NEWS
ACL Group Stage MD1 vs Wuhan Sanzhen “Take home the winning point with a goal in the final minute”
On January 20, Urawa Reds went on the road to the Wuhan Sports Center Stadium for an AFC Champions League 2023/24 group stage MD1 Wuhan Sanzhen match.
The Reds scored a goal in the first half and equalized early in the second half with a goal by Bryan Linssen, but conceded a penalty kick to give up the lead again. However, the Reds did not give up and continued to attack, catching up with a goal by Jose Kante in the 90+4 minute to draw the game 2-2.
Reds, aiming for their fourth Asian championship and back-to-back titles, were aggressive from the start of their first group stage match.
Despite their pace, they conceded an early goal in the 10th minute, but they continued to push their opponents. Even when they lost the ball, they quickly regained it by pressing, fighting hard on the edge of the ball, and recovering the second ball, first trying to score the equalizer.
In the 25th minute, Linssen received a vertical pass from Iwao, dribbled past two opponents, and shot into the area, and in the 27th minute, Kaito Yasui fired a shot just wide of the right post off a return from Atsuki Ito in the area.
Although they controlled the ball and were countered at times, Shusaku Nishikawa jumped out to hold up a ball that slipped behind the defensive line, and Takuya Iwanami, who had been warned in a one-on-one situation that would have been crucial if broken through, took the ball back with aggressive defending. Although they were unable to equalize in the first half, they did not allow an additional goal.
In the second half, Marius Hoibraten, Takahiro Sekine, and Takahiro Akimoto replaced Iwanami, Toshiki Takahashi, and Ayumu Ohata, respectively, and the teams went on the offensive from the start of the half. In the 55th minute, Yasui received a short pass from Akemoto on the right side and sent a cross to Linssen, who met it with a jumping head over the opponent's defender for the goal. The Reds equalized.
But shortly afterwards, a deflection in front of the Reds goal was ruled out for a penalty kick after a VAR (Video Assistant Referee) and on-field review by the referee. Nishikawa reacted to the ball flying to his right, but the ball hit the post and scored. The team was once again behind.
Against Wuhan Sanzhen, who were leading and defending by pulling back to their own line, the Reds players tried to equalize with various attacking patterns, such as breaking through the middle while connecting passes, crossing after spreading out to the side, and long balls. Even when they lost the ball, they quickly regained it and spent much of their time attacking.
The game was over after three minutes of added time, which had been reduced to 10 minutes due to multiple VAR (video assistant referee) and on-field reviews by the referee.
After a pass in enemy territory, Scholtz passed to Yoshio Koizumi on the right side, who crossed to Ito, who dropped the ball for Linssen to shoot. Ito dropped the ball and Jose Kante shot. The ball was deflected by an opponent, but it was who reacted to the spilled ball. The ball went in with a powerful swing of his left foot, and the goalkeeper was able to equalize once again.
The visitors kept their composure and went on the offensive for over five minutes of added time, and the game ended 2-2, with the visitors taking a solid point on the road despite being down 2-0.
The next game will be played at Panasonic Stadium Suita on September 24, against Gamba Osaka in the Meiji Yasuda Seimei J1 League No. 28.
Kaito Yasui]
(Looking back on the game as a whole)
I think it was good that we could get two goals in spite of that.
(The first goal was a cross by Yasui that led to the goal.)
(What do you think of Yasui's goal?) "Akemoto (Takahiro) worked hard and persisted, and rolled it to me, so I was able to kick it with a little time to spare. I put in a fast ball with the hope that it would come in at that spot, so I want to thank (Brian) Linssen for coming in and making the decision."
(What was it like fighting in the ACL in a hostile environment?)
(What was it like playing in the ACL?) "It was difficult because of the pitch and the different environment away from home, but I was able to enjoy myself and play well. There will be more away games in the future, so I hope to enjoy them."
(In the away atmosphere, I think you were able to do a lot as an individual in both offense and defense.)
(What was your response?) "There were some shooting situations, and I think we had to score, which is an issue for me, but I was also able to make some solid defensive stops, so I am happy about that.
(How do you want to take this experience into the future?)
(How do you want to take this experience into the future? We will take this one point as an important point for us, and we will fight to get three points in the remaining five games.
More comments and photos of the match can be viewed on the site members.
