“Ain’t No Cure for the Summertime Blues” Match Day 16 Recap: Yokohama F.C. 2-1 FC Ryukyu

This is a very tough recap to write based on a couple of factors. 1. FCR should’ve and could’ve won this match. Yes, shoulda, woulda coulda, didn’t applies here. 2. FCR lost one of their best players, Danny Carvajal, at a crucial part of the season. To all of you who faithfully click on the link and read this blog each week, thank you, I appreciate all of you and please bear with me during these troubling times.

First Half

FCR and Yokohama both started out very sluggish. This was to be expected from Yokohama – as I eluded to in the Match Day Preview – but was unexpected from FC Ryukyu. FCR have usually started matches on the front foot and this was key to FCR bringing home the points. However, FCR couldn’t get going or get that all important 1^st half goal. The best chance FCR had was from a corner kick in the 14^th minute, and I must admit, it was pleasing to watch FCR inject some creativity into their set pieces. The CK was crafty in that the person chosen to take the shot was Uestao, who, was outside the normal line of attackers and had to make a nice play on the ball to get into a shooting lane. It was unfortunate that he couldn’t score as this would’ve proved the difference on the day. His shot was just inches wide and FCR would go into half time 0-0.

Would’ve proved to be the difference maker had this gone in.

Now, neither team looked up for the match and this was worrying because FCR should be considered as a “fast stating team” whereas Yokohama are more of a second half team. We have seen how FCR comes out very slow during the initial parts of the 2^nd half and I was very concerned for us moving forward without a goal. I was also concerned that FCR threw so much at the attack that they were exposed down the right flank for much of the first half. It seemed as if Yokohama was making these great runs and opening up the FCR defense but in reality, we left ourselves wide open for this because of the over commitment in the attack.

Second Half

The back and forth play continued for much of the second half until, Koji Suzuki broke the dead lock in the 67th minute. It was a beautiful take as he moved effortlessly across the top of the Yokohama FC box and delivered an absolute gem of a strike into the top corner of the goal to give FCR the 1-0 advantage.

Absolute Heat Seeking Missile Strike by Koji, what a stud player!

I will do my best not sound dejected or one sided from here on out but things turned very ugly for FCR after this moment.

For a brief period of time I though that FCR could end this horrible run of road performances with that Koji goal. Then fate stepped in, as it does on occasion, to bring all the FCR faithful back down to reality.

For those new to the blog or following FCR I’ll cast a wide net here and say that there are 2 MVP performers on the squad, Koji Suzuki and Danny Carvajal. Both of them are the heart and soul of this squad and are the main reasons why FC Ryukyu sit 9^th in the table instead of 21^st. To lose either one to injury or transfer would be catastrophic and what I am about to espouse applies to the latter.

In the 70th minute, Danny Carvajal, the FCR stalwart, suffered what looks to be a moderate Grade 2 ankle sprain. He landed awkwardly during a save on a set piece, his foot bent inward and he rolled the ankle inward luckily. You may ask, luckily? And I’d answer, yes! As someone who plays Fantasy Football (NFL) at a very high level, I can tell you it was reassuring that Danny didn’t roll the ankle the opposite direction for the dreaded “high ankle sprain” that would keep him out for an extended period of time and possibly require surgery. There is no doubt that Danny will miss time as the injury required a substitution and he could be seen grimacing while putting weight on the ankle but it probably isn’t season ending so we all should be relived.

It also should be noted that Danny carried on during the run of play, while injured, to make a crucial save to keep FCR in the lead when he could have easily fell to the floor. People use the term bravery far too often but it is warranted in the case of Danny this past week. What a warrior.

Danny C on one leg making a crucial save. In combat this type of valor is awarded with medals, but in football, it may go unnoticed. Not fair.

Let me add this narrative: The Yokohama FC fans were absolutely classless in their derision of Danny as he tried to continue on and assess the injury, yet, they were more than happy to cheer Ibba’s time wasting in extra time (for which the ref never added any extra time). I’ll remember this Yokohama. It will not be pleasant for you or your fans when you visit Okinawa in August, I promise you.

A master class in time wasting: 1 minute and 23 seconds of pure BS. Left to right clockwise. 1. Flops to floor. 2. Needs the stretcher. 3. Cheating is fun kids. 4. A Divine intervention has miraculously healed Ibba and he no longer needs the stretcher. 5. Total time wasted after walking off the pitch. 6. Coach thanks him for the courageous effort and somehow the injury that required a substitution has healed itself!

