2-0. A respectable performance by the boys on the final match day of the year.

Match Day 42 Recap in J2

Yokohama FC earned the second automatic promotion spot with a 2-0 win over Ehime FC. Omiya’s draw at Kanazawa meant they would finish fourth. Yamagata’s shocking home loss to Zelvia means they drop down to the 6th and final playoff spot as both Vortis and Kofu won to round out places 4 and 5.

Speaking of the shocking win by Zelvia, it staved off relegation for a side facing huge odds on Sunday with the hardest draw of all the possible relegation sides. Tochigi SC also pulled off a miracle by beating JEF on the road and climbing out of the relegation zone for the first time on over 3 months. In doing so, Kagoshima was forced down as they succumbed to Avispa 2-1. It is unfortunate that Kagoshima went down as they were the 2nd J3 club from 2018 to be promoted along with FC Ryukyu. It’s also unfortunate because they are the first side to be promoted from J3 and relegated the very next season.

Conclusion

Despite the loss, the spirits of the traveling FC Ryukyu supporters was very high this day. In fact, I haven’t seen a crowd that lively since the Omiya match. There were definitely more supports there than I thought would actually show up and it is a testament to this club that so many people are willing to spend their hard-earned money to come see FC Ryukyu away from Okinawa.

While it is nice to reminisce about the past season, the J2 2020 season for FC Ryukyu starts now. There is less than 100 days between the closeout of the 2019 season and the opening of the 2020 season. FC Ryukyu are certainly going to lose some players this off-season and they will also be looking to strengthen the squad. I anticipate some players being released sooner, rather than later, and we should all monitor the website/twitter feed of FC Ryukyu for any new information.

Even with the busy off-season ahead of FC Ryukyu, there is still a lot of football left in the J2. There are the semi-finals of the promotion playoffs this weekend followed by the final either mid-week or the next weekend. Then there will be the remaining game between the winner of the J1 promotional playoffs and 16th placed team in the J1 table. Not bad for a neutral fan whose season has just ended.

In the coming weeks I will release some end of the year articles as well as preview all the important matches remaining on the J2 fixture list. See you soon.

“Lucky #13” Match Day 41 Report: Ehime FC 1-2 FC Ryukyu 11/16/2019

from @bengara_viola

Intro

FC Ryukyu won their 4th road game in a row – I still cannot believe I am typing that- in dramatic fashion with a 2-1 win over hosts Ehime FC. Ryukyu is undefeated in their last 6 road games with 4 wins and 2 draws dating back to the Kanazawa match in mid-September. FC Ryukyu moved up to 14th in the table on 49 points but the victory meant more for the fans that it does for the overall outcome of season standings. FC Ryukyu have reached 13 wins and more importantly, will not lose more than half of their total contests in their inaugural J2 season. Truly a job well done.

Match DAY 41 Recap

As expected with two evenly matches squads, the game was back forth and rife with opportunities. FC Ryukyu made several changes to their starting 11 this week. First, they swapped Uehara for Song Sun at RB and then moved Uehara to striker as it seems Yamada was either suspended or hurt (or sent home from his loan spell). FCR also moved Tomidokoro back into the squad as Uejo served his 1 match ban for yellow card accumulation.

FC Ryukyu controlled a majority of the possession during the match, somewhere in the high 50% range and were afforded several opportunities early on. None of which were converted. In fact, it was Ehime FC who got on the board first with a 14th minute goal from Kawamura. As I mentioned in the preview, FC Ryukyu needed to watch 2 play-makers in the Ehime side, #39 Shimokawa and #7 Kondo. It was a cross by Shimokawa into a dangerous area in front the of the Ryukyu goal that opened the scoring. I initially thought that Ishii should’ve done better, but after looking at the goal several times, there wasn’t much more he could do. He slid out at the correct time but the Ehime player made contact with him thus causing a deflection to fall into the path of the onrushing Kawamura, who easily rounded the pile of bodies in front of net and scored a wide-open goal. Could the ref have called interference with Ishii? Possibly, his angle and direction of slide would’ve allowed him to corral the ball had he not been interfered with but nevertheless, FC Ryukyu were down 1-0 early. Keep in mind, Ehime were shut-out in 4 of their previous 5 matches so this was a huge boost to this sides chances for earning a favorable result.

