After completing their usual pre-match preparations, the players and officials took their positions on the pitch, ready for kick-off.
MAEBASHI IKUEI — 4-3-3
GK: Kobayashi Edo #1
RB: Sakurai Sora #26
CB: Takahashi Itsuki #4 (C), Okamoto Takumi #3
LB: Kamiyama Daichi #12
CM: Watanabe Riku #5, Kikuchi Hinata #6, Ito Makoto #10
RW: Aogaki Tsubasa #18
ST: Ishikawa Soma #9
LW: Morita Naoki #7
Manager: Yamamoto Koji
SHŪDAN-TEKI — 4-3-3
GK: Andou Ryota #1
RB: Ueno Shun #2
CB: Noguchi Taiga #4 (C), Aoki Satoshi #27
LB: Sugimoto Ken #6
CM: Tamura Daiki #5, Ono Kazuya #8, Nishimura Genpaku #10
RW: Shimizu Kaito #11
ST: Riccardo Yui Aliberti #24
LW: Tanaka Kenji #7
Manager: Ishii Tatsuya
Nishimura carefully studied the opponents' formation.
Just as Manager Ishii said... They're using their usual 4-3-3, but with an attacking approach, pushing one of their midfielders into the attacking midfield role, just like us...
His gaze then settled on Maebashi Ikuei's number 10.
So he's one of Maebashi Ikuei's famous rising stars... Ito Makoto, the false attacking midfielder in this formation.
The referee blew his whistle.
Maebashi Ikuei kicked off.
Ishikawa passed the ball to Ito, who immediately played it wide to Morita on the left flank.
The winger tried to advance, but Shimizu quickly closed him down, forcing him to play the ball backwards to Kikuchi.
The midfielder managed to bypass Riccardo's initial press and passed it back to Takahashi, who had dropped into defence.
The Maebashi Ikuei captain spotted some space ahead of him and began advancing.
That was when Riccardo moved towards him to apply pressure.
Noticing him, Takahashi suddenly accelerated, catching Riccardo off guard and managing to get past him before advancing slightly beyond his own penalty area.
He's fast for someone his size...
Riccardo immediately turned around and chased after him.
But so am I!
Watanabe noticed Riccardo closing in on Takahashi.
"Man on!"
Takahashi turned towards Riccardo.
Just as I thought, he's fast. But I'll use my physical advantage as usual!
He planted his left foot and rotated his body to the right, attempting to use his size to shield the ball.
However, as soon as the two made contact, Takahashi's confidence in his physical superiority vanished.
How is he this strong!?
Riccardo managed to get a slight touch on the ball, but Takahashi, struggling to turn, managed to face left again and quickly played it towards the left-back, Kamiyama.
However, the pass was made almost instinctively.
Takahashi hadn't noticed Shimizu closing him down at speed.
Shit!
Shimizu stole the ball from him.
Meanwhile, after the challenge, both Riccardo and Takahashi had fallen to the ground. Before going down, however, the Maebashi Ikuei captain had accidentally caught Riccardo's right leg.
The referee deemed the challenge fair and allowed play to continue, giving Shūdan-teki the advantage.
Shimizu took a couple of steps before looking up.
Before the opposing full-back could recover his position, he played the ball to Riccardo, who had managed to get back to his feet before Takahashi.
After receiving the ball, Riccardo spotted Nishimura making a run towards the left side of the pitch and played it into his path.
Takahashi was taken aback by the speed of the combination.
What an incredible move!
Nishimura immediately played the ball wide to Tanaka, who found himself one-on-one with the right-back, Sakurai.
Tanaka quickly cut inside to his right, driving into the upper part of the opposition's penalty area.
Kobayashi carefully followed his movements, but then noticed Riccardo charging into the box like a train, with Takahashi trailing behind, unable to keep up with him.
Is Takahashi struggling!?
The goalkeeper took a step forward, preparing for a possible cross from Tanaka towards Riccardo.
But suddenly, Shūdan-teki's number 7 attempted a powerful, high shot towards the far post, leaving everyone stunned.
He's shooting from there!?
Kobayashi quickly took two steps backwards before jumping as high as he could.
The goalkeeper pulled off a miraculous save, managing to get the very tips of his right hand to the ball and leaving Tanaka speechless.
The spectators gasped at the incredible save.
However, the ball remained loose inside the penalty area, and no one had managed to bring it under control. Nishimura was about to reach it first, with centre-back Okamoto closing in alongside him.
The Shūdan-teki forward was just a step away from scoring, but Kobayashi reacted with feline reflexes, diving onto the ball and managing to gather it.
Nishimura couldn't stop his momentum in time and crashed into the goalkeeper.
The referee immediately blew his whistle for a foul on the goalkeeper.
While the Maebashi Ikuei players congratulated their goalkeeper, the scouts couldn't contain their excitement.
Murakami, visibly thrilled, jotted something down in his notebook.
"There's the first miracle from Maebashi Ikuei's new rising star!"
Tanaka blamed himself, punching the air in frustration.
"Fuck!"
Nishimura approached him.
"You made the right decision, but we knew their new goalkeeper was practically a wall."
"I know... Next time, I won't waste one of your assists!"
As everyone returned to their positions for the restart, Takahashi approached his defensive partner.
"Okamoto!"
The boy turned around, and Takahashi gestured for him to come closer.
"Keep an eye on their number 24. He's fast, but above all, he's physically very strong. Avoid getting caught one-on-one with him and always try to get ahead of him."
"Got it."
Kobayashi prepared to take the free kick and gestured for his teammates to move forward.