So back to the matter at hand. If you are like me and have played or watched sports for a majority of your life, then you’ll understand the next sentence. How many times have you seen a situation where a key player gets injured, cannot continue, and then suddenly the momentum shifts to the opposing side and they suddenly take control of the game? I had this sentiment as soon as Ishii stepped on the pitch for the injured Carvajal. I pleaded, to the television, that FC Ryukyu should also sub in an extra defender to provide some cover for the GK who was “hoping out of the frying pan and into the oven.”

They did not and Yokohama quickly took advantage of the situation and grabbed the lead from an Ibba brace. Ibba’s first was after a deflection from a Domigues shot and Ishii cannot really be blamed for this because he did well to get to the shot. Ibba’s second should be attributed to lazy, lackluster defending that saw Masutani getting overpowered by Ibba. I stated in the preview that if FCR could control Ibba then they would have a chance at victory. FCR did up to a point and then switched off. FCR really never threatened the Yokohama goal during the remaining 15 minutes and the match ended 2-1.

There was a glimmer of hope that the FCR would be awarded a Pk but the ref, incorrectly, failed to award the PK which would’ve changed the outcome of this match.

1. Referee is too far from play to see foul and does’t consult with assistant referee who clearly sees the foul. 2. Suzuki has the advantage. 3. Yokohoma defender steps in front, doesn’t touch the ball, impedes and upends Suzuki for a clear foul in the box. 4. Defender insinuates “no contact” despite the ball never changing direction or speed. Clear foul missed by another inept J2 officiating crew.

Match Takeaways

1. This point hurts the most. I said the X Factor was going to be Danny Carvajal and I was correct. Unfortunately, he was injured and the team simply collapsed after that to a 2-1 loss.

2. FC Ryukyu failed to start fast and they couldn’t grab the lead in the first half. Neither team looked interested in playing a football match this weakened and yet, Yokohama was just asking to be scored upon early. FCR came close but this is a game of inches (centimeters) and FCR has had no luck in that department lately. Hopefully this will change when it matters most but for now this side has been unlucky on the road and hasn’t caught any breaks.

3. Allowing Yokohama to quickly exploit Ishii shows immaturity on the part of the defense and coaching staff. Everyone on FCR should be held accountable for this. You knew Yokohama were going to do all they could to attack the Ryukyu goal with an inexperienced keeper and yet no one on the team did anything to prevent the inevitable. That is inexcusable and is grounds for a counseling by senior staff and management. 2 goals within 3 minutes of Danny’s substitution is amateur, and FC Ryukyu is not an amateur team. The defense went missing at a crucial time and left the GK exposed, as they’ve done too often this year to be honest, and they paid the price with 2 goals and a loss.

4. After reviewing the highlights several times, I think there is something there with Ishii. Either he makes routine saves look spectacular or he is spectacular. Time will tell, I guess, but we all could use some unexpected performances from our reserve keeper in these uncertain times.

TRANSLATION: ‘We executed my game plan flawlessly. We waited for an injury to a key player and a blatant no foul call to pounce on our opponents and earn a victory.” ” I had no idea how to defeat FC Ryukyu and wish to thank the Referees who allowed us to win this crucial match.”

Conclusion

FC Ryukyu move on to a brutal run of fixtures at less than 100%. I cannot sugar coat this in any way, if we grab 5 points from now until the end of July, FCR will have a chance to stay in the J2. It is about to get real ugly folks. A FC Ryukyu attack that lacks any venom and an injured Carvajal is a recipe for disaster so please prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

“Summertime Blues” Match Day 16 Preview: Yokohama F.C. vs. FC Ryukyu 6/2/2019

Match Day 16 Preview: (H) Yokohama F.C. vs. FC Ryukyu (A) at the NHK Spring Mitsuzawa Football Stadium, 6/2/2019 Kickoff at 1400.

Weather Forecast: Cloudy all day with temperatures in the mid-70s all game (24C) with only a 5% chance of rain.

Interesting history about the club can be found at the link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yokohama_FC

FC Ryukyu are on the road this week traveling to Tokyo to take on Yokohama F.C. who currently sit 13^th in the J2 standings. FC Ryukyu are coming off a 2-1 win over Niigata this past weekend behind goals from Yu Tomidokoro and Shinya Uehara while Yokohama are reeling from a 2-1 road loss to Kofu. This is third time in as many matches that FC Ryukyu will play a side, that on paper, looks evenly matched with FC Ryukyu. This will be a tough test for FC Ryukyu as their away form has been quite poor this season and the side needs to start earning some positive results away from home quickly.