It would be way to harsh to criticize Song Sun on this play despite the wide real estate he afforded Shimokawa to make the pass. Song Sun is not an RB. In fact, he was seen drifting deeper and deeper into the attacking third early on this match. Of course, this is the tendency for a player who’s only played in the attacking mid-field role his whole career. You could see one of the central defenders of FC Ryukyu screaming at him to get out wide and cover Shimokawa but it was already too late when Song Sun recovered as the cross was delivered. Just like many of us that are asked to perform tasks outside of our normal work duties, Song Sun did the best he could in the limited training sessions and game time he had last week in preparing for this change of position. More damming to the side is the question of, what is going on at the training ground if we can only dress 3 healthy defenders the past 4 weeks?

I mentioned in the previous paragraph about #7 Kondo being the only other player FC Ryukyu should be mindful of during the match and boy did he make his presence known. He nearly doubled the Ehime lead in the first half when his pace allowed him to get past the Ryukyu defense on a counter with a clear break away on net. Luckily his finish wasn’t that spectacular or this game could’ve turned out much differently for FC Ryukyu.  FC Ryukyu would head to half time down 1-0 but by no means were they over-matched.

FC Ryukyu upped the tempo in the second half and were knocking on the door for a goal to get them back in the match. The break through occurred in the 66th minute when a Tokumoto cross found Uehara at the edge of the 6-yard box on the left side of the Ehime goal keeper. The cross itself was sent into a dangerous area with great precision but it was slightly short and took an awkward bounce. This actually proved fortuitous for FC Ryukyu as Uehara judged the cross exceptionally well and hesitated a bit when the Ehime defender kept moving forward. This resulted in a wide-open shooting lane for which Uehara hit one of his signature headers back across the goal keeper. In what seemed to be an eternity, the ball slowly bounced past the keeper and into the side netting just inside the right post of the Ehime goal. FC Ryukyu had equalized and Ehime were now back on their heels and reeling.

FC Ryukyu really dominated the remaining 20 minutes or so and were creating several dead ball opportunities. Unfortunately, none came to fruition and in fact, it seemed we squandered a majority of these chances with poorly taken kicks. FC Ryukyu had introduced both Koizumi, and Ramon into the side in exchange for Yu and Koya but this was counter to what i had hoped for in order to see what these players offer in an extend appearance. These are electric players with quickness, pace and in the case of Ramon, power. I really like the way the attack functions when these players are in the lineup and I hope we are starting to see the future 2020 attacking midfield for FC Ryukyu take shape.

In the 89th minute, a pass from the golden locks of Koizumi, found a wide-open Kawai just atop the 18-yard box. Kawai showed great maturity and development by allowing the ball to roll across his body, dragging Okamoto across net to cut down the angle and then released a snap shot back across goal leaving the Ehime keeper no chance. Absolutely breathtaking and exciting. Too bad my infant son was sleeping as I could only let out a minor fist pump instead of an all out scream.  Ryukyu were up 2-1 with only about 4 minutes in stoppage time remaining and in complete control. Ehime had one last gasp but nothing came of it and the boys from Okinawa were victorious once again.

J League website
J League website

Man of the Match

From J League website

Shuto Kawai. His speed proved too much for Ehime FC as he was all over the place wreaking havoc. His goal, which was his second road-winning goal in a row, was a thing of beauty. Kawai has now amassed 2 goals and 2 assists in his last 5 games. He is, and needs to remain, the staring LM for FC Ryukyu in 2019 and beyond.

Review of the Keys to Victory for FC Ryukyu

1. Finish in front of goal. PASS: Uehara and Kawai made up for some of the poorer efforts early on.

2. Work hard for set pieces. PASS/FAIL: FC Ryukyu had an abundance of set pieces in the latter stages of the second half but the deliveries were not good. Several players stepped up to take corners and the set pieces but nobody had any luck yesterday.

Match Day Prediction

I said 2-2 and it was close had Kondo from Ehime connected on that counter attack in the first half.

Match Day Takeaways

1. We did see some playing time for likes of Koizumi and Ramon but not nearly enough. I will maintain this stance even when we play Kofu next week as a win is merely a moral victory at this point. I wouldn’t care if we saw whole sale changes across the squad next week but I doubt that as we have few healthy defenders to begin with. Who knows, maybe we see Sanches out there next Sunday. And why not, there is nothing to lose but a meaningless remaining fixture.

