2025 Meiji Yasuda J1 League Round 35 match FC Machida Zelvia [MATCH PARTNER Mitsubishi Heavy Industries] Post-Trial comments

"In the first half, both teams were evenly matched with neither team creating many chances. We were aiming to use the space between the center backs and the double defensive midfielders with Isaac (Kise Thelin) and (Watanabe) Ryoma, but we were unable to use that space effectively.

There were some occasions when Ogiwara (Takuya) received the ball inside the penalty area, but it was after he had used the space between the lines, so it wasn't completely absent. And in those instances, Ogiwara's decision was to pass instead of dribble.

At halftime, we showed the players the footage and switched the positions of (Matheus) Savio and Ryoma. We used Savio as an attacking midfielder with the aim of using him between the lines and in the side pockets, and I think he improved in the second half.

I think our offense improved from the start of the second half. However, there were many situations where we made poor decisions at the end. For example, we didn't pass the ball from Samuel (Gustavsson) to Ogiwara on the side, and we didn't make enough decisions to take shots.

Of course, I'm not satisfied with not scoring any goals and not winning today's Trial. However, I thought Machida's Zone 1 defense was very good. It's not easy to create chances against Machida. We tried to create chances by substituting (Komori) Hiyane and bringing on (Nakajima) Shoya, but I think Shoya was in very good form today. His passing was also very good, and I think his left-footed shot was a very close call.

Although we improved in the second half, we still couldn't score a goal and couldn't win. I'm not satisfied, but I think it was positive that we showed a strong aggressive attitude, controlled the game, and held the opponents down defensively. Machida's strikers and shadow players are very strong, but I think Marius (Hojbraten) and Danilo (Boza) did a good job against them. Marius and Danilo did a great job against the J.League's strongest attacking line, including Yuki Soma, Shota Fujio, and Mitchell Duke. They also did a similar job against Oh Sehun in the second half.

Also, I think (Naganuma) Yoichi played very well after Hiro (Hirokazu Ishihara) was substituted, and Ogiwara not only worked hard defensively, but also offensively. If he had made the decision to pass at the last moment, it might have been a chance for Hiyane."

[Question and Answer Session]
(I believe you had two people working together against Yuki Soma in your match against Machida in April, but why didn't you do that this time?)
"What we did today was the same as in the last match. Especially at the start of the game, if Soma comes to the full-back, the defensive midfielders will go to support him, and the aim is the same. If he cuts in, he has the option of shooting or crossing, so we wanted to limit those types of plays."

(Although you were able to shut him down in the last Trial, I think Soma was able to break through him more today than he did last time.)
"I think Machida played very aggressively at the end, with Soma playing as a wingback."

(Looking at the league, you've only scored one goal since September. It seems like you're not very automatic in Zone 3 and you're not playing as planned.)
"I think we've automated our play to a certain extent. However, when you consider the characteristics of our players, guys like Takuro (Kaneko) and Savio have the instinct to attack when they're one-on-one, and I don't want to limit that aspect of them."

(Following the second half of last week's match Yokohama F･Marinos, the fans and supporters stopped singing. Today too, there was a banner that read, "If you're a Urawa man, win the support with your play." How did you feel about that?)
"I understand the feelings of our fans and supporters very well, and I believe that it is only by uniting with our fans and supporters that the Reds can achieve success."

(Not just in Zone 3, but there are times when players seem timid or surprised by their teammates' plays, and it seems like they're still not fully connected. What do you think can be done to make it go more smoothly?)
"For example, analysing today's Trial, we had to play under the opponent's strong pressure at the start, and we had problems with our build-up. It seemed like we were playing with a bit of fear, but we conceded quite a few goals from mistakes in the build-up in zone 1. I also think that which players are on the pitch is important. We want to connect the ball from zone 1, but depending on Trial, I think there are Trial where it's better to avoid taking big risks and connecting there."

[Urawa Reds Official Media (URD:OM)]