Yokohama F.C. 13^th in J2 with 18 points, 5W3D7L GF16 GA18 GD -2

Current Form: DLDWL Home Record, 2W3D2L, Home Scoring Record GF9 GA10 GD -1

Record Against Common Opponents of FC Ryukyu: 4W3D3L GF13 GA11 GD +2

Yokohama vs Top 11 in J2: 0W1D6L GF3 GA11 GD-8: vs Bottom 11: 5W2D1L GF13 GA7 GD+6

Typical Formation: 4-4-2

Yokohama F.C. seem to have settled on a starting 11 in the form of 4-4-2 after a brief trial of 3-4-3 against Zelvia a few weeks back. Yokohama have the ability to start two very tall FWs in Ibba and Toshima but are opting to bring Toshima on as a sub later in matches. Yokohama could also be dealing with an injury to one of their key Mid Fielders in Domingues as he hasn’t featured in any of Yokoahama’s last two matches as either a starter or reserve.

The first match I reviewed was against Kyoto where Yokohama were hammered 3-1 at home. The defending was woeful and the team looked sluggish in the match. It was this game that prompted a change in formation the following week against Zelvia but Yokohama were unable to achieve victory and had to settle for a draw, thanks in large part to a Zelvia own goal. Yokohama reverted back to a 4-4-2 the following week against Kagoshima and that lineup didn’t change against Kofu the next week.

Ibba really dominated the Kagoshima match as his two goals proved to be the difference on the day. Yokohama were unable to replicate that performance against Kagoshima the following week against Kofu where they were defeated 2-1. Ibba added his 6^th goal of the season but the Yokohama defense let the team down once again.

Yokohama F.C. Players to Watch

Left to Right: Ibba, Toshima & Domingues

#10 Ibba FW. This guy is a handful and is in good form right now having scored 3 goals in the past two matches. He has also added 2 assists this season. Ibba will definitely be a stiff test for the Ryukyu defense as he can use his height and power to his advantage over the smaller Ryukyu defenders. Ibba also moves really well in side the 18-yard box and creates space for him to get on the end of crosses.

#9 Akira Toshima FW. Second leading goal scorer for Yokohama and has one assist on the season. He is another tall striker that Yokohma could employ but he doesn’t move as well as Ibba.

#40 Domingues MF. He seemed to be one of Yokohama’s better playmakers but he may have picked up an injury a few weeks ago. If he plays, he will likely start down the right.

#11 Kazuyoshi Miura FW. How could we talk about Yokohama F.C. without mentioning the oldest player to have ever scored a professional goal and possibly the oldest player at any competitive level in the world. The 52-year-old hasn’t featured in a match since April 7^th but it would be a treat for those FCR fans who are traveling to Yokohama this week to see him play. Let’s hope he doesn’t score against us if he does play.

Expected Starting 11 for both sides this weekend.

FC Ryukyu: 9^th in J2 with 23 points, 6W5D4L GF21 GA17 GD+4

Current Form: DLWLW, Away Record 1W2D4L, Away Scoring Record GF7 GA10 GD -3

Record Against Common Opponents of Yokohama FC: 4W3D3L GF15 GA12 GD+3

FCR vs Bottom 11 in J2 4W2D3L GF13 GA10 GD+3: FCR vs Top 11 2W3D1L GF8 GA7 GD+1

Typical Formation: 4-2-3-1

FC Ryukyu’s recent road form has been poor the past 5 weeks. FCR has only earned one point in their last 5 road matches and that was way back in April against Tokyo Verdy when Uesato netted a late equalizer. During FC Ryukyu’s past 5 road matches they have also conceded 6 times, scored only twice and been shutout 3 times. These road games did not come against superior opponents mind you as FCR lost to Kagoshima and F.C. Gifu during that stretch, two teams that are at the bottom of the table. FC Ryukyu’s last road win was their first road game of the season way back on Match Day 2 against Omiya.