2. Kawai is the real deal. If we can retain him, Koya and get the likes of Koizumi and Ramon involved for 2020 then I really like our chances for improving on a 14/15th place finish in 2019. It will take time for that front 3 to gel but their combination of burst, pace, power and in the case of Koya, maturity, could be hugely beneficial for this club next season. Now we just have to wait on the transfer market to see what direction FC Ryukyu goes.

Around the J2 on Match Day 41

Kashiwa Reysol were officially crowned the 2019 J2 champions and will make an immediate return to J1 for the 2020 season. Congratulations to them and best of luck in 2020. I am not sure if teams in the J2 conduct the “guard of honor” when the champions walk out for their remaining fixtures in the season and know for sure it doesn’t happen in J3. Would be nice to see.

Yokohama improved their chances of automatic promotion with a 1-0 victory over Okayama whereas Omiya stumbled again drawing 1-1 with Niigata at home. Yokohama may get the auto promotion as they face Ehime at home with Omiya needing to beat Kanazawa on the road.

Yamagata, Tokushima, Kofu, Kyoto and Mito are all still in the hunt for a promotion playoff spot. Really wide open with a wild end of season weekend forthcoming. FC Ryukyu are certainly going to see a full Kofu squad go all out for the win next week. God I’d love to be spoilers for their season and you know exactly why.

Tochigi SC won 1-0 over Nagasaki but so did Kagoshima over promotion seeking side Mito in a shock result. If Tochigi win and Kagoshima lose next week, Kagoshima will be relegated. Both have favorable draws to end the season.

FC Gifu were officially relegated with their loss to Kofu and any of you who saw the video clip on twitter of the young Gifu fan crying truly understand what promotion and relegation means to a team’s fans. That is why all we ever ask as fans is that players go out there every week and put in a shift.

Conclusion

All in all it will be a very drama filled weekend to close out the J2 season. FC Ryukyu will play their final match away at Kofu, who themselves, are looking to book a ticket into the promotion playoff round. I said that I hoped FC Ryukyu could grab one more win to close out the season for their fans and they did just that this past Saturday. Now, be smart, put pride aside and get some younger players the much needed match day experiences against a stronger foe who is certainly going to go all out for the game. The 2020 season starts now.

“Soured Curtain Call” Match Day 40 Report: FC Ryukyu 0-3 Kyoto Sanga FC 11/10/2019

Intro

The final home game of the 2019 J2 season for FC Ryukyu ended in a 3-0 defeat at the hands of Kyoto Sanga. Not the type of ending that the club, nor its fans, were hoping for. Nonetheless, the boys from Okinawa achieved some marvelous results during their 21 home games this season that included wins over Mito and Tokushima with dramatic draws against Kashiwa and Yamagata. The only thing that was regrettable on Sunday was that FC Ryukyu failed to score a goal and give the home crowd something to celebrate.

From the JLeague website

Match Recap

FC Ryukyu looked up for the match for must of the first half despite some of the poor passing and cheap giveaways they execute din the first 10 minutes. In fact, FC Ryukyu had most of the possession, 64%, and three of the best opportunities from Tokumoto, Uehara and Koya. Kyoto hit the post in the 25th minute but other than that, it was al FC Ryukyu early on. The fact that FC Ryukyu didn’t score from a golden opportunity when Yamada had s shot blocked, really hurt this sides chances of achieving a favorable result on Sunday.

FC Ryukyu came out fast to start the second half and had Uejo made a better decision with his pass in the 58th minute, FC Ryukyu could’ve been up 1-0. Instead, Uejo’s pass was slightly behind Tokumoto and the subsequent shot off target. From this point forward, Kyoto took over the match.

Kyoto had several misses before Fukui committed a foul in the box resulting in a PK for Kyoto. Kyoto converted for the deciding goal and the spirits of FC Ryukyu were broken. FC Ryukyu quickly surrendered another goal off a CK when they were caught ball watching and then Son Sun was over powered in the 85th minute by Koyamatsu. Despite the 55% possession that FC Ryukyu enjoyed all night, they could never get past the Kyoto goal keeper.

Man of the Match

From J league website

Kyoto Sanga FC Koyamatsu MF: First, I truly love this player’s pace, tenacity and strength. I dream of day when FC Ryukyu could sign a player with all these tools, and I guess, you never know what could happen. His ability to hold off a pacey player in Song Sun and then basically shrug him off to open up a shooting lane was simply amazing.

