Here will be JFL (non-league) and CUP tournaments
Alonso Martens tells JSoccer of an interesting story coming out of Lima, Peru.
Fraternal America, a team from Barranco, a district of Lima, are playing in Montedio Yamagata kit this season after Franck Romero answered an appeal to help out the team, who were short of funds to buy a new kit, it seems … nice one Franck!
Kashiwa Reysol 5-1 Binh Duong
Two goals late in the first half – from Kudo and an own goal by David Vrankovic – sent Reysol on their way to the win before efforts from Kim Chang-soo, Kudo and Hidekazu Otani ensured the 2013 semi-finalists claimed all three points.
Reysol, who kicked off their campaign with a draw against Jeonbuk Motors on Matchday One, were rarely troubled by a Binh Duong side who battled hard despite the gulf in class before claiming a late consolation through Ganiyu Bolaji Oseni.
Kashiwa were quick out of the blocks and Cristiano should have scored just four minutes into the game when he had time and space behind the Binh Duong defence to do better than fire over the bar, while four minutes later Yuki Otsu sent his effort wide from six yards out.
Otsu tried his luck from long range in the 12th minute as Reysol cruised through the opening phase of the game, with only Le Cong Vinh presenting any threat for the Vietnamese when his free kick was collected by Takanori Sugeno in the home side’s goal.
Reysol, though, continued to dictate the tempo of the game; Kudo’s header was weak and straight at Nguyen Quoc Thien Esele in the 25th minute while Eduardo should have scored when the goalkeeper dropped the ball at his feet, only to stab over the bar.
With six minutes to go and against the run of play, Cong Vinh created the best chance of the half but his curling effort from just inside the Reysol half was deflected wide of goal.
That finally nudged Reysol out of their slumber in front of goal and, in the 43rd minute, Kudo put the home side in front with a crisp finish to the goalkeeper’s left after a low, firm cross from the right by Cristiano.
Two minutes later, Tatsumi Yoshida’s team doubled their lead when Vrankovic headed into his own goal, ensuring the scoreline better reflected Reysol’s dominance.
Nguyen Thanh Son introduced Mai Tien Thanh at the start of the second half as the Binh Duong coach sought a way back into the game and, eight minutes after the restart, he went close to opening the Vietnamese side’s account, only for the midfielder’s spectacular effort to cannon back off the cross bar.
But the result was put beyond any doubt three minutes later when Kim Chang-soo latched onto Akimi Barada’s perfectly weighted through ball before slotting home.
Kudo claimed his second of the game with a close range header in the 67th minute after Otsu glanced Barada’s corner across the face of goal while, eight minutes later, Otani found the back of the net when his shot from outside the area was deflected past substitute goalkeeper Bui Tan Truong.
Oseni pulled one back for Binh Duong nine minutes from time when he was played in on goal by a well-placed pass from Cong Vinh before sliding a fine finish beyond Sugeno, but it was not enough to spark an unlikely revival.
Report: http://www.the-afc.com
Picture: World Sport Group
Seongnam FC 2-0 Gamba Osaka
Gamba Osaka went down to their second loss of their 2015 ACL campaign with this away defeat to Korean FA Cup winners Seongnam FC. Ricardo Bueno converted an early penalty and Hwang Ui-jo wrapped the game up 22 minutes from time to put Gamba on the bottom of Group F.
Changes for Gamba saw Oh Jae-suk replacing Hiroki Fujiharu and Kim Jung-ya at centre back for the injured Keisuke Iwashita, while Shu Kurata started in midfield – which also saw Shohei Ogura alongside Yasuhito Endo in a defensive midfield pairing. Takashi Usami was on the bench, with LIns getting the start alongside Patric up front.
Ogura was at fault for the early opening goal, dragging down Hwang on the corner of the area for an obvious penalty. The former F•Marinos midfielder can be thankful that referee Mr. Irmatov didn’t yellow card him, too, although that did not stop him being replaced at half time.
