2019 SBS Cup International Youth Soccer
3rd Match vs U-18 Colombia National Team
Sun. 11 August 2019 17:30 Match duration 80mins (40mins×2)
Kusanagi Athletic Stadium (Shizuoka)

U-18 Japan National Team 1-3 (0-2, 1-1) U-18 Colombia National Team

Scores
9' goal against (U-18 Colombia National Team)
26' goal against (U-18 Colombia National Team)
44' ODA Yutaro (U-18 Japan National Team)
64' goal against (U-18 Colombia National Team)

Starting Line-up
GK: OBATA Yuma
DF: MIHARA Shuma, KIMURA Seiji, BABA Seiya, KATO Hijiri
MF: NAKAYAMA Riku, DOHI Kodai, MATSUMOTO Nagi, AYUKAWA Shun
FW: FUJIO Shota, HARUYAMA Misaki

Reserves
GK: ITAHASHI Yosei
DF: NISHIO Ryuya, IDE Keita, ISHIDA Ryotaro
MF: IWAMOTO Sho, NAKAMURA Ryuga, ODA Yutaro, ISHIURA Taiga
FW: SAKURAGAWA Soromon

Substitutions
HT NAKAYAMA Riku → ODA Yutaro
HT HARUYAMA Misaki → SAKURAGAWA Soromon
HT KIMURA Seiji → NISHIO Ryuya
HT DOHI Kodai → IWAMOTO Sho
57' MIHARA Shuma → ISHIDA Ryotaro
62' AYUKAWA Shun → ISHIURA Taiga
72' KATO Hijiri → IDE Keita

Match Report

The final matchday of the 2019 SBS Cup International Youth Soccer took place on Sunday 11 August, where the U-18 Japan National Team squared off against the U-18 Colombia National Team. With the tournament title at stake, Japan lost to Colombia 1-3, and fell short from claiming their first title in six years. The South American side had lost to Shizuoka Youth 0-1 in their first match but bounced back with a 5-1 victory over the U-18 Belgium National Team in their second match before the final fixture against Japan.

After this day’s first fixture between Shizuoka Youth and the U-18 Belgium National Team went into penalty shootouts, the tournament title was up for grabs for the winner between Japan and Colombia. The matchday was welcomed by a rather cool weather and the match attracted over 4,000 spectators.

With the match kicking off under an intense atmosphere, it was the South American side who took the initiative through their aggressive pressure from the frontline. Facing the opponent’s aggression, Japan struggled to pick up their pace and started to play passively in the early minutes. In the ninth minute, Japan conceded a penalty kick from their own mistake and gave up the opening goal to Colombia. Another mistake committed by Japan in the 26th minute also led to a Colombian goal, as the match entered halftime with Colombia leading 2-0.

Coach KAGEYAMA Masanaga sent off his players by giving an intense pep-talk during halftime, as Japan made several changes to start off the second half. In response to their coach’s enthusiasm, Japan started to show more aggression to win the ball and constructed their offence by utilising the width of the field. In the 46th minute, SAKURAGAWA Soromon delivered a pass to ODA Yutaro, who dribbled into the centre and fired a shot to score his third goal of the tournament. Contrary to the first half, Japan played with great intensity and showcased quick transitions between their offence and defence. In the 52nd minute, Oda and Sakuragawa combined once again to create a close opportunity, but this time Sakuragawa’s header went wide of the goal. As Japan applied more numbers upfront to equalise the match, Colombia took advantage of the situation and scored their third goal from a counterattack in the 64th minute. Despite the final efforts made by Japan to cut down the deficit, Colombia kept their composure to maintain their lead, as the match finished with a final score of 1-3.

As a result, Japan finished as the runners-up of the SBS Cup International Youth Soccer, falling short from claiming their first tournament title in six years. The U-18 Japan National Team will now head to a tour abroad in September to prepare themselves for the AFC U-19 Championship 2020 qualifiers scheduled in late October.

