On September 2nd, Urawa Reds played Albirex Niigata in the 26th round of the Meiji Yasuda J1 League at the Denka Big Swan Stadium.

The Reds kept their defence strong and didn't give the opposition any Trial, and in the first half, Alexander Scholz scored a penalty kick after Takahiro Sekine 's header hit the opponent's hand to take the lead. In the second half, they held on despite being pushed back, but in the 81st minute they conceded a goal and the game ended in a 1-1 draw.

While Niigata tried to keep possession of the ball, the Reds players set their defensive line high, kept the team compact, and fought by keeping close track of the ball.

Although they had less ball possession, they had assumed Niigata would play a possession-oriented style, so the Reds players played Trial calmly. Niigata had almost no chance of breaking down their defense and putting them in a pinch. They stole the ball in close battles, or stole the opponent's pass and quickly switched positions, penetrating the opponent's goal with short counterattacks.

In the 20th minute, Tomoaki Okubo was injured in an accident, but the Reds players, including substitute Kaito Yasui, showed no signs of panic.

They continued to play a compact, solid defense, putting their bodies on the line, and in the 26th minute, they showed off some dynamic attacks, such as Sakai Hiroki breaking away with speed from a long pass by Ken Iwao Hiroki Sakai, who then passed the ball with one touch, and Atsuki Ito running in and taking Trial, and they then earned a corner kick in the 34th minute.

Iwao sent a ball in front of the goal to Sekine, who ran in from the outside and became free to head it in. The ball hit the opponent's hand and went over the goal line, and initially it was ruled a corner kick, but after checking with the VAR (Video Assistant Referee) and the referee's on-field review, it was ruled a penalty kick for a handball foul by the opponent.

The penalty was taken by Scholz, who calmly smashed the ball into the centre of the goal as the goalkeeper darted to the right, giving the Reds the lead in the 38th minute.

Even after taking the lead, Akimoto continued to fight fiercely for the ball and Scholz showed excellent covering, forming a compact and strong defense that did not allow the opponents any chances.

On the other hand, in the first half's added time, Jose Kante entered the opponent's penalty area, stole the ball at the front, and Koizumi finally took a shot, so rather than just focusing on defense, they also aimed for the goal.

The second half started with Sekine taking a shot from inside the opponent's penalty area less than a minute into Trial, and Japan continued to increase their opportunities to steal the ball in the opponent's half and the amount of time they had possession of the ball compared to the first half.

From around the 65th minute, Niigata started to press forward, and the team had to hold out near their own penalty area while lowering their overall line. With Shusaku Shusaku Nishikawa, the team put their bodies on the line to repel Niigata's attacks.

However, in the 81st minute, the opponent's pass hit a Reds player in their own penalty area, and the ball unfortunately fell in front of the opponent. Nishikawa reacted to the shot, but the ball hit the right post and went into the goal, tying the score.

The Reds continued to fight for a goal and victory, to live up to the cheers of the fans and supporters who had flocked to Niigata. They were unable to score a second goal and were unable to secure the victory, but they did not allow a second goal to be conceded and earned a point on the road.

The next match will be the first leg of the J.League YBC Levain Cup Prime Stage quarterfinals against Gamba Osaka, to be held away at Panasonic Stadium Suita on Wednesday, September 6th from 7pm.

[Urawa Reds Official Media (URD:OM)]