On May 1st, head coach Maciej Skorza held an online press conference where he spoke about his enthusiasm for the Meiji Yasuda J1 League Round 14 match against Tokyo Verdy [MATCH PARTNER Medical Care Services] to be held at Saitama Stadium on Saturday, May 3rd (national holiday).

(Kawasaki Frontale has advanced to the AFC Champions League final, the same place the Reds played in two years ago. What kind of support would you like to send them? Do you remember what happened two years ago?)
"First of all, I think it's great that Kawasaki has made it to the finals. I want to congratulate them. This morning, I started my day by watching the highlights of the Trial. I'm happy that Kawasaki will be able to play in the finals, and we're all praying that they will win.

It reminds me of our great final against Al Hilal and it's something we will always remember."

(In the previous match against Sanfrecce Hiroshima, Takuro Kaneko scored his first goal since joining the team. Kaneko commented that he felt relieved, but what did the team say to him while he was unable to score a goal?)
"Takuro has big ambitions and has always worked hard to score goals and get assists, so I was very happy that he was able to score a goal. It was also an important goal against a tough opponent like Hiroshima in a home game, as it turned out to be Pts and earned the team three points. I'm pleased that he was able to achieve what he was aiming for."

(What is your impression of your next opponent, Tokyo Verdy? What do you think will be the deciding factor in the match?)
"First of all, Tokyo Verdy is on a winning streak and in good form. Also, they have only lost one away Trial against Kashima (Antlers). So I feel that a very tough task awaits them. They are a very organised team that works hard, and I think their defensive line is solid. They are an opponent with young, ambitious players who continue to work hard, so I think it will be a difficult job to break through and beat them, especially once they get into the final third. We lost our last match with two goals from Tsunashima (Yuto). I think they are a team that we need to be careful of in terms of set pieces as well.

However, we are in good form and want to bring joy to our fans and supporters at this Trial, which is expected to draw more than 50,000 spectators, so we will do our best to win."

(Do you think the difference in condition between you and Tokyo Verdy who Trial on Tuesday, is an advantage?)
"I don't think there's much of an impact, especially in Japan. For example, last year's match against Yokohama F･Marinos was played right after the Emperor's Cup semi-final, where the opponent played against Gamba (Osaka) until extra time, but Anderson Lopez played at a high intensity for the entire 90 minutes, so I don't think fatigue or other factors had much of an impact."

(I heard that Samuel Gustafson and Thiago Santana are in bad shape, and that Hiroki Abe is injured. Will he be out for a long time? I'd like to know more about that.)
"Yuki's injury is more complicated and will take some time. Thiago and Gustafsson are expected to return soon. Tomorrow is their final training session, and we will hear the final medical report there and then decide whether to include them in the squad."

(From the match against Tokyo Verdy to the match against Yokohama FC on June 1st, you have to play eight Trial in four weeks. I think it's a tough schedule. We got through April by solidifying the starting lineup, but is there a strategy for May in which you would like to get through the schedule in this way?)
"A very difficult period is about to begin. We have been able to play with a fixed starting lineup for the past four Trial, but I don't think we will be able to do that for the entire month of May. We have two Trial with only two days between games, so rotation will be an important part of my job. I will do this while carefully analyzing the data with the entire staff. First of all, I will carefully assess the players from the recovery training on Sunday, the day after Tokyo Verdy match, and then I will select the best lineup for the match against Gamba."

(If you have the best 11 players in Maciej opinion, then when you want to use a player from that lineup or when you look at the substitutes, what about training resonates with you?)
"We got off to a very difficult start to this season, and were in a very tough situation until three weeks ago. First of all, we focused on playing with the so-called best 11 for as long as possible, getting as many points as possible, and creating a good atmosphere. I think we will need to be more courageous in making substitutions from now on. We are always preparing with the desire to win the next Trial. That is the first important thing when selecting our members, and to do that, we take into account the condition of each player before each Trial. Of course, we also look at how they perform during training in preparation for Trial. We also consider the possibility of implementing the tactics we have prepared for the next opponent. I think that you will be able to see even more of our players in May."

(It seems that the training match took place on April 26th. After watching this game, was there any player that you would like to give a chance to in May?)
"It was great to see players improving. For example, Tomo (Tomoaki Okubo) is getting back to form. I think we will be giving Tomo more chances in the second half of the year, including the FIFA Club World Cup. Our centre-backs, like Inoue Reihito, also performed well, and I thought Ogi (Takuya Ogiwara) and Taka (Takahiro Sekine) performed very well as full-backs. It was also good that our strikers, Nagakura Miki and Takahashi Toshiki, each scored a goal."

