On July 12, Per-Mathias Hoegmo director held a press conference online and expressed his enthusiasm for the upcoming Meiji Yasuda J1 League Section 23 Kyoto Sanga F.C. match at Sanga Stadium by KYOCERA on Sunday, July 14.

We trained in pretty hot conditions at the beginning of the week. It takes about two weeks for the body to acclimatize to the heat. It takes about two weeks. We are encouraging the players to acclimate to the heat both in general meetings with them and individually. I have been pleasantly surprised by the knowledge of the medical staff and physical coaches about playing in the heat.

As for the condition of the players, we have been working with a fairly small number of wingers. Matsuo (Yusuke), Taka (Takahiro Sekine), Tomo (Tomoaki Okubo), and (Koizumi) Kaho are ready to join the team, and I hope to have them on Sunday. We also have two new young players, Jion (Homma) and Rio (Futa), who have already registered and are ready to join the team. Brian (Linssen) was injured in practice yesterday, so we are not sure if he will be able to make the squad for Sunday's game. (Maeda) Naoki has been carrying this for a little while now, but he has a symptom at his heel and I don't think he will be in the next group. Shoya (Nakajima) is also getting much better and is now running at about 80 percent load. I hope he will be ready for the first game after the summer break. That's the current status of the players."

[Q&A]
(Even though it is cooler today, I heard that the coach himself had a condition problem the other day.)
I am also in the process of getting used to the Japanese summer. I had a slight throat symptom, so I stayed home for the day in case I infected anyone."

(Are you in your best condition now?)
(Are you in your best condition now?) "Yes. I am in the best condition, and I have just trained myself, so I am ready (laughs)."

(The wingers are back, but now the side backs have been shorthanded. Next week, Hirokazu Ishihara players will also be suspended due to accumulated warnings, what are you considering for the squad?)
'Not that many, but we have some options. Taka is also back, but he may not be able to play 90 minutes, so we will consider his condition. (Watanabe) Ryoma can also play right back, but right now he is doing very well up front. Then there is (Inoue) Reito, if he plays, it will be against our old team, but there is a possibility that he will play right back.

(What effect do you think using Sekine at right back will have?)
(What do you think will be the effect of using Sekine at right back? He handles the ball very well and is an attacking option. He also has the ability to get up and down the field."

(What are your impressions of Kyoto?)
I think they are a team that plays a very tight 4-3-3. I think they play a very tight 4-3-3, with the front three playing closer to the center of the field rather than out wide. They press high, almost man-to-man style. They also play a lot of direct balls toward the front three.

(I don't know about the game the day after tomorrow, but the previous game against Shonan Bellmare had a starting lineup without a typical wing player. Hidetoshi Takeda I think both players and Ekanit Panya are good players, but I don't think they are the kind of players who can play to their strengths by waiting high up the side. How do you see a balance between maintaining the overall team structure you are aiming for and having them play to their strengths?)
As you can see, I think the players who are not originally wingers have handled themselves well there. Matsuo, Taka, Tomo, Ola (Solbakken), Shoya and others are playing there. Hide (Takeda) played without them, but I think Hide's ability will be useful when we push them. For example, he showed us something good against Cerezo Osaka. I think his ability is more useful when he is inside. Even if he plays on the wing, if he can get inside and overlap the side backs, I think it will be good. In the case of Book (Ekanit), it may be better to play as an inside half, so that he can make the most of his running and pressing through the back. A type like Matsuo can go through the back or play inside.

For example, when Matsuo received a direct ball from Yota Sato in the Sagan Tosu game, his running out the back allows him to get behind the opponents when they try to press him. Also, by pushing the opponent down, space is created for the inside half. The other thing is the relationship between the players. If we can create a situation where we have two players who are always ready to go out the back, for example, if Ola and Bryan are ready to go out the back, Hide can play inside the wingers.

This season, one of the biggest challenges for both the leaders and the players is to fix the members and deepen that relationship. I think the players have responded well to the situation of not being able to play with the same members all the time. We want to make the most of the characteristics and abilities of the players as much as possible. Especially against teams that play man-to-man, I believe that players who are able to take the initiative on a one-on-one basis will be able to throw the opponent off balance.

(I don't think Honma and Futata have the same characteristics, but I think they are also the type of players who can play on the left wing, where we are short on players. How do you hope to make the most of them?)
We are in the process of figuring out their skills and personalities. At the moment, I think Rio is a right winger or FW. Jion is a left winger, but I think he is the type who can move inside from there. I think he is a technical player who is very good with the ball. I have talked with the coach of Club Brugge. He said that he is a great human being and a very good player, and that it would be good if he could improve his scoring ability. I think Rio is a very fast player who can get behind opponents and be a threat. I think he also has physical strength, so I hope he will do well in the technical aspects and finishing.

(Samuel Gustafson It is great to have the player back, but against Shonan I had the feeling that the players inside were having a hard time when incorporating him into the volantry. I know his level is very high, but how do you hope to utilize his good points and hide his not so good points while integrating him into the team?)
'Samuel and I were talking about playing time, around 20 minutes. I think he did a great job in playing longer than that. I think the players who were away due to illness and injury suffered in the heat, but he was able to train well for a week after that. He also plays for the Swedish national team, so I don't think he will have any problems with the volantis."

(Regarding the response to the heat and playing in the heat, as you mentioned at the beginning of this article, games will continue in the heat, and it is generally said that in the J-League, intensity is reduced in summer games, especially in defense, and there are times when you cannot pull together when you should. Is there a way to play or fight as a team that is more demanding in the heat, in the coach's opinion?)
I am happy that this club has a wealth of experience and knowledge in dealing with the heat. And considering our style of play, which is to hold the ball and attack, I think it will be less strenuous than when we are chasing the ball. When the ball is in the opponent's possession, for example, at goal kicks and throw-ins, we want to press hard to get the ball. When the opponent is already in control of the ball, where to press will depend on the opponent. As we enter the hot season, I look forward to seeing how the team and individual players respond to the heat. Each athlete must take actions to adapt to the heat in their daily lives. For example, comparing their weight before and after training, some athletes lose almost 2 liters of water after practice. I think it is important to minimize this by rehydrating the body, cooling the body before training and games, and lowering the body temperature.

(After the Shonan game, the coach himself said to the players, "In one-on-one situations, you have to fight for your lives," and he himself said, "What could we have done to avoid this? What was the attitude shown by the players after such an upset loss?)
We are creating a training culture here, for example, but I think we have to learn from what happened, always preparing for the next time. If we can do that, we won't get too carried away when we win, and we won't get too depressed when we lose. Immediately after the game, everyone felt hard, but two days after the game, I sat down with Atsuki (Ito) and we talked about the game and how well we played. I think the fans and supporters were great, and except for the last five minutes, I think we played a very good game. As for the last five minutes, I look at myself with a critical eye, wondering what else we could have done tactically. What to do in the final minutes of a game when you have the lead is something we have to think hard about, both as individual players and as a team."

[Urawa Reds Official Media (URD:OM)]