After returning from injury last week, Yuhei Sato was once again absent from the squad and replaced at anchor (libero) by Rihito Yamamoto. Meanwhile, Junki Koike was selected to play at right side back, while Koki Morita returned to the bench for the first time since sustaining a concussion.

As the match began, Omiya elected to play simple long balls to their two-meter tall target man Šimović. However, the Verdy defense were successful at putting a body on the forward and not letting him have a decisive impact. The Verdy defense were not as successful at defending set pieces. As the match developed into a physical struggle for the ball, the team found themselves conceding more and more opportunities from fouls and Omiya began to put pressure on the Verdy goal. The team were initially able to escape by relying on big saves from Naoto Kamifukumoto whenever Šimović won the ball, such as in the fifth minute, when a corner kick from the left was headed down and the goalkeeper showed superhuman reflexes by batting away a shot that came in unmarked from inside the box. Having survived the initial bombardment from their opponents, Verdy now began to control the ball more, spreading it across the full width of the pitch and pushing slowly into the opposition half. After beginning the match with a high press, Omiya now responded to the Verdy pass-work by parking numbers in defense and that pattern would continue for the rest of the match. The Verdy players attempted to find holes in the defensive shell by moving the ball back and forth between the defensive line, mid field, and the wide strikers, stretching their opponents left and right while Shion Inoue and Paraiba looked for opportunities to make direct runs or combine with Leandro to set up the finish. It looked as if a Verdy goal were only a matter of time, but in the 22^nd minute, it was Omiya who broke the deadlock. The moment came after a corner kick from the right. A twisting ball was played low toward the near post and dropped into the box, evading the crowd of players from both teams and heading directly into goal. This was the second match in a row that Verdy gave up a goal from a set piece and it would have been no surprise if the team now completely collapsed. However, they immediately showed resilience and pushed forward with renewed aggression in search of a goal. In the 27^th minute, the players held off intense pressure to move the ball in the final third and after intercepting an initial clearance, Yamamoto played the ball to Kajikawa. The latter laid it off to Klebinho, who was standing just in front of him, and despite having his back to goal, the Brazilian made a brilliant turn and fired a powerful midrange shot that was on target but ultimately kept out by a fine save from the Omiya goalkeeper. From that point, Verdy continued to move the ball from high positions and control the play, but they were unable to find a goal and the first half came to an end.

The second half proceeded with an even clearer pattern than the first. Omiya maintained their defensive stance and aimed for chances on the counter. Through these, they hoped to earn set pieces and claim a second goal. Meanwhile, Verdy hoped to break down the defense with thorough passwork. In the 64^th minute, Verdy were unable to recover possession after a set piece and found themselves vulnerable on the counter. Despite being in a seemingly hopeless 1 v 1 situation, Kamifukumoto rescued the team with a big save by blocking the effort with a single outstretched leg. Following that moment, the ball was almost exclusively at the feet of the Verdy players. They continued to locate or create space in the opposition half and threaten the defense. First-half substitute Mizuki Arai added variation to the attack with his aggressive direct runs and shots on goal. Still, Verdy were unable to find the net and in the 76^th minute, they found themselves unable to clear after a corner kick from the right. Redirected toward the near post, the ball broke free in front of goal and despite the desperate efforts of the covering Klebinho to deflect it off the line, the Omiya players were able to force the ball into the back of the net and hurt Verdy from a set piece once more.

Down by two, the manager used his remaining substitutions in an effort to find someone who could make a difference and push the team forward, but the opposition were determined to erase any space on the pitch and Verdy’s passing was unable to unlock them or create effective paths toward goal. Narawa was able to make late runs into the box on two occasions, but his first effort went wide of the post and his second was smothered by the goalkeeper.

Other than goals they conceded from set pieces, there were very few occasions when Verdy were made to sweat on this day. All of them came when the Verdy attack broke down and the team were hit on the counter. The response to those threats was sufficient. It was only the set pieces that were earned from defending that did the damage. Precisely because the team’s style has permeated the squad so well, it is necessary to cut down on those mistakes and maintain possession. The decisive moves built on the back of that possession are already being fomented in training. There are no short cuts at this point and the players must continue to develop their style, building the confidence to win along the way.

Your thoughts on the match?
As always, I would first like to thank the many fans who traveled to the away stadium to support us today. I am especially grateful that they stayed to cheer us on until the final whistle, despite the rain. I wanted to repay them by getting the full three points today, but in the final conclusion, we don’t yet have the strength to break down a team that retreats into a 5-4 defensive block. I believe we need more work to raise our quality in that aspect.

Strategically, what do you think was the key to bypassing their defense?
Our tactical approach this week centered on finding ways to pull the corners of their back five forward and trying to force them into a back three. You could say that we’re not there yet or that we simply weren’t clever enough to break them down. I find that extremely frustrating and it’s something we need to work on.

Can you tell us what your aim was in having Klebinho and Koike switch positions midway?
It was a tactical decision. I think that both of them are capable of playing either position, so as we tried to adjust our plans, I made the change.

After conceding two goals from set pieces, do you have any plans for how to do deal with those in the future, other than not committing fouls?
Fundamentally speaking, our goal is to play football in a way that will not grant the opposition opportunities from set pieces, by which I mean that we aim to keep possession of the ball. However, in the event that we do concede those opportunities, we of course need a plan to prevent them from scoring. We look to be at a disadvantage from corner kicks, so we challenged ourselves today by leaving three men forward and the objective was to win the second ball and instantly begin the counter, or contra, attack. However, I am forced to admit that it did not go well. Even so, not granting them set pieces was a major point of emphasis for today’s match, so we have to reflect on that.

Given the stagnancy in attack, one would think you could have tried for more variation by encouraging mid-range shots or strategically playing long ball s forward.
In terms of mid-range shots, I agree that against an opponent who parked the bus like today, we weren’t likely to score without trying at least twice as many efforts from distance as we did. I remind the players daily that it is the threat of a mid-range shot that opens up opportunities for a final ball. However, with regard to punting the ball forward, it’s not something that is part of my plans. You could say that the potential for success is low and if you continue playing simple balls forward, you also run the risk of the opposition winning the second ball and resuming their attack. In terms of finding strategic opportunities to punt the ball forward, we did prepare a few patterns for this match and we worked on them in training. Things simply didn’t go as planned and the fact that we couldn’t break them down through the patterns that we worked on means that we truly need to redouble our efforts. As your question indicates, I don’t plan on playing long balls meaninglessly, but at the end of matches, when we do get the ball into the zone around the posts, where we want to break them down, we have a subsequent problem with substitutes not occupying the necessary positions. That lack of shared tactical understanding is a problem and something that I, personally, need to reflect on. I feel quite strongly that there are still many areas that we need to work on.