(The match against Tokyo Verdy is being called GoGoReds! Day by the club, and all reserved seats for elementary, junior high and high school students, excluding visitor's seats, will be 550 yen, positioning the day as a way to cultivate future Reds fans and supporters. What kind of performance do you want to show in Trial where many children are expected to attend?)
"That's a good question. We would like to Trial aggressive, attractive football and score many goals. However, we must not forget that we are Trial against a strong opponent. As the opponent is trying to score and win, I cannot promise you the content or outcome of the game, but I can promise you that the players will have a good attitude and will try their best. The players are highly motivated and looking forward to this Trial."

(Tokyo Verdy, your next opponent, also plays with a three-back formation. Currently, about half of the teams in the league play with a three-back formation. Do you feel there is a trend or change in the system?)
"The three-back system is becoming a popular system right now. It has its positive and negative aspects. I want to have more players in the middle zone. When playing against teams with one striker and two shadow defences, like our next opponent, I want to make sure we have enough players to suppress them. Even though it's a three-back system, I think each team has different characteristics. For example, compared to other teams with three backs, I think Tokyo Verdy is a more difficult team to break through in zone three. If the opponent is playing with five backs, it becomes necessary to draw them out once you get into the final third and get behind them at the right time. It becomes more difficult to break through."

(There was talk about how the so-called best eleven helped accumulate many points, but I think that the sidebacks Yoichi Naganuma and Hirokazu Ishihara went from not having many opportunities to play at the beginning of the season to being named to the best eleven all at once. What do you appreciate about their play, and what do you think they are doing?)
"First of all, both full-backs are showing solid defensive performances, which makes the whole defensive line more stable."

(What about the offensive side of the two?)
"Both of them have the potential to go forward and join the attack. Hiro (Ishihara) is one of the players in the J.League who is best at crossing into the penalty area. Yoichi originally played as a winger, so his technical level is very high and I think he is very involved in the build-up. I also think that the balls that the two full-backs supply to the forwards who get behind the defense have improved. Another thing that is important for us is that we have made more plays where we try to get forward immediately after winning the ball."

(The match against Tokyo Verdy is GoGoReds! Day, so we expect a lot of children to attend. I'd like to know about your childhood, Coach Maciej. Who was your childhood idol?)
"It changes a bit depending on my age, but first of all, Diego Maradona was my hero. After that was Lothar Matthäus, the captain of the German national team. There were many other players who were fun to watch, and I liked watching Olsen of the Danish national team score goals, but Maradona and Matthäus were the players I admired the most. The same goes for Roberto Baggio."

(The 1982 Polish national team was very impressive and Grzegorz Lato was already a veteran, but what did you think of Wlodzimierz Smolarek and Zbigniew Boniek? Do you think Maciej 's attacking football can be attributed to these players?)
"I think the 1982 Polish national team was a very good team. Boniek in particular was a hero, and watching him play in the World Cup made me want to become a coach. Also, I think that in terms of offense, they were very good at the 1974 tournament in Germany. I was influenced by that team."

(Speaking of data, Kaito Yasui is number one in the league in interceptions, is that one of the reasons you continue to use him?)
"We had an interesting conversation before about stats. Stats are very important to me, but they are not the most important thing when making a decision. I think Kaito is one of the best defensive midfielders in the J-League. And I think his performance is improving every time he plays. I can't really imagine the starting 11 without Kaito. But Kaito still has room to grow, so I hope he will continue to be humble."

(The other day, the Japan Football Association held a referee briefing and mentioned that Japanese referees have been dispatched to Poland since 2017. It was suspended due to the COVID-19 outbreak and the introduction of video assistant referees, but it was restarted this year, and two referees, including referee Yusuke Araki, have been dispatched to Poland to officiate in the Polish league. It is a rare opportunity for Japanese people to referee in Europe, but did they have any contact with Maciej when he was in Poland?)
"It was more than two years ago, I remember a Japanese referee blowing the whistle in Poland. I think he was a very high-level referee. Also, looking at the referees as a whole, I think their level has improved compared to two years ago. I think this is the result of the better environment provided for the referees."

(I would like to see more exchanges develop, such as sending referees from Poland to officiate at J-League games.)
"I think that if there is exchange between referees in different leagues and on different continents, it will lead to the development of soccer itself."

[Urawa Reds Official Media (URD:OM)]