He launched a long ball towards number 9, Ishikawa, who managed to lay it off despite Aoki pressing him, having pushed almost as far as the halfway line.
Manager Ishii stiffened as he watched the situation unfold.
The ball then reached Ito, who brought it under control.
Nishimura watched him closely.
[Flashback]
"Listen up, everyone. Let's go over Maebashi Ikuei's tactics. Their main strength is possession."
Manager Ishii pointed at the tactics board, moving a few magnets around.
"They use it to create space and attack down the flanks. We can afford to let them have possession because we're faster. But they're no amateurs. They'll know how to adapt."
He moved the magnets representing the wingers towards the centre.
"They'll probably try to increase their presence in the central areas, with their wingers moving inside alongside their number 10."
[End of Flashback]
Ito looked up and immediately spotted Morita moving infield from his usual position on the wing, towards the attacking midfield area.
[Flashback]
"Obviously, we can't push our full-backs forward and sacrifice our ability to launch counter-attacks."
Ono looked confused.
"Then how are we supposed to stop them?"
"The key is to shut down the beating heart of their team: Ito Makoto. But that doesn't mean we can afford to ignore the others."
Manager Ishii pointed at Nishimura.
"That's why, Nishimura, you'll have to make sacrifices and stop him by any means necessary!"
[End of Flashback]
Nishimura moved towards Ito, trying to intercept the pass.
However, Ito spotted him coming and immediately shielded the ball.
Using the sole of his right boot, he dragged it backwards towards his own half, evading Nishimura's pressure. He then calmly passed it to Watanabe, who was positioned in Maebashi Ikuei's midfield.
Nishimura grew frustrated at how easily he had been bypassed.
I can make all the sacrifices I want, but I still can't intercept him!
"Watanabe!"
With a gesture of his hand, Ito signalled to Watanabe to slow the game down.
The midfielder understood and played the ball sideways to Kikuchi.
Riccardo immediately moved in to press him.
"Play it back, Kikuchi!"
Without hesitation, Kikuchi passed it backwards to Takahashi, who had pushed forward alongside Riccardo.
The Shūdan-teki forward looked at him in surprise.
What an unusual defender...
Riccardo charged towards the ball carrier again, trying to speed up his team's defensive press.
But Takahashi played the ball to Ito, who had dropped all the way back into his own half, with Nishimura following him closely to contain him.
As soon as he released the pass, Takahashi sprinted forward.
Ito noticed and immediately returned the ball into his path, completing a one-two that took both Riccardo and Nishimura out of the play, leaving them stunned.
What an ultra-attacking approach!
The defender advanced all the way into the opposition's half.
Ono moved towards him, but Takahashi played the ball forward again, this time to Morita, who cut inside with Shimizu following him.
He moved into the middle as soon as Ito vacated that space!
Takahashi continued his run, getting past Ono.
The number 7 returned the ball into his path, just as Ito had done moments earlier.
Takahashi was about to receive it.
A satisfied smile appeared on his face.
Almost there!
But he hadn't anticipated Aoki's sudden arrival. The defender read his intentions, stepped out of Shūdan-teki's defensive line and slid in, getting a touch on the ball.
It skidded away.
From the bench, Manager Suzuki was thrilled by the intervention.
"Great decision, Aoki!"
However, a moment later, he was surprised to see the ball fall to Ito, who reached it before Nishimura.
Ito looked up for an instant and spotted his striker completely unmarked.
"Make your run, Ishikawa!"
With a through ball, he found number 9 in the space left behind by Aoki, allowing him to break into the penalty area at speed.
Noguchi tried to impede his run without committing a foul inside the box.
Ishikawa, however, struck the ball first time with the instep of his left foot, aiming for a low, diagonal shot towards the far post.
The shot flew towards goal at tremendous speed and seemed destined to find the net.
Andou launched himself into the air, stretching out to get the slightest touch on the ball and divert it behind for a corner.
The assistant referee signalled a corner kick for Maebashi Ikuei.
Noguchi went over to high-five Andou.
"Great save!"
"Good work from you too. You forced him to shoot from that angle."
Manager Ishii watched Ishikawa as he made his way into the penalty area for the corner.
[Flashback]
After a training session, Manager Ishii had once again addressed the team on their pitch.
"Another threat is Ishikawa Soma, a third-year student. Last year, he led Maebashi Ikuei to the national championship, scoring 26 goals between the prefectural and national tournaments. He's physically strong, fast, and has an exceptional eye for goal. He can turn practically any chance into a goal."
[End of Flashback]
The players took up their positions inside Shūdan-teki's penalty area for the corner, which Ito would take from the right.
The first marking pairs had already formed, with players constantly jostling for the best position ahead of the incoming cross.
The referee blew his whistle, and Ito immediately delivered the ball with his right foot, giving it an inswinging trajectory.
Okamoto and Aoki jumped, but neither managed to reach it. The ball sailed over their heads.
It dropped slightly further back, where Takahashi managed to get ahead of Noguchi and powerfully head the ball towards goal.
The effort was straight at the goalkeeper, but it was close-range and powerful.
Andou reacted immediately, parrying the ball with his right hand. Then, before anyone could pounce on the rebound, he dived again and managed to gather it.
Takahashi was disappointed to have wasted the chance, but gradually made his way back towards his own half.
Noguchi watched him walk away.
[Flashback]
"If Maebashi Ikuei has a weakness, it's their defence. However, this is compensated for by Takahashi Itsuki, the captain and the true backbone of the team. Without him, they probably wouldn't have won the national championship."
[End of Flashback]
Noguchi wore a frustrated expression.
Shit! What have I been doing for these past three years...? I want to be the backbone of this team too!