On the 30th, after the 21st round of the Meiji Yasuda J1 League Jubilo Iwata Iwata [MATCH PARTNER TANITA], Hirokazu Ishihara spoke about his thoughts on scoring the opening goal, his first as a professional.

(Looking back on the scene of his first professional goal)
"At the meeting this week, we were told about my positioning when the ball is on the opposite wing, such as whether I should go more inside. The coach also said, 'The fullbacks have to score,' so I think that positioning led to today's result. (Ito) Atsuki's ball was perfect."

(I think your strengths were shown with your high-impact headers, but do you think they will continue to be a weapon in the future?)
"I think it's important for this team that the fullbacks score goals. I don't want to stop at this one point, but I think it would be good to be conscious of getting more points."

(His goal was the Reds' 1,600th in the J1 League.)
"I'm happy to have made history with such a big club as the Reds. I feel like I've become a part of the Reds."

(And the pass that led to the second goal?)
"I've been able to pass the ball to Atsuki a few times, even in games Kashima Antlers, so it's easy to work with him there. He runs without being told, and we have a strong relationship of trust where if I put the ball there, Atsuki will get it done, so it's fun to work with him."

(He was overtaking Ola Solbakken from the beginning and moving up the ranks.)
"That's something we do in every Trial. It's something we have to do, it's something we have to agree on as a team, so both (Ohata) Ayumu and I were conscious of trying to overtake each other today."

(I think the Reds were able to play at their own pace today, but what do you think went well in Trial?)
"The team was well connected as a whole, and if someone shifted their position the whole team moved to adjust accordingly, which I think they did very well. Up front we had Hide (Hidetoshi Takeda) and (Watanabe) Ryoma, and those two are really good at observing their surroundings and the situation and making adjustments, so we adjusted to three at the back or the full-backs took up higher positions, and they were able to keep an eye on each other. We were able to pass the ball around without any problems, and there were plenty of passing routes for the full-backs, so it was really easy to play with us."

(Today, Hiroki Sakai and Alexander Scholz spoke. With them gone, what do you feel you need to work on yourself? And what have you absorbed from them?)
"I myself joined this team because of (Sakai) Hiroki, so I do feel a bit lonely, but as for today's goal, Hiroki has scored goals like that, and I've seen those kinds of scenes during practice too, which has brought me to this point. That led to today's result, so I'm really glad I came to this team. I'm sure some people are worried about the loss of the two central players over the past few years, but we have many good players. I think we Trial today in a way that didn't cause any anxiety, so I hope that the current players will continue to surpass us and play with a strong sense of responsibility and determination."

(Did you get any words from Hiroki Sakai?)
"Not only did he do good things, but when we were together he was always pointing out my weaknesses. Like the goal we conceded in the Kashima match, Hiroki really taught me about those things and I think I learned a lot from him about not letting mistakes become mistakes. I want to keep that in mind as I go forward."

(I think you can clearly see your determination and resolve to transfer.)
"As a soccer player, I think opportunities only come for a split second, so I think it was really amazing that he made the choice to go for it. I think everyone thinks he did it for the Reds, so I have nothing to say."

(With Hiroki Sakai now gone, do you think Ishihara will be the one receiving those expectations?)
"There are still areas where I hold everyone back, such as calling out to others, and I think there are still areas where we need to improve, so I want us to work together with even more ambition."

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