Category Archives: In the Mix

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In the Mix, Reports

J1 Round-Up Matchday 26, September 22nd …

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Consadole Sapporo 0-5 Omiya Ardija
Omiya Ardija surprised no-one by winning at Consadole, even the five goals probably didn’t surprise too many. Consadole will be officially, mathematically in J2 within two games unless they can win a few… but it will just be delaying the inevitable. Is that what Omiya are doing – they won, yes. But so did Cerezo and Gamba…. so no real changes at the bottom! Omiya got the goals from Novakovic (3), Carlinho and Yu Hasegawa.

Kashima Antlers 1-2 Yokohama F.Marinos
Marinos halted their slump with an away win at perennial (but not very good this year) rivals Antlers on goals from Andrew Kumagai and Shunsuke Nakamura. Antlers 95th minute consolation was a way offside tap in from Juninho!

Vegalta Sendai 2-1 Vissel Kobe
Vissel opened the scoring on a pinpoint header from Tashiro early in the game but Vegalta eventually came back into the game through another great header from Akamine. A spectacular, but dangerous, scissor kick from Kamata in injury time won it for Sendai but I’d like to see the referees be a bit stronger and give a free kick for dangerous play, rather than think, wow, what a great goal. Take a look at the highlights elsewhere on jsoccer.com and tell me, would you have stuck your head in there? Inoha certainly didn’t risk it! Highlights elsewhere at jsoccer.com


Urawa Reds 0-5 Gamba Osaka
Gamba Osaka saw the return of Leandro, and the return of goals and winning ways. The relegation-threatened team became J1’s highest scorers (although also J1’s 2nd-worst defence!) with this easy five goal away thrashing of Urawa Reds – putting a huge dent in the Saitama team’s title hopes. Abe opened the scoring in front of over 46,000 fans – about 95% being Reds supporters – with a left foot shot through a forest of legs, Leandro scored a couple of beauties before being replaced by Paulinho late on. The substitute added a couple more late goals but Gamba could have had a few more with better finishing. A huge step toward staying in J1, but with Omiya and Cerezo winning, the pressure is on Albirex now – as well as struggling Antlers and Vissel, perhaps! Highlights elsewhere at jsoccer.com

Jubilo Iwata 0-0 Albirex Niigata
Jubilo looking for a win to stay in the title race. Albirex looking for three points to stay in J1. Stalemate, but an entertaining game, we hear!

Cerezo Osaka 3-2 Shimizu S-Pulse
S-Pulse went ahead, Brosque being upended for a PK which Omae converted. Kempes got the equaliser, and Kakitani got the go-ahead goal in added time of the first half, slotting home a rebound off the keeper. Alex Brosque scored a nice free kick to bring the game level on 70 minutes and then it was Simplicio’s turn to get the winner with a couple of minutes to go. A very important three points for Cerezo, and the end of S-Pulse’s faint hopes of ending in a top 3 place? Highlights elsewhere at jsoccer.com

FC Tokyo 1-2 Kawasaki Frontale
Almost 35,000 fans at Ajinomoto Stadium saw Frontale go two goals up through goals from Kusukami and Jeci in the first ten minutes of the 2nd half. Edmilson, a 75th minute substitute, gave FC Tokyo faint hope with a goal in the 88th minute, but it was too late and Frontale probably made their season safe, if not a little disappointing!

Nagoya Grampus 1-2 Sanfrecce Hiroshima
Sanfrecce Hiroshima took the lead on a superb solo run ans shot from Shimizu five minutes before the break. In some nice symmetry, Tulio equalised five minutes after the break and it was stalemate until deep into injury time when Moriwaki came storming up the filed from his own half to get on the end of a far post cross and send the ball looping back over Narzaki, to creep in under the bar to give Sanfrecce the three points and keep them in the top spot, by two points from Vegalta Sendai, who had also scored a VERY late winner. Highlights elsewhere at jsoccer.com

Sagan Tosu 3-1 Kashiwa Reysol
Defeat at Sagan Tosu leaves Kashiwa Reysol 11 points off the lead and six points out of the ACL places, and also allows Sagan to leapfrog them into 5th place. Sagan are this year’s Reysol? In their furst season in the top flight Sagan have won many friends and surprised many pundits with their results and J1 2013 will be interesting for them! One season wonders, or consolidating and improving? The home team scored three goals between the 43rd and 53rd minutes before Leandro Domingues got one back in the 65th to rekindle some faint hope for Reysol, but no, not today!

Archives, In the Mix

Ida Bagus ‘Kento Toyoda’ Dwi Ambara – Bali's Talent In Japan

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Ida Bagus Dwi Ambara, soon to be better known in Japan as Kento Toyoda was born in Bali, Indonesia and is currently playing for Yokogawa Musashino FC in the Japan Football League (JFL), Japan’s 3rd tier after J1 and J2.