Coach and Players' Comments

KAGEYAMA Masanaga, Coach
The SBS Cup International Youth Soccer is a precious tournament where we are given the opportunity to face strong teams from abroad, along with Shizuoka Youth, who is another strong team. Personally, this was my third year in a row to attend this tournament as a coach, so I entered with a strong intention to win the title. I have been telling my players to strive for two goals. First is to earn a spot into the FIFA U-20 World Cup as a team, and the other goal is to earn a spot into the higher category national team as an individual. In November, we have the AFC U-19 Championship qualifiers scheduled ahead of us in Vietnam. We entered this tournament with the intention to strengthen the overall level of the team and to have our players mentally prepared to strive for higher categories and international competitions. We have rotated our line-ups in our first two matches against Belgium and Shizuoka Youth, and the two matches have setup a wonderful stage to determine the winner of this tournament. At the final match, Colombia played with an intense and powerful style, where they showcased a very attack-minded football. Their intention to always attack the goal is a quality that we lack in Japan, so this match has given us a great learning experience. Our players were overwhelmed by the opponent’s intensity in the first half. We looked scared and played passively, and it is no surprise that we conceded two goals. However, the players played with courage and showcased their aggression in the second half. They displayed great ball movements and played very well with each other to create numbers of close opportunities. Despite losing the match 1-3, our players were able to play with a sense of commitment in the second half, and we have gained confidence from the fact that our techniques proved to be effective at this level. We must not assume that Japanese players cannot compete at the individual level, but instead believe in our abilities to strive for higher levels. Lastly, I would like to thank the Shizuoka Pref. Football Association, Shizuoka Shimbun, Shizuoka Broadcasting System, and everyone who was involved in this tournament.

DF #4 BABA Seiya (Tokyo Verdy Youth)
It was not like we were caught off guards, but we ended up allowing our opponent to take the initiative in this final match where the tournament title was at stake. Although we managed to find our rhythm in the second half and create numbers of opportunities, we were only able to score one goal, and that is something we must improve on. I personally felt the need to become stronger in order to win the physical battles, and I also need to improve on my plays to add more variation to the team’s build-up plays. Facing a strong opponent like Colombia has given me a wonderful learning experience. I will feed off of this experience and continue to work hard so that I can become a better player ahead of our next tour and the AFC U-19 Championship qualifiers.

MF #5 MATSUMOTO Nagi (Cerezo Osaka U-18)
We entered the match so poorly and ended up getting overwhelmed by our opponent’s intensity and aggression. We failed to find our rhythm in offence and couldn’t create any opportunities. We managed to reset our minds in the second half and started to play with more aggression, which allowed us to find our rhythm. However, we still lacked the quality to convert the chances. Personally, this tournament has given me many homework to work on. We also saw our weakness as a team. This experience has made us realise that we must strive for higher standards at a daily basis in order to compete at the world level. Once I return to my club, I will re-evaluate my daily routine and work hard to become a better player ahead of our next tour.

MF #6 AYUKAWA Shun (Sanfrecce Hiroshima Youth)
Today’s match was a crucial match with the tournament title at stake. We entered the match with the intention to take the initiative against Colombia, but we ended up giving up the opening goal and allowed our opponents to take control of the match. At a personal level, I needed to get myself more involved with the ball and create more opportunities for the team. I also needed to carry the ball more often, especially after we regained our composure in the second half. As a team, we entered this prestigious tournament with the intention to simulate the matches of the AFC U-19 Championship qualifiers and finish the tournament by winning the title. Although we were not able to win the title, through the three matches played at this tournament, I feel like we were able to improve as a team. Ahead of the AFC U-19 Championship qualifiers, we must incorporate all things we’ve learned from this tournament and share the experience to each of our team, so that we can heighten the level of our daily trainings.

Schedule

*The schedule is subject to change due to the team condition, the weather, etc.

2019 SBS Cup International Youth Soccer

Tournament Dates: Thu. 8 - Sun. 11 August 2019
Venue: Fujieda Soccer Stadium, Ashitaka Park Stadium, Kusanagi Athletic Stadium (Shizuoka)

Tournament Information