Official 2018 Nadeshiko Japan Thread [R] - なでしこジャパン（英語スレッド）

Yes, really impressing!!! Nagano was leading the league along with INAC, and now this. Also, Stella can apparently score any result, from losing 4-0 to INAC some weeks ago, to winning by 5-0 vs another strong team! Crazy league: as I said before, one of the most open we've lately seen, although right now INAC, despite not always looking flawless, seems to have a slight edge on the other teams: they just beat Urawa, and Beleza, at the moment, is the mess @Manchester Nadeshiko described above.

After today's hat-trick, I guess Takakura will now need to give something more than just a serious look to Arisa Minamino! Since it's not like goals don't keep being a problem for our National Team, I guess Minamino would deserve a chance to show that the fact that she's now leading top-scorers rankings (along with Sugasawa) is no fluke.

Also, Yoko Tanaka had an impressive game! Apart from her goal, she assisted two others (played a triangle in the box with Minamino for second one and made a perfect cut for Ishida in the action of third one) and she started the action of 5th goal by opening the ball on the right-side for Ishida (who would have subsequently crossed for Minamino in the box). I guess I am not the only one wishing Tanayo a very good season.

It can be interesting to note that in this game JEF's captain Saki Ueno scored directly from CK! Ok, probably Yamashita's goalkeeping was far from perfect here, but you don't often see this kind of goals (I seem to remember one from Naoko Wada some seasons ago).

 

Well, I didn't watch the game, but it looks like the good old rivalry with Iran in futsal ended with another disappointing result for us. We anyway reached the final, and I guess this is good.

 

Well, as an INAC fan, I wouldn't mind if this time it was our turn, after three consecutive titles for Beleza.

I agree that some players that had been underwhelming, or simply not as good as they had seemed to promise before, are now firing on all cylinders: Nakada, Kyokawa, Michigami, Hina Sugita & Co. are doing really good right now.

Always happy when tiny little energy-can Fuka Kono scores. This is, by the way, the first point made by Nittaidai in this league (at 6th matchday -_-"): good for them, although I am not sure if it can be enough to remain in Division 1, since their direct rivals of Cerezo also got one point today.

Also, do I see right that we don't get any highlights of today's games on mycujoo?

Vegalta score today more goals than they had scored in the previous 5 match-days. (Ok, not too much difficult when you had just scored once! ). Also, out of three goals they scored this season in Division 1, two were by good old Sawako Yasumoto.

Both Orca's players from overseas, the Chilean one and the American one, scored today. I'll underline that, although the Chilean one is listed as Maria Rojas Pino, she's normally referred to as Rojas, and not Pino, as @zaku_II showed to us at latest Copa America 2018.

 

International update:

- Later today, some matches in European leagues will be played: 1.FFC Frankfurt- SC Freiburg in Frauen-Bundesliga (Kumi Yokoyama), Olympique Lyonnais-Olympique Marseille in Division 1 Féminine (Saki Kumagai) and Sevilla FC-Real Betis in Liga Fémenina (Erina Yamane). I'll keep you updated on those.

- NWSL matches were played between yesterday and today:

• North Carolina Courage-Washington Freedom 1-0. Still no trace of Yuri Kawamura, but she could be back soon and she will find her team solidly at the lead of the league. Highlights: http://www.nwslsoccer.com/videos/ABFED396-CA0B-C244-EBA2-5723DD0B4BDD
• Chicago Red Stars-Houston Dash 2-2. Yuki Nagasato played the whole match, and made some good crosses, but her team could only grab a draw. They are now at 4th place in the league, but having played one or two games more that most of their direct rivals. Highlights: http://www.nwslsoccer.com/videos/54CD5556-C147-2376-0E6E-57B74DCC3C2B
• Seattle Reign FC-Sky Blue FC 4-1. The team with most Japanese players in NWSL (2) keeps up wtih its brilliant state of form, even more now that Rapinoe is back from an hamstring injury and scores a brace. One of the assists for Rapinoe (2nd goal) was made by Naho (who then left the pitch at 76'), while resident "Ice Cold Gangster" Rumi Utsugi had another of her typical middle-range shots hit the post and be subsequently deflected in goal by Allie Long. Seattle Reign are now sitting at second place, despite having two matches less than most of the field. If they win the catch-up matches, they could be just one point short of NC Courage. Highlights: http://www.nwslsoccer.com/videos/F12CE691-339D-BA68-3335-57CECA69848E

 

I said multiple times how I like this cultural (or, even better, multi-cultural) