As the first half began, the players attempted to correct their mistakes from the previous week and maintained tight spacing as they pressed, also taking care in possession when they won the ball. However, a lapse in concentration would prove costly in the 7^th minute. An opposition through ball penetrated the back line and though Naoto Kamifukumoto was able to block the initial effort from Sunamori, Han pounced on the rebound to give Kagoshima the lead. Han appeared to be in an offside position at the time of Sunamori’s shot, but the referee waved away the protests and Verdy once again found themselves behind early on. The Verdy players retained possession for a spell, as they attempted to quickly make up the deficit, but their combination play in the final third was lacking and they were unable to break the opponent down. Instead, the players found themselves pushing too far forward and once again gave up space on the counter, allowing the opposition to make several dangerous forays into the Verdy third. The trend continued until the 40^th minute, when Ushinohama broke down the right and ran with the ball at his feet into the area, setting up a second goal. That damage was too much for Verdy and before the team could recover any sense of balance, they were once again hit in the 42^nd minute when a cross from the right was headed in, sending them into the locker room at half time three goals down.

To break the stagnation in attack, Verdy would make two changes at half time, bringing on Lee Yong Jick for Naoya Kondo and Kojic for Kajikawa. With the players focused on reclaiming at least one goal in the early minutes, an opportunity would arrive in the 52^nd. Hayashi broke down the left wing and played a cross in front of goal that ran past the goalkeeper, allowing Junki Koike to turn in the loose ball and put Verdy on the scoreboard. Verdy now threw everything forward in attack and as their opponents retreated into a block, the players probed the defense with a various of short passes in tight spaces. In the 59^th minute, Shion Inoue played the ball into the box where Kojic served as the target man. After receiving the return pass, Inoue himself made it into the penalty area and fired off a shot before a defender could close him down, only to see the ball cannon back off the post. In the 79^th minute, Yuta Narawa chipped a pass for Hayashi to chest down, setting up Kojic for a first-time effort that was this time kept out by the left post. With the exception of a few counter attacks by Kagoshima, Verdy spent the majority of the half with possession of the ball and momentum in attack, but they were unable to make up the deficit before the final whistle.

This was the second match in a row where Verdy conceded multiple goals and ended the first half with a three-goal deficit, placing the team in the most difficult of circumstances. In the midst of this poor run, the team must now prepare to face Ventforet, a team vying for top of the table, away on their turf. What elements have caused the players to perform so differently in the first and second halves? What must the team do to play as they did in the second half from the opening whistle? While pessimism will not help, the problems certainly cannot be taken lightly. The players must take a hard look at both their strengths and their weaknesses, refusing to run away from the matters that need addressing, and do everything they possibly can to improve.

Your thoughts on the match?
Particularly in the first half, our defensive weaknesses in one v one situations were badly exposed. Defensively, it was almost as if everyone forgot what their responsibilities were supposed to be. We improved in the second half, but rather than play that way for 45 minutes, I don’t think we stood a chance to win this match unless we did it for the full 90.

What prevented you from breaking them down further after you got the first goal?
We had two shots hit the post, so I don’t think our attacking play dropped off that much after getting the first goal. Regardless, I don’t think we lost because of anything Kagoshima did in the second half. Instead, the reason lies in the fact that we couldn’t play the way we did in the second from the first half on.

You’ve given up multiple goals in two consecutive matches. How do you plan to address your problems in defense?
The things we have to do in defense will remain the same. Things like eliminating space when we’re off the ball, pressing to win the ball in one v one situations, and making sure we actually win it when we make the challenge. I think I have to emphasize those areas more than ever. For the second goal, especially, we had three players standing in the box and we still conceded. I think the players had to challenge one v one there and win the ball. With all that said, I think my job is also to find the positives, even after a run of matches like this. Tatsuya Anzai and Rihito Yamamoto started for the first time as professionals today and I would like to praise them for their play.

In the opening minutes, you tried to employ the lessons from the previous week and press them hard. Where did things go wrong?
I feel like we started to break down after giving up the first goal. For that one, we felt like they should have been flagged offside and when the call didn’t come, I think the players on the pitch began to lose their poise. Another cause was individual mistakes that allowed the opposition too much space and they were able to turn toward those avenues and find the easy pass. That caused us to drop too deep in defense, overall, and when we tried to press from the front, it caused gaps to open up. I don’t want to point out the same things to the players again and again. As such, I can only think of two potential reasons that they aren’t doing what’s asked of them. One is that they don’t want to do it and the other is that they don’t know how to do it. Defensively, these are all things that I want to think about further. If it can’t be done, I think we will have to make a change.

You said earlier that the players “forgot their responsibilities”. Can you be specific?
We’re talking about fundamental elements of defending. The player closest to the ball holder has to put pressure on the ball holder. The player second closest has to cover. The player third closest has to maintain balance from there. These are all basic things that we have failed to accomplish. The way we defended today, we’re going to give up goals no matter which player gets forward, so I think I have to give greater consideration to defensive abilities when making my selections.

You paired Ryota Kajikawa with Rihito Yamamoto in midfield. Did you feel that the three midfielders didn’t form the right balance in attack and defense?
I’m afraid I don’t agree with that. First, I think Rihito made a great contribution to the team. As far as Kaji(kawa) and Yuhei (Sato) are concerned, both of them made an effort to press from the front and they both ran a great distance, so I think their stamina has risen recently. If there was a problem, I suppose it’s that the other players didn’t adjust to the changes in the squad