On the 4th, a press conference was held online with manager Per-Mathias Hoegmo, where he spoke about his enthusiasm for the Meiji Yasuda J1 League Round 12 match against Yokohama F･Marinos will be held at Saitama Stadium on the 6th (Monday, a holiday).

Yesterday's match against Kawasaki Frontale turned out to be a tough one. You had some good chances in the first half, but after the opponent changed their approach midway through the first half, you weren't able to take control of the game. How do you feel about that?
"First of all, I would like to congratulate everyone on the U-23 Japan National Team for winning the AFC U-23 Asian Cup Qatar 2024. I would also like to congratulate (Ohata) Ayumu for playing in the final. I hope he returns with a lot of confidence.

In the first half against Kawasaki, we used the space well and created five chances, but only scored one. In the second half, the opponent pulled back a little and defended more compactly. I think one of the reasons for this was that we scored early in the second half. That changed the flow of the game. As I said a little in the post-match press conference, I wish we had been a little more patient and used the space on the opposite side while changing sides. I think we tried to force the final pass a little and made many gambling plays. We used the sides but didn't cross much, giving the opponent a chance to counter, which led to us conceding a goal."

(How will they approach the match against Yokohama F. Marinos, which is two days away, based on this reflection?)
"First of all, I've heard that 40,000 tickets have been sold so far for the match against Yokohama F. Marinos, so I'm very happy about that. Also, I think the last home game went very well. What we want to do is to maintain a stable, high level of offense throughout the 90 minutes. I hope we can do that while reading the game. In the first half of the match against Kawasaki, I think we were able to play while finding spaces. Yokohama F. Marinos is also a team that wants to have possession of the ball. In the short term, I think it's important to make good use of counterattacks against teams like that."

(There was talk of winning the U23 Asian Cup, but what do you think was so great about Ohata's performance?)
"I think he has shown the same growth at the national team as he did at the team before the U-23 Asian Cup. His build-up has also improved. His physical condition has also improved, and he is able to take part in attacks while making use of his speed. He is a player who can disrupt the balance of the opposing team."

(Ohata is returning to Japan today, but are you considering using him in the match against Yokohama F. Marinos?)
"He will come to Ohara tomorrow, where the medical staff will check him and we will also look at the report from the national team and make a decision based on that."

Regarding the second goal conceded in the match against Kawasaki, the ball was scored on the side of anchor Samuel Gustafson, in an area that the center backs, full backs and wingers could not approach, but there are weaknesses in the system and I think we have conceded goals in similar areas before. How do you take the feedback from that goal and how do you plan to prevent it in the match against Yokohama F. Marinos?
"We conceded a goal from a counter attack, and I think the communication between Hiro (Hirokazu Ishihara) and (Alexander) Scholz needs to be improved at the end, but before that, I think it is necessary for one of the inside halves to return closer to Samuel. When (Iwao) Nori was there, I think the balance was good. It is a very complex role, so when a new player plays there, it takes some time for him to learn that role. We can increase the number of players there by having two defensive midfielders, but we want two inside halves when attacking. We are in the process of adapting to this way of playing, but we would like to further develop it both defensively and offensively. For example, the inside halves are participating in attacks more than before, and we are scoring goals, but in terms of balance and stability, I think that is still an area for improvement."

(We have wingers such as Yusuke Matsuo and Naoki Maeda who are not in 100% condition, so I think it will be difficult to play the attacking football that the manager wants to achieve, but what will be important in order to get through consecutive games with injured and unfit players?)
"It is a little tough having four or five wingers out. They are very important players when it comes to our identity. Naoki returned to training today, and we hope he will be ready for Monday. As for Matsuo, he is still suffering from back pain."

(You've said it's taken time for you to learn the role of inside half, but did you expect it to take this long? What do you think is the reason it's taken so long?)
"I think it has two aspects: what we have done up until now, and how we can use our strengths within this system. Ken has found a very good way to play. Last year he had a more defensive role, but he has adapted well to an even more offensive role. He is playing while developing his offensive skills and maintaining last year's good defensive performance. Each player is getting used to their role in different situations, and I think Atsuki (Ito), who has played in many games, is growing as he plays. In the last home game, Tomo (Tomoaki Okubo) played in that position, and I think he fulfilled his role well. (Yasui) Kaito also scored a goal. The faster we can adapt, the better, but right now we are in a situation where we have to play by rotating players, and I think one of the reasons is that we have not been able to settle on a certain level of members."

(Shusaku Nishikawa is just one game away from reaching the milestone of 600 appearances in the J1 League. Having watched many goalkeepers, what do you think are Nishikawa's strengths and the reason he has continued to play at the top level in Japan?)
"If you watch the goalkeeper training at Ohara, you will see many of the answers. They are very professional, and even now they train with great ambition. And under the guidance of goalkeeper coach Joao (Milett), all three goalkeepers work as one unit, motivating each other and helping each other improve."

(It's a tough schedule, with some soccer players saying that three days is okay, but two days is tough. How do you plan to manage it and head into the Yokohama F. Marinos Marinos match?)
"First of all, I think how you act right after the match is important. After the match, you need to take in enough protein and carbohydrates. Yesterday, we returned to Saitama immediately after the match, and today the players who started in the Kawasaki match were recovering. I didn't mention the Kawasaki match much, and I want them to be mentally fresh. The players who didn't play in the match did a thorough training session. I hope they can focus fully on the next match starting tomorrow."

(I have the impression that we often concede goals in similar ways. I think there have been many goals conceded that could not be prevented even though there were players in the match against Kashiwa Reysol, Gamba Osaka, and yesterday's match against Kawasaki, but why are there so many goals conceded in similar ways?)
"When analyzing the first goal we conceded yesterday, I think what we had in common with the other goals we conceded was that we weren't strong enough in one-on-one situations. We had enough players, so we have talked about the need to improve in those areas. I think some of the goals we conceded could have been prevented if we had acted stronger mentally, both tactically and as individual players."

(How are you feeling about the match against Yokohama F. Marinos?)
"It was really good to come to the Reds and see the atmosphere at Saitama Stadium. The approximately 42,000 fans and supporters in attendance created a fantastic atmosphere for our last home game. I hope to show them a good performance in Monday's match against Yokohama F. Marinos."

[Urawa Reds Official Media (URD:OM)]