Kento, who was born on May 3rd, 1994 (175 cm/72 kg for those all-important stats that the Japanese love to mention so often!) is the second son of Ida Bagus Putu Dirga – his Indonesian father – and Yuko Toyoda, his Japanese mother.

Kento’s footballing talent has been obvious since his childhood and, in order to improve on this, he played with Canggu Football Academy, Bali Bintang Football Academy, and Udiyana Sanur Football Academy, before he was eventually selected to play for the U15 & U18 teams of Perseden Denpasar, a professional football club based in Bali.

In early 2012, Kento decided to leave Bali and went for a trial with Musashino FC after being told by one of his colleagues about the opportunity. He passed the first stage of the selection process, where he was up against another 50 players. In the second stage, in which 20 players took part, Kento impressed enough and the club offered him a contract.

Besides his footballing talent during the trial with Yokogawa Musashino, Kento recognized that his ability to speak Japanese surely helped his efforts to succeed with the Tokyo-based football club.

“I am grateful to be able to speak Japanese,” said the midfielder in Bali’s local newspaper some time ago.

After several months of training with Yokogawa, Kento has noted that the training intensity and level in Japan is much higher and more disciplined than in Indonesia but, unfortunately, Kento is currently undergoing rehabilitation, after knee surgery in Tokyo, due to an injury suffered during that training with Yokogawa.

For more on Kento Toyoda and other Indonesian Talent (in Bahasa Indonesian!) check out http://indonesiantalent.blogspot.jp/

Follow the man himself on Twitter @kent_09 !

In the Mix, Previews

JSoccer Magazine J1 Preview Sept.22nd, Matchday 26 – 19:00 Sagan Tosu vs Kashiwa Reysol at Best Amenity Stadium

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Sagan Tosu – FW Toyoda is a doubt, undergoing tests.
Kashiwa Reysol reporting no injuries except THREE goalkeepers! But top keeper is available!

2 wins each and 3 draws – all in J2 until this year’s 1-1 draw in J1, since Sagan entered the League in 2006.

Last year’s promoted team – Reysol – went on to win the title, to the surprise of everyone, including their own fans – probably! Anyone who admitted that they thought that Sagan Tosu were this year’s surprise promoted team was probably laughed out of town at the start of the season, but the J1 first-timers have more than held their own and now, despite having won only two of their last five, find themselves still in 7th and challenging for a spot in the ACL 2013. With the best defence in J1, Sagan Tosu continue to surprise us all and they know that a win here would take them above Reysol, maybe even into 4th spot with other results going their way. They may well be missing ace striker Toyoda, who would be a big loss, and Reysol appear to be at full strength so the game could go either way.

With the likes of Leandro Domingues, Kudo, Sawa and Jorge Wagner on form, the Reysol attack is a force to be reckoned with. A rampant attack up against a formidable defence? Something’s gotta give! I think it will be the Sagan defence this time and Reysol will roll out the goals.

EXPECT a WIN for KASHIWA REYSOL!

In the Mix, Previews

JSoccer Magazine J1 Preview Sept.22nd, Matchday 26 – 19:00 Nagoya Grampus vs Sanfrecce Hiroshima at Mizuho Athletic Stadium

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Nagoya Grampus – FW Nagai is suspended. MF Isomura out long-term.
Sanfrecce Hiroshima – MFs Nakajima and Mikic, and DF Hwang will be missing through injury.

6 wins for Nagoya, 3 for Hiroshima and 6 draws since 2004.

Nagoya Grampus took out Cerezo Osaka away last weekend, but the top team will be a different proposition altogether! With three wins in a row, and Josh Kennedy finally back on the field, the team will be quietly confident that they can make up the six points and attack the top of the division but a game against any team above them is a must-win if they are to have any chance of cancelling out their points deficit over the next two months in the final run-up. Nagai will be missing through suspension but, in Tamada, Kanazaki and Kennedy, Nagoya have more than enough firepower at their disposal, but does their defence have the organisational skills to hold back Sato, Takahagi and co?

Sanfrecce took the top spot by winning a vital six-pointer battle of the top two last weekend and will be confident that they can continue, as well as being under no illusions of what they have to do to keep hold of pole position as the final straight of the season looms! Mikic’s creation will be a big loss but Takahagi is doing his best to supply, and catch the eye of Zaccheroni at the same time, perhaps!? Sato just puts the goals in when given the chance, so Tulio and his crew at the back for Nagoya will have their hands full in this match. It’s well known that the team at the top of J1 are under the most pressure and reaching the summit often means the next match is lost – I am following that principle here today! Nagoya also will know that if they win this match they will be within four points of Sanfrecce!
EXPECT a WIN for NAGOYA GRAMPUS!