Brazilian forward Bueno slotted home the penalty easily, with just eight minutes on the clock before Hwang doubled the advantage and sealed the points on 68 minutes. Gamba had looked to be getting back into the game when an aimless high ball was flicked on by Kim Tae-Youn to Hwang. The ball was controlled and then the player slipped the ball to the right to beat the challenge of centre back Daiki Niwa and Hwang curled the ball around the keeper with his right foot.
Gamba had seen plenty of possession but, as in last week’s game, could do little with the ball when it mattered. There was a free kick chance before the break which saw Endo beat the wall but the keeper saved easily, and then Hiroyuki Abe and Patric exchanged passes to give Abe the shot but, again, it was easy for the Seongnam keeper.
Patric was denied twice in the closing minutes, as Gamba woke up and gave too little, too late, while late substitute Takashi Usami also showed promise but no end result for the visiting team.
Team – Higashiguchi, Oh, Niwa, Kim, Yonekura (Fujiharu, 70), Endo, Ogura (Myojin, 46), Abe (Usami, 70), Kurata, Lins, Patric
(Picture: World Sport Group)
Urawa Reds joined Gamba Osaka in slipping to a second straight loss in their 2015 AFC Champions League campaign. The 2007 champions went down to an embarrassing 1-0 defeat to Brisbane Roar at Saitama Stadium. The “embarrassing” tag is not to belittle Roar’s achievement, but more to highlight how little Reds offered throughout the match. They were deservedly booed off at the end of the half and given a much worse sending off by their suffering fans at the end of the tie.
Reds were down within two minutes when Thomas Broich took the ball off a dallying Yosuke Kashiwagi deep in the Reds’ half. Broich slipped the ball to his right to Brandon Borrello, who still had much to do, but Reds’ keeper Shusaku Nishikawa seemed to leave a gaping hole at his near post and Borrello blasted home with aplomb.
Urawa could barely string two passes together and were deservedly booed off at the break. Changes were made for the second period – Naoki Ishihara replacing the ineffective Zlatan and Tsukasa Umesaki taking the place of Kenichi Kaga, and Reds started to dictate play a little more but Shinzo Koroki shot straight at the keeper when an opening came minutes into the second half.
Just as there seemed to be a possibility of Urawa getting something out of this match Daisuke Nasu was guilty of giving the ball away with a terrible pass and took his man down from behind, earning a straight red card for his trouble. Reds went down to ten men, with Yuki Abe moving into centre back, yet, even then Tadanari Lee could have have earned an undeserved point for the home team with a header in the final minutes.
Picture: World Sport Group
City Football Group (CFG), the global football organisation whose family of clubs and football-related businesses includes Manchester City FC, New York City FC, Melbourne City FC and a minority stake in Yokohama F· Marinos, has formally launched City Football Japan (CFJ), which has now begun operations. CFG has also appointed Takao Toshishige as Managing Director of CFJ.
Based in Tokyo, CFJ, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of CFG, will oversee the Group’s commercial operations in Japan and work closely with the Yokohama F·Marinos.
Toshishige brings a wealth of experience to his new role. Prior to joining CFJ, he was Senior Director at Rakuten Inc. and served also as a Director at Crimson Football Club Inc. Before his role at Rakuten, he worked at the Industrial Bank of Japan, Ltd. (now, Mizuho Corporate Bank, Ltd.).
Ferran Soriano, Chief Executive of City Football Group, said: “We are growing and developing a long-term presence in Japan.
“Creating City Football Japan will give us an opportunity to strengthen further our relationships with Nissan and with our colleagues at Yokohama F· Marinos, and help to support and develop Japanese football.
“It will also allow us to pursue greater commercial opportunities in Japan.”
Toshishige added: “Creating City Football Japan is a huge opportunity to showcase City Football’s unique proposition in global football. We are confident that we can work closely with Japanese businesses which want to reach both domestic and international audiences to promote their brands. I am very honoured to have the opportunity to work closely with City Football Group as we evolve our business in Japan.”
Toshishige will also work closely with Jorge Chumillas, Chief Finance Office of City Football Group, who sits on the Yokohama F·Marinos Board.