Review of the Keys to Victory for FC Ryukyu

1. Pester the Kyoto Defense with Speed: NO GRADE. FC Ryukyu did at times and had plenty of opportunities but converted none of them.

2. Be Mindful of the Kyoto Counter Attack: PASS, but only because Kyoto failed to score. There were plenty of near misses and opportunities for Kyoto to bang one in on the counter and FC Ryukyu only escaped with some favorable post strikes, near misses and off sides calls.

Match Day 40 Prediction

I said 3-1 in favor of Kyoto and it was nearly achieved.

Match DAY 40 TAKEAWAYS

1. The Uejo, Ramon, Kawai combination looked really good and if Higuchi wasn’t so dogmatic in his approach to the lineup selection with nothing on the line, it be really exciting to see this combo the last 2 weeks.

2. There is nothing left to play for except pride, maybe player and coaching bonuses, but nothing more. It is high time we saw the younger players in the squad start in order to see what we have for the 2020 season. Higuchi needs to make some serious changes to the lineup considering results no longer matter.

3. There were very nice scenes at the end of the match at the “Tapista” with Higuchi, Mr. Mikami and Uesato all offering words of gratitude. The fact that FC Ryukyu had their 4/5th largest crowd all season was touching and I hope they average around 5-6,000 next year. To be honest, if they want J1, they need the ticket sales for revenue and salaries and we are miles away from there for now.

4. Also, very nice to see banner, and support from the club, to restore a very iconic and important symbol of Okinawa on Sunday.

Conclusion

Thus, ends the 2019 campaign at home for FC Ryukyu. Overall, they finished with 8 wins, 5 draws and 8 losses at home. It is a mixed bag of results in my opinion. There were dramatic come from behind games to earn wins as well as games that simply got away from this side. Everyone enjoyed the goals and it was a shame that Shinji Ono could never orchestrate one prior to his season ending injury.

The home slate had all the ups and downs one would expect in the J2 and I hope the 2020 season is as memorable as the 2019. But fret not, the season still has 2 fixtures remaining and I’d love to see this side end on high note. Particularly against the Kofu side that ended the home undefeated streak so long ago.

“Bookend Beat-down” Match Day 39 Report: Renofa Yamaguchi 1-2 FC Ryukyu 11/3/2019

Intro

3 wins in a row on the road for FC Ryukyu. FC Ryukyu have won 3 games in a row, on the road. I’d like that to resonate for a minute. Quite an amazing feat considering their record up until the Fukuoka match. FC Ryukyu have now earned 46 points this season while providing some memorable moments to their fans in the twilight part of the 2019 season.

Match Recap

From the J.League website

Please understand that while I am out of the country, I am unable to watch the full 90’ game on DAZN in order to provide an accurate assessment of the squad. Instead, I am completely reliant on the YouTube highlights. With that in mind, here is what I saw:

First Half: It seemed that FC Ryukyu dominated large parts of the first half. Uejo opened the scoring early, the 2’ with another quality goal, and FC Ryukyu had several good opportunities to double, almost triple, their lead over Renofa. However, Renofa scored and leveled the game just before half time

Second Half: There were zero, I mean literally zero, highlights of this half outside of the culminating event in the 93’. I cannot say which side looked better, performed better, or, who had the best opportunities on net. The most exciting part was the Kawai goal that sealed the FC Ryukyu victory in the 93’. Uejo did all the hard work to maintain possession and then find Kawai with a pass. And Kawai responded in kind with a beautifully taken shot that curled around the GK and into the net. Kawai is awesome, enough said.

Final score: Renofa Yamaguchi 1-2 FC Ryukyu.

From the J.League website

Man of the Match

From the J.League website

FC Ryukyu FWD #14, Satoki Uejo. The opening goal, which was further indication that this man will not be here next year, was another quality piece of finishing on the part of Uejo. Uejo also added an assist on the Kawai goal with a nice little hold up play, using his strength to hold off defenders; then incredible balance to maintain possession, culminating in a softly laid off pass to a streaking Kawai for the final goal.

Review of the Keys to Victory for FC Ryukyu

1. A win is nice, but dresses some younger players: PASS. Ramon and Song Sun finished out the match. How they performed is another story, and is one that I’ll need to review later.