Site membership (330 yen/month, tax included) is available here→https://sp.urawa-reds.co.jp/
Members of REX CLUB LOYALTY can use the site for free.
[Urawa Reds Official Media (URD:OM)]
The Reds scored a goal in the first half and equalized early in the second half with a goal by Bryan Linssen, but conceded a penalty kick to give up the lead again. However, the Reds did not give up and continued to attack, catching up with a goal by Jose Kante in the 90+4 minute to draw the game 2-2.
Reds, aiming for their fourth Asian championship and back-to-back titles, were aggressive from the start of their first group stage match.
Despite their pace, they conceded an early goal in the 10th minute, but they continued to push their opponents. Even when they lost the ball, they quickly regained it by pressing, fighting hard on the edge of the ball, and recovering the second ball, first trying to score the equalizer.
In the 25th minute, Linssen received a vertical pass from Iwao, dribbled past two opponents, and shot into the area, and in the 27th minute, Kaito Yasui fired a shot just wide of the right post off a return from Atsuki Ito in the area.
Although they controlled the ball and were countered at times, Shusaku Nishikawa jumped out to hold up a ball that slipped behind the defensive line, and Takuya Iwanami, who had been warned in a one-on-one situation that would have been crucial if broken through, took the ball back with aggressive defending. Although they were unable to equalize in the first half, they did not allow an additional goal.
In the second half, Marius Hoibraten, Takahiro Sekine, and Takahiro Akimoto replaced Iwanami, Toshiki Takahashi, and Ayumu Ohata, respectively, and the teams went on the offensive from the start of the half. In the 55th minute, Yasui received a short pass from Akemoto on the right side and sent a cross to Linssen, who met it with a jumping head over the opponent's defender for the goal. The Reds equalized.
But shortly afterwards, a deflection in front of the Reds goal was ruled out for a penalty kick after a VAR (Video Assistant Referee) and on-field review by the referee. Nishikawa reacted to the ball flying to his right, but the ball hit the post and scored. The team was once again behind.
Against Wuhan Sanzhen, who were leading and defending by pulling back to their own line, the Reds players tried to equalize with various attacking patterns, such as breaking through the middle while connecting passes, crossing after spreading out to the side, and long balls. Even when they lost the ball, they quickly regained it and spent much of their time attacking.
The game was over after three minutes of added time, which had been reduced to 10 minutes due to multiple VAR (video assistant referee) and on-field reviews by the referee.
After a pass in enemy territory, Scholtz passed to Yoshio Koizumi on the right side, who crossed to Ito, who dropped the ball for Linssen to shoot. Ito dropped the ball and Jose Kante shot. The ball was deflected by an opponent, but it was who reacted to the spilled ball. The ball went in with a powerful swing of his left foot, and the goalkeeper was able to equalize once again.
The visitors kept their composure and went on the offensive for over five minutes of added time, and the game ended 2-2, with the visitors taking a solid point on the road despite being down 2-0.
The next game will be played at Panasonic Stadium Suita on September 24, against Gamba Osaka in the Meiji Yasuda Seimei J1 League No. 28.
Kaito Yasui]
(Looking back on the game as a whole)
I think it was good that we could get two goals in spite of that.
(The first goal was a cross by Yasui that led to the goal.)
(What do you think of Yasui's goal?) "Akemoto (Takahiro) worked hard and persisted, and rolled it to me, so I was able to kick it with a little time to spare. I put in a fast ball with the hope that it would come in at that spot, so I want to thank (Brian) Linssen for coming in and making the decision."
(What was it like fighting in the ACL in a hostile environment?)
(What was it like playing in the ACL?) "It was difficult because of the pitch and the different environment away from home, but I was able to enjoy myself and play well. There will be more away games in the future, so I hope to enjoy them."
(In the away atmosphere, I think you were able to do a lot as an individual in both offense and defense.)
(What was your response?) "There were some shooting situations, and I think we had to score, which is an issue for me, but I was also able to make some solid defensive stops, so I am happy about that.
(How do you want to take this experience into the future?)
(How do you want to take this experience into the future? We will take this one point as an important point for us, and we will fight to get three points in the remaining five games.
More comments and photos of the match can be viewed on the site members.
Site membership (330 yen/month, tax included) is available here→https://sp.urawa-reds.co.jp/
Members of REX CLUB LOYALTY can use the site for free.
[Urawa Reds Official Media (URD:OM)]