From http://www.mcfc.co.uk/news/club-news/2015/march/city-football-japan-3001
HJK Helsinki sign their second Japanese player s Mike Havenaar joins HJK Helsinki!
When Javier Aguirre was “released in early February, the JFA were quite firm in their original comments about getting a new manager for the Japan national tea, before the J.League season started. Presumably they meant the J.League itself and not the “season-opening” SuperCup on Saturday, so we have another ten days or so to see if they’re as good as their word!
I discussed my preference for (and belief that he’d been approached) Michael Laudrup WAY back and he seems to be still in the frame, despite the fact that he’s expressed a “desire to see out a contract”. To me, that means that he’s paving the way to be able to break that contract and / or keeping his options open to see if Japan would go for the “caretaker” route with Teguramori (and Hara pulling some strings) until Laudrup (or another, currently-working) manager is available.
IF the JFA went the route of caretaker-ship until the end of the European (and “Arabic”) season, they would have many more managers to choose from and this would seem logical to me. They can even have some “secret pre-agreement” with Laudrup, or another still in a job, that would allow both parties to stop worrying about it and start looking at the future (even if we didn’t yet know about it!). The next manager could be familiarising himself with the players while still in his current job. Surely not a far-fetched possibility?
Meanwhile, as I have been fixating on Laudrup (one of my preferred three but realistically I know that Stuart Baxter and Afshin Ghotbi will not be seriously considered?) the Japanese media have been throwing all sorts of pasta at the wall hoping that something would stick. Surely a case of 10 or 12 names being mentioned over various days in last two weeks, then the “correct” name/story will be quoted as being a brilliant piece of writing when it eventually happens! Dragan Stojkovic was the popular choice for a while but seems to have dropped away once the media discovered that certain people within the JFA don’t seem to consider his coaching methods worthy. I heard a few stories on these methods – leaving all the day-to-day stuff to coaches and just picking the team. Then, on matchdays, not really making tactical changes at the right times? The first “problem” might not necessarily matter for a coach who rarely sees his players,,, let the coaches do the wrok and worry about the match itself? The second comment has certainly been echoed by some Nagoya Grampus fans in the past, though, and might be more of a problem on the international stage. If the media in Japan finally picked up on that, it may be the reason it’s gone quiet in the Stojkovic camp.
Other names that have been bandied are a few coaches that have worked in Japan before. Guido Buchwald was approached one day, Ossie Ardiles the next (well, probably not, but the names were seemingly pulled out of a hat just after Aguirre was terminated!). Of those J.League-experienced coaches mentioned by many is current Palmeiras manager Oswaldo Oliveira who has actually “pretty much ruled out” the possibility of moving to Japan by saying it would be difficult to take the job right now. But, of course, he has to say that, just as Laudrup has said he has a contract to finish! Oliveira won three consecutive J. League championships with Kashima Antlers from 2007, and is probably the critics’ choice for the job, but he is said to have wanted it in the past and was not offered it. Would pride stand in the way of a “yes” if the offer came this time?
Then there is the latest rumour that seems to have some credence from my sources… Vahid Halilhodžić. He is currently without a job after parting company with Algeria last year and then lasting not so long at Turkey’s Trabzonspor. Sources note that Ivica Osim is “assisting” the JFA in their search and has strong connections with his countryman.
Of other possibilities, I also mentioned Spaniard, Michel a couple of weeks back, who is currently free after parting company with Olympiakos, but that rumour seems to have died down!
Another name thrown about by the Japanese media is Marseille’s Marcelo Bielsa – also currently under contract, of course, so a caretaker approach until May if he is tempted to Japan?
J.League and Samurai Blue fans I know are still hoping for the “romantic choice” of Stojkovic but also like the sound of Laudrup. Those who know the game a little bit more deeply seem to prefer Halilhodžić or Oliveira, with the latter getting the vote due to his time in Japan. Whatever happens, whoever comes in has plenty to do to ensure that this team reaches its goals in the coming four years… can’t wait to get started!