2. Play your game: PASS. FC Ryukyu did this, and more, this past weekend. Seems they frustrated Renofa at every turn.

Review of Match Day Prediction

2-1 Renofa: FAIL

Match Day 39 Takeaways

1. Not enough data to tell at this point.

2. Kawai looks solid, please retain his services for 2020 and beyond.

Conclusion

That must’ve been exciting to watch live as a visiting fan. To see a last-minute winner, while always spectacular, which is made even more special on the road. This side has really turned it on as of late. I hope that form continues this weekend against Kyoto Sanga FC as I’d love to see this side end the home slate with a win.

“Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained” Match Day 38 Report: FC Ryukyu 2-3 Omiya Ardija 10/27/2019

Intro

FC Ryukyu lost a hard-fought battle to Omiya 3-2 this past Sunday at the Tapic Kenso Hiyagon Stadium. Though the boys were not able to earn a positive point on the day, take nothing away from their performance. They played really well against a side seeking promotion. I think we all need to have some expectation management for the remaining 4 matches this season when it comes to FC Ryukyu. We will probably be without Dany Carvajal due to his lingering ankle injury that he picked up against Yokohama, as it probably has never fully healed. Why else would he not be out there after playing the full 90 versus Tochigi SC? I am assuming he’s played through tremendous amounts of pain and setbacks to get FC Ryukyu to this point and it has just become to much. Maybe he picked up an injury during practice but I’ve seen too many of Dany’s type of injury in the NFL to believe anything less and feel he was rushed back to service without proper healing time. But we’ll await word from the club as to what actually occurred. In any case, he was an absolute warrior for this club this season. Also, FC Ryukyu are likely without a true RB for another 2 weeks until Nishioka returns. Shinji Ono may also not feature again for this side with his own ankle injury and that would be terrible. But do not fret, the team is relatively safe and as I’ve said on numerous occasions; it is time we get a look at some of the youth in the squad with the remaining fixtures as we are already playing the 2020 season. If you think we’re not, then you do not understand sports.

Match Recap

FC Ryukyu could not have asked for a better start. Within the first 90 seconds the boys were on the board following a beautifully taken Uesato FK. Uejo earned the FK at the 13 second mark, and I was shocked that Omiya was caught flat footed again. Finally, and you all know what I mean when it comes to Uesato’s FKs (usually blasts into the wall), this time Uesato curled it over the top leaving the Omiya GK no chance. A dream start for the side not expected to do much on the day. Now, there was definitely a feeling that FC Ryukyu would eventually concede but at least we wouldn’t be blanked on the day. Also, Omiya’s cracks were on full display, and though they may well be promoted, they’ll have a tough 4 weeks ahead to ensure automatic promotion.

courtesy of J.LEAGUE website.

Omiya did respond, albeit 16 minutes later, when a Fukui giveaway let to a goal from Delgado. Then to make matters worse, FC Ryukyu failed to properly clear the garbage in front of their net and in the 43rd minute, a shot curled past Ishii for a 2-1 Omiya lead. FC Ryukyu headed into half time down 2-1 with many in the stadium of thinking the flood gates were about to open.

FC Ryukyu again started fast and were rewarded with another quick goal. This time, it was the efforts of Kawai, whose speed proved too much for the Omiya RB. He easily rounded the RB and then sent a dangerous low hard cross across goal were a diving Yamada pushed it past the Omiya GK to level the match. I pretty much came out of my shoes, and the stands, screaming that this is what Kawai does, day in and day out, and needs to be in the lineup all the time.

FC Ryukyu did well to resist the remaining Omiya pressure and too be honest, FC Ryukyu controlled a large amount of possession in the remaining minutes. Bedlam nearly ensued when Uejo finally had his first free look on net, but unfortunately, his shot hit the post and bounced out of bounds. Then, as many were dreading, Omiya scored late. A cross from Shinozuka found a streaking Simovic, who was able to get a foot to the cross and redirect it past a diving Ishii. Then, out of nowhere, the heavens opened up and it began to poor outside. FC Ryukyu tried mightily but couldn’t respond to the late Omiya goal and thus lost 3-2.

courtesy of j.league website

Man of the Match

From FC Ryukyu’s website

#13 MF, Shuto Kawai. The man was simply awesome on Sunday. He needs to be a major part of FC Ryukyu’s 2020 plans, especially with the impending departure of Uejo, and we’ll really value/need his speed. He has now bagged 2 assists in 2 straight games and his speed, skill, and overall play is exciting to watch.