Now for some encouraging news. FC Ryukyu have won 2 of their last 3 matches and finally broke through to score two goals in a match, something they hadn’t done since Match Day 6 against Renofa. FC Ryukyu have also settled on a lineup that sees Kazama playing the CAM role with Komatsu dropping to a central mid field role. In that last match against Niigata, Tomidokoro netted his second goal of the season and his first from a set piece. This is very important for FCR as they were lacking creativity from set pieces and having Yu deliver quality shots and crosses from set pieces is vital to this team’s success. It was also encouraging to see FC Ryukyu bring on Uehara late the past two games to add a bit of veteran leadership and height to the attack.

FC Ryukyu do a have a positive record against teams in the bottom half of the table whereas Yokohama have been dreadful against those teams in the top half of the J2 table. Yokohama have a negative goal differential against top half teams (-8) and have only managed 1 draw in 7 matches. FCR on the other hand have earned 14 points with a positive goal scoring record of +3 in their 9 matches against bottom 11 teams. There is one major point that needs to be made with these statistics, FCRs losses against bottom half teams have all occurred on the road and they were against teams that were at the very bottom of the table at the time of those matches (Chiba, Kagoshima & Gifu). Ryukyu really needs to shake off their horrible road form of late and grab all 3 points against an inferior opponent before a very rough stretch of games in June and the packed schedule of July.

FC Ryukyu Keys to Victory

1.) Start fast and get out in front of Yokohama F.C. quickly. Yokohama have conceded the first goal of a match 11 times this season and 8 of those came in the first half of games. This is a staggering stat that indicates that Yokohama are slow starters and can be put to the sword early if FC Ryukyu can attack them with speed and crisp passes.

2.) Attack the back line of Yokohama FC. Yokohama’s defending has been awful the last few matches and they can be ripped apart at the back with good runs and passes. Yokohama suffer from the same lack of concentration affliction that FCR succumbs to from time to time and allows opponents to score. The Yokohama defenders will make poor decisions at the back by failing to marking runs by opposing players, misjudging crosses and clearing balls from their own end. FCR should press the Yokohama defenders when they have the ball and make quick passes within the 18-yard box to create space and shooting lanes for the attacking Ryukyu players. A quick pass back to the top of the box from Tokumoto, Nishioka or Suzuki to a waiting Yu, Tanaka or Kazama could produce some very nice results.

3.) Mark and isolate Ibba. As with all tall, powerful strikers I’ve written about in the past, Ibba will be a handful for the FCR defense tomorrow. Okazaki must mark him on all set pieces and if Masutani draws the short straw to mark Ibba, no pun intended, then he needs to use his quickness and low center of gravity to gain the positional advantage over Ibba. If both Ibba and Toshima are in the match at the same time then Nishioka may need to provide some support to Masutani. Ibba is in good form right now and by taking him out of the match you remove Yokohama’s best goal scoring option.

4.) Do not concede too many Free Kicks and Corner Kicks. I have stated on many occasions that a tall striker provides a very nice option in the attack because the player providing the service doesn’t need to be pinpoint accurate with his cross because the tall striker can rise above most defenders and get on the end of the pass. This is easier said than done as FCR concedes a lot of FKs and CKs during their matches. While CKs may be inevitable, cheap fouls around the Ryukyu 18-yard box need to be kept to a minimum to ensure Ibba doesn’t use his height against us. It should also be noted that Ibba can take a nice FK as well.

Match Prediction

I see both teams scoring and FC Ryukyu slightly edging out Yokohama F.C. 2-1 for their second road win of the season.

Conclusion

This will be a close, tense, back and forth match that will see both sides having good chances on net. The X factor is that FCR has one of the best, if not the best GK, in J2 this season in Danny Carvajal. If FCR can carry a 2-goal advantage into half time and prevent the bombardment of Carvajal’s net in the second half, then Ryukyu could walk away with all 3 points this weekend.

Victory over Yokohama is key for FCR as this is the 10^th time this season that they have faced an opponent in the bottom half of the table. With 4 matches against Kanazawa, Kyoto, Kofu and Nagasaki on the horizon, all of which are teams jockeying for position within the top 6 positions of the J2 table, these are 3 vital points for FCR this weekend. FCR certainly want to avoid starting a 5-game losing skid as points will be at a premium this month against much tougher opponents.

I hope we get an appearance from two former FC Ryukyu players in Park and Nakagawa on Sunday since Yokohama F Marinos wrapped up their J1 game this week with a 2-1 victory of Shonan last night and the Ryukyu match is right in their backyard. It would be great for them to say hi to the FC Ryukyu fans who attend the match and I am going to be slightly jealous of you all if they do make an appearance.

Good luck and Come on Lads!!!!!