Yokohama FC FULIE MARU
Gamba Osaka GAMBA BOY
After Sanfrecce Hiroshima’s first J1 Championship three years back, they were picked apart by Urawa Reds, and then won another Championship. They won J1 again… and were picked apart by Reds again. Finally, the losses told and Gamba Osaka took over the J1 reigns last season but, just to be consistent, Reds have picked up Naoki Ishihara for 2015, as Sanfrecce continue to hemorrhage players.
2015 begins with talisman left (wing) back Hwang Seok-Ho (scorer of some very important goals last season) jumping ship to Kashima Antlers and Yojiro Takahagi leaving for Western Sydney Wanderers (see page 34 of Issue 15 of JSoccer Magazine).
The biggest transfer news of the new campaign is possibly that Tsukasa Shiotani is still with the club and, with Hiroki Mizumoto, Kazuhiko Chiba will look to keep it “tight at the back”. With the aging – and rarely seeing-a-full-90-minutes – Hisato Sato as the main fulcrum up front, accompanied by (dare I say it, or perhaps give it inverted commas?) “Japan international” Yusuke Minagawa looking for goals, Sanfrecce are looking short up front. Tokushima Vortis have sent over Douglas, but there’ll need to be a huge improvement from him to make Sanfrecce a top team.
In midfield, Kyoto Sanga have been raided and Kohei Kudo has joined the team, but the squad is definitely looking a little shallow. Toshihiro Aoyama, Shiotani and Sato may feel the pressure of keeping this team on course… manager Hajime Moriyasu is a tactical genius in this writer’s opinion, and Sanfrecce will in no way be struggling in the relegation zone (famous last words?), but anything better than a mid-table finish may be a stretch.
Web site – www.sanfrecce.co.jp
Sanfrecce Hiroshima 2015 shirts!
by FRsoccerNathan
Kawasaki Frontale were very much the nearly men again in 2014, contesting for the title before falling short in the closing weeks of the campaign. Eventually finishing sixth, Frontale couldn’t match their achievements of 2013 which saw them finish third and qualify for the AFC Asian Champions League.
Arguably Kawasaki’s most important piece of business in the off- season was to retain the services of 32-year-old striker Yoshito Okubo. The J.League’s top scorer for the last two campaigns, Okubo was heavily linked with a move away to FC Tokyo, and former clubs Cerezo Osaka and Vissel Kobe, but the Japanese international has decided to remain in Kanagawa for another season. He will again be complemented by Brazilian winger Renato, the effervescent Kengo Nakamura, and his fellow international Yu Kobayashi. Future Samurai Blue hopefuls Shogo Taniguchi and Ryota Oshima were also key men last season and will be looking to take further steps forward in 2015.
Many of Frontale’s squad players have been cleaned out. The likes of Junichi Inamoto (Consadole Sapporo), Yasuhito Morishima (Jubilo Iwata, loan) and Sota Nakazawa (Cerezo Osaka, loan) have moved on. The most notable outgoings are defenders Yusuke Tanaka and Jeci who have moved to Australia and returned to Brazil respectively.
The attacking side of the team has been bolstered by two prominent additions. Takayuki Funayama, who fired Matsumoto Yamaga to J1 last season with 19 goals has been signed along with Kenyu Sugimoto. Once hotly tipped as a future international, Sugimoto’s career stalled last season as his former club Cerezo Osaka were shockingly relegated. The 22-year-old will be looking to breathe new life into his game at Frontale, and at his best he certainly strengthens manager Kazama’s options.
Other incomings include former Vegalta Sendai defender Makoto Kakuda and Brazilian full- back Elsinho, from Brazilian Serie B side América. However, Frontale still look light at the back which is surprising given that this was their main failing last season.
After a couple of seasons of near misses the new two stage system and end of season champion- ship play-offs are likely to benefit Kawasaki Frontale, who found it difficult to sustain a challenge at the top over the full 34 matches last season.
Web site – www.frontale.co.jp/
English – www.frontale.co.jp/about/club_profile_e. html
Twitter – @frontale_staff
Kawasaki Frontale 2015 shirts