J1 League

Game 35

Shimizu S-Pulse 1-0 Tokyo Verdy

Date: Saturday October 25th, 2:00 pm

IAI Nihondaira Stadium (Shizuoka)

S-PULSE GOALS OG (18)

YELLOW CARDS Yoshida (56), Bueno (68)

RED CARDS

PENALTY KICK

ATTENDANCE 16814

LINE UP

GK Umeda

DF Sumiyoshi, Haneda, Yoshida

MF Capixaba, Bueno, Kitagawa, Uno, Matsuzaki, Yamahara

FW Toshiki Takahashi

SUBSTITUTIONS

Inui on for Matsuzaki (67)

Kitazume on for Capixaba (67)

Yajima on for Kitagawa (72)

Takagi on for Yoshida (73)

Shimamoto on for Uno (90)

REPORT

Now, how did we win that match?

A combination of great luck and desperate defense!

For once the same defense insured we stay in the top League next season!

Truth be told luck had not been often on our side during this difficult return to the top tier, therefore it benefitted us at the most opportune time!

The data, for all what it means at the end of the game was damning.

We were outclassed in possession by 59% to 41%, dominated in passes by 413 to 354, but pass accuracy was basically the same well above 80%.

But the difference was glaring in attempted shots at goal by 11 to 5. And we had a single shot on target that did not even result in a goal. Moreover, we conceded no less than 11 corner kicks to our meagre 5.

The difference at the final whistle was an own goal.

To be fair we had a good enough first half but it was constant defense in the second when we nonetheless produced our sole shot on target.

In the 15th minute we were lucky to see a very dangerous cross being headed marginally wide after the whole defense caught out of position.

And we were lucky that a potential handling was not spotted.

In the 17th minute Yoshida deftly passed to Matsuzaki on his right who beat a defender before sending a chest level cross to Kitagawa meters from goal. The latter missed it by inches but in doing so masked the ball which was clumsily met by the defender on his heels into goal. Kitagawa celebrate it as if it was his own goal.

In the 24th minute Capixaba had the opportunity to try his luck inside the goal but his shot went wide of the near post.

In the 43rd minute tried his luck from mid-range but the ball flew well above the bar.

In the 43rd minute Sumiyoshi’s weak pass was intercepted in midfield but the same Sumiyoshi somehow blocked the final shot meters from goal into a corner kick.

2 minutes in extra time the ball was cleared from our goal line after we allowed a dangerous cross to be headed past a standstill Umeda.

And then the second half saw an almost constant battering. In the 63rd minute Umeda had to punch away a vicious shot from just outside the box.

In the 69th minute the defense somehow scrambled the ball away from a totally blinded Umeda.

In the 79th minute Verdy wasted another great chance from close quarters with the ball flying over the bar.

In the 84th minute Umeda somehow first blocked a shot going to goal with his legs before falling back to secure the ball in his arms.

In the 90th minute Very aw their shot after another dangerous move just outside our box ending with a free header fly outside our far post.

Ironically enough we managed our first attempt on target 4 minutes in extra time when Inui wrestled a ball away in midfield before delivering a sharp shot from inside the box that was somehow palmed into a corner kick by the very goal keeper.

But Very could hav equalized in the very last seconds of extra time when a corner kick was with a vicious volley that somehow Umeda punched over the bar.

Now that we are at last safe away from the red zone we can use the last remaining three games to build up for next year starting with a home match against Cerezo Osaka in two weeks’ time for the pleasure of our deserving fans!

NEXT GAME

J1 League

Game 35

Shimizu S-Pulse vs Cerezo Osaka

Date: Sunday November 9th, 3:00 pm

IAI Nihondaira Stadium (Shizuoka)