On the 19th, after the 34th Meiji Yasuda J1 League match against Tokyo Verdy, Marius Hoibraten who returned from a facial injury, shared his thoughts on the match and his enthusiasm for the next game.

(Your return came sooner than you expected. Did you feel any discomfort while playing?)
"There's nothing wrong with me. I've been recovering well. My goal was to come back quickly and help the team."

(Did playing with a face guard have any effect?)
"I tried out a few different ones, and the one I used today had good visibility. It didn't hinder my play."

(We've been conceding a lot of goals from set pieces recently, haven't we?)
"It happened again. We need to be more cautious when it comes to set pieces. We can talk about tactics, but ultimately we need to put our bodies on the line and protect our goal. We need to be hungrier and show more of a desire to win in one-on-one situations. That was lacking today."

(How was it that crosses were being sent from both sides?)
"We talked about applying a higher pressure. However, today we were a little heavy on the back overall. If we have 15 or so corners and crosses, eventually they're going to score. If we discuss how to deal with that together, I think there are areas we can improve on. Today, there were areas where we were lacking."

(When we were caught up, it seemed like some players were relying on others even though we had enough players.)
"When the wind is going against us, that's where our true worth is. We need to wake up and push each other when we make mistakes. We have the quality, but football is a mental game and we need to talk to each other a bit more, help each other out more. We don't need such huge changes."

(What was the reason for not picking up the second ball?)
"If we sit back too much, we give the opposition chances. They get the second ball and have more control. We should have played more in their half."

(Is there a next match coming up soon?)
"I think everyone is eager to play tomorrow. We don't want to perform like we did today, so we need to help each other and strive for results, not think too much about the small details, but rather give it all we've got and pool that energy together to give back to our fans and supporters. They gave us great support again today. It would be difficult for us to make them feel disappointed. Our next match against Kashiwa Reysol is a new chance, so we want to win and turn the tables."

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