On the 26th, manager Maciej Skorza held an online press conference, where he spoke about his enthusiasm for the Meiji Yasuda J1 League Round 7 match against Cerezo Osaka, which will be held at Yodoko Sakura Stadium on Friday, March 28th.

(I think the three days of training last week were a time for you to focus on yourself rather than the match against Cerezo Osaka. What did you instill in the players?)
"We had two weeks to train this time, so we did training for each phase of Trial. We put in a lot of intensity and the players worked with a good attitude, so I think it went well. Rather than focusing on Cerezo or Shimizu (S-Pulse), we focused on improving our teamwork and automating our play."

(Is it correct to say that this was also an opportunity for the players who have been starting from the bench so far to improve their coordination with the starters?)
"That was one of the points we focused on when we had a practice Trial. We were able to see the teamwork between the substitute players, which I think was very good. With the series of matches starting soon, I think the roles of these substitute players will increase."

(Other J.League clubs were competing in the YBC Levain Cup during this period. The Reds are exempt from the quarter-finals by participating in the FIFA Club World Cup, but that could also be seen as a loss of an opportunity to use players who have not played in Trial in an official match. What do you think about the fact that the cup matches are not held until September?)
"I think that's a bad aspect of not participating in the cup competition at this time. Even if we prepare strong opponents in training matches, it's difficult to recreate the pressure of an official match. But I don't want to complain about that. We knew this schedule from the beginning, and we just need to prepare accordingly."

(What is important to you when working with substitute players when there are no official matches?)
"Looking back at these six Trial, it was certainly not an easy task to manage. Even when we weren't getting good results, I followed the policy of giving the starters as much time to play together as possible. For example, there was never Trial where we were leading 2-0 or 3-0 and we brought on a sub. Subs also generally have a special role to play during Trial. For example, in the game against (Fagiano) Okayama when we were leading, or in the game against Shonan (Bellmare) when we had to go for a goal."

(Isn't it great to have Ryoma Ryoma Watanabe back?)
"Ryoma's return is also fast approaching. Of course, there is a possibility that he will play in the match against Cerezo OSAKA. He is a key player, not only because he has the skills, but also because he has a great attitude and character."

Q: You mentioned that you trained for each phase of Trial over the course of two weeks. Can you tell me more about those phases?
"For example, in defence, we have been practicing to improve coordination in our high-pressure play. Even in training matches we played against teams with different systems, so there were situations where we had to change our high-pressure system midway through the game. I think that was very beneficial for us. We also trained our low-pressure defence. Also, there was room for improvement in our defence in the penalty area, such as dealing with crosses, so we have been training in that area as well.

Regarding attacks, we practiced from build-up to finishing in zone 1, zone 2, and zone 3. We also trained short counters, although we didn't do that much. We had time to train all the elements of the game in this way, so I think it was very good, and I hope that this will help the team move forward again."

(I think the match Cerezo OSAKA will be where you can really see the results, but what is your impression of Cerezo OSAKA?)
“They are a team that has played a similar schedule to us in the sense that they have already played four away games. They have only played two Trial at home and have not had very good results. It is a match between two teams that are not satisfied with their results at the moment, so I think it will be a challenge for both teams.

However, Cerezo OSAKA is a team with a very interesting build-up. For example, the fullbacks move inside. They also have many young and interesting players, such as left fullback Takahashi (Niho) and attacking midfielder Kitano (Sota). I think they are a team with strong offensive features. For example, Lucas (Fernandez) on the right and striker Nakajima (Motohiko) are both good players with good skills.

And overall, they are a team that changes sides and keeps the ball with short passes, and then tries to create one-on-one situations for the wingers. I think they are a very difficult opponent. However, looking at the Reds' performance in the last two Trial, I think they are improving, so I want to win this Trial.

(This is a question I have to ask because I want to understand your Maciej better. What do you think decisiveness is?)
"This can be a pretty tricky question, but to me the important thing is to understand the characteristics of each player and how to make the most of them. I think the current Reds players have the skill to keep the ball. Their build-up is very good. After that it's a matter of how well you can keep playing without getting impatient. In any Trial, you need space to attack. Rather than panicking in a small space, I think it's important to attract the opponent, draw them out and move, create gaps and use them at the right time.

I think the team is making progress in that respect, but I think we need to improve our composure when we enter the final third and our judgment on the final pass. In order to do that, we need confidence, but I think that's something that's lacking because we haven't had good results so far. If we can achieve two or three consecutive wins, I think the players will gain more confidence and their performance will improve even more."

(For example, Kitano of Cerezo OSAKA has scored four goals, but he only had 19 shots. The Reds' top scorer is Thiago Santana, but he only had 3 goals from 12 shots. I think there are things you can't see in numbers, for example, in yesterday's Trial between Poland and Malta, Poland had 28 shots, but even Poland, who have world-class strikers, could only score two goals against Malta.)
"You said that it's not just about numbers, and I think you're right. There's also the opponent's style. For me numbers and data are important, but I also think that the flow of Trial is important. By the way, how many shots did the Japanese national team take in yesterday's match against Saudi Arabia? (laughs)"

(I was able to tell you the number of shots taken by the Polish national team right away, but I'm sorry that I can't tell you the number of shots taken by the Japanese national team right away. However, the Japanese national team didn't take many shots yesterday. I think Saudi Arabia played a good game.)
"I think Japan played better yesterday and created more chances. I think numbers and data are very good in the long term, but what I am trying to improve now is, for example, making our build-up more effective and our high pressing more effective."

(There was talk that Cerezo OSAKA 's full-backs move inside, but the Reds' Takahiro Sekine and Takuya Ogiwara have also been quite prominent in attacking from the inside, and I think we can expect them to score goals. What are your thoughts on that?)
"Both Ogi and Taka have offensive ability, so that's something we're aiming for, and I think they'll get better with each game."

(I want to give Reds fans and supporters a wonderful weekend.)
"I want to do my best and be successful."

(There has been talk that this is a match between two teams that are not satisfied with their results so far, but it could also be said that this is a fresh start after the two-week break. What kind of performance do you want to show in the first Trial after the restart?)
"If there's anything I could change, it would have been ideal to have Trial official match in between instead of a two-week break. The reason I say that is because we played a very good game against Okayama and made further progress against Kashima (Antlers), so it would have been nice if we could have continued on like that and played in the next Trial. However, in reality that's not the case, so we played a training match. The content of that training match was also very good, so I hope we can make further progress in the match against Cerezo OSAKA."

[Urawa Reds Official Media (URD:OM)]