On July 5th, a press conference announcing the formation of Urawa Reds U-21 team was held at Saitama Stadium as part of "REDS START DAY 2026/27".

U-21 team head coach Tatsuya Tanaka and reinforcement manager Tomoya UGAJIN appeared at the press conference and answered questions from the media.

[Tomoya UGAJIN Strengthening Manager]

"Hello everyone. I'm Tomoya UGAJIN in charge of strengthening Urawa Reds U-21 team. The J.League has recently launched the U-21 league to strengthen the development environment for post-youth players. Urawa Reds is also looking to take on this new challenge and strengthen our team to produce as many players as possible who can play in the top team. Thank you for having me today."

[Director Tatsuya Tanaka]

"Hello everyone, I'm Tatsuya Tanaka, and I've been appointed as the U-21 coach. First of all, I'm very honored to have been given the opportunity to fight for Urawa Reds again. At the same time, I feel a great sense of joy and responsibility."

The U-21 league will begin this season. I believe this is a big challenge for both the club and Japanese football as a whole. I myself will approach this stage as a challenger and work to build a team for the future of Urawa Reds. Thank you for your support."

[Questions and Answers]
(I'd like to ask Mr. Ugajin, the strengthening manager, about the player composition for the U-21 team.)
Ugajin Reinforcement Manager
"Since it will be a league for players under 21, there will be an overage player slot, but I think that in the first year, the team will mainly consist of players from the youth academy. Within that, there will also be players from the top team who are under 21, and an overage slot for players under 24, so I hope to strengthen the team by making good use of those resources."

(With Cho Kwi-jae taking over as head coach of the first team, I think it's important to see how many players can be sent to the first team. What are the club's requests and visions regarding the gradation of football styles between Coach Cho and Coach Tanaka?)
Ugajin Reinforcement Manager
"I think we share the common goal of 'playing football that takes the initiative in both attack and defense,' which is a club principle. Within that framework, I hope that manager Tatsuya Tanaka and manager Kwi-jae Cho will be able to express their individual styles, develop players, and produce players who can succeed in the top team."

(To Mr. Ugajin, the team strengthening manager: What kind of team would you like Coach Tanaka Tatsuya to create?)
Ugajin Reinforcement Manager
"I want them to play aggressive, attacking football, just like when he was playing for Urawa Reds. I want them to take the initiative in both attack and defense, and I want them to play an attacking defensive game as well. I believe that offense is the best defense, so I want them to be aggressive and produce teams and players like that."

(We'd like to ask Coach Tatsuya Tanaka: You managed eight Trial in MEIJI YASUDA J1 100 YEAR VISION LEAGUE What did you learn from that experience, and how can you apply that experience to the U-21 team?)
Director Tatsuya Tanaka
"First of all, I couldn't possibly tell the players that my experience as interim manager in the 100-Year Vision League was a 'good experience.' I keenly felt my own shortcomings. Through that experience, the direction of the football I want to play became clearer to me. I hope to implement that with this U-21 team as well."

(I'd like to ask Mr. Ugajin, the strengthening manager, about the league's overall regulations. Will youth players have a tough schedule, playing in both youth Trial and U-21 Trial? Are you considering increasing the number of players under 21? Will university students who are specially registered be able to play in the U-21 league? What are your plans for future player rosters and divisions?)
Ugajin Reinforcement Manager
"One of the points of discussion when the U-21 league was established was the J.League Elite League that we had run previously. The J.League Elite League ended after two years because the regular season didn't go well, so the J.League has told us that they want to ensure it lasts for four years no matter what. We also hope to strengthen our team with those four years in mind."

In the first year, I think many players will participate in both academy Trial and U-21 Trial, and among them, I think some of the current high school seniors will sign professional contracts. For those players, the U-21 team will be their main focus.

Looking ahead two or three years, in addition to developing such players, there will likely be transfers from other clubs, and we also hope to make it a bit more competitive for players to sign professional contracts from our youth academy. However, players who are supposed to go to university to develop and then return will, in principle, spend four years developing outside the club if they go elsewhere, so we believe that identifying and evaluating such players will be a very important task for us."

(A question for Coach Tanaka: When coaching high school-aged players, what is the most important thing you want to emphasize?)
Director Tanaka
"The concept is centered on individual growth. First and foremost, we constantly demand that players showcase their strengths, and we want to develop players who can demonstrate those strengths. In addition, to play in the top team, players need to understand tactics, which I call their weakness. Rather than trying to improve that, we want to bring it up to a minimum level, and fundamentally, we want to develop players who can consistently showcase their strengths."

(I have a question for Mr. Ugajin, the strengthening manager. When establishing the U-21 team, I think one of the things that needs to be differentiated is how it will coexist with university soccer.)
Ugajin Reinforcement Manager
"First of all, with the U-21 league, our club will create a new development stage for the U-21 team, where they will train at a different time than the top team, and we will bring in a manager and coaching staff. I don't know the details of other clubs yet, but I anticipate that players who couldn't play in the J.League will probably be able to participate in the U-21 league using the overage player slot. I think that being able to Trial with such high-level players on a regular basis will be the first way to differentiate ourselves from university teams. What I think is very important for players in the U-21 team is their social skills. I want to emphasize not only soccer skills but also the development of them as people."

(The U-21 league will be held with spectators at all events, but will the players receive appearance fees or win bonuses?)
Ugajin Reinforcement Manager
"That's a matter of contract, so it's not something I can comment on."

[Urawa Reds Official Media (URD:OM)]

Press conference announcing the appointment of manager Cho Kwi-jae
2026/27 Season New Player Signing and Returning Player Press Conference