Match Day 38 Takeaways

1. An Omiya supporter, and friend of mine, said that Higuchi is too dogmatic when it comes to lineup selection and substitutions. My friend said he watched him at Omiya, prior to Higuchi’s trifecta at Yokohama, and he echoes my sentiments. Omiya made all 3 of their substitutions before FC Ryukyu made 1 this past match. We saw what Omiyta wanted to do, and had every opportunity to counter their moves with speed or skill, but instead we did nothing. In fact, we left the 3rd substitute on the bench once more. Are FC Ryukyu not monitoring fitness levels of the players? Do they not track how many top speed sprints and runs each player makes before he’s not at optimum output? Criminal and unforgivable as we should’ve brought on an extra player to provide defensive cover.

2. There is no hiding the fact that we could easily end the season on a 5-game losing streak. We have lost Dany for the year, Shinji might be on the shelf, we have a makeshift back 4; though Uehara did a great job as a replacement player-playing out of place- but what is going on in the locker room/training ground? If Higuchi prefers Uehara over any one of the defenders in the reserves, then why do we keep any of them on contract? Are they hurt? Are they not that good? Are the training tactics/techniques so brutal that FC Ryukyu have too many injuries to overcome consistently to roster a full lineup? FC Ryukyu cannot afford to continue along this path with what seems to be only 16 players available for any given match. There is an underlying issue here that I will never fully unearth and one that seems to be a cancer for this side.

Reviews of the keys to Victory for FC Ryukyu

1. Start fast & Build a Multiple Goal Lead: PASS: Yeah, we never got out in front but we got out to fast starts, twice in each half.

2. Do not conceded many set pieces: PASS. Omiya didn’t score from a set piece.

3. Pick your poison: PASS. Yes, Omiya pressed us early, then trailed off where FC Ryukyu took control. No issues here as the boys did what was asked and responded well to each Omiya tactic.

4. Win the battle down our Right and Win the Match: FAIL. The last goal from Omiya came from this spot. In fact, we gave Shinozuka a ton of space, and freaking respect as if he was something special, who promptly sent a cross into the 18-yard box, to which, Simovic easily got past Okazaki’s halfhearted attempt at a clearance. Okazaki should’ve dived and got his head in there and at the very least, drawn a foul.

5. Clean up the Garbage in the Box: FAIL. The second Omiya goal is indicative of not clearing rebounds and/or stopped shots properly.

6. The Contrarian Play: Many factors were against this ever occurring. The most evident being that we’re not privy to injuries for FC Ryukyu. But most importantly, there is zero testicular fortitude in the head coach to just go for it any given week.

Match Prediction

I said that 2-1 was respectable and 3-2 is even more so. FC Ryukyu never looked outmatched at any point. Chins up, heads up, as this was a great performance for a side up against it.

Recap of the Notable J2 fixtures on Match Day 38

Conclusion

OK, FC Ryukyu lost. That is an inescapable fact. However, I enjoyed the heck out of my last 2019 Home Match for FC Ryukyu. The walk to the stadium; pre-game flag hanging; talking to Mr. Mikami pre-match; interacting with fans; seeing Bando; meeting people from Omiya and other FC Ryukyu fans from the main land; talking to support staff of FC Ryukyu; watching a great game; and of course, cheering the boys on the way out as they were true warriors on Sunday.  It was all special. Good thing that I only have to wait about 120 days to experience that feeling again, but the season is not over, and I get to see the boys one more time in Kofu, which means the 120 is actually closer 96 days.  I enjoyed seeing Stuart and Dave, and interacting with so many Omiya fans. Must’ve caught many of the FC Ryukyu and Omiya supporters off-guard to see opposing team fans having such a good time together. Well, football should bring people together, not divide them.

So what is next? FC Ryukyu have Renofa Yamaguchi next week. FC Ryukyu had to come from behind to draw with Renofa in the midst of their 36-game home unbeaten streak back in March and then Renofa beat Ryukyu, in Yamaguchi, during the Emperor’s Cup. Renofa most recently came from behind to beat JEF 3-2 at home so this will be a good test for FC Ryukyu.

Oh, FC Ryukyu’s 8,000 fans this past week meant that we only need roughly 3,000 to make the 100k mark set by Mr. Mikami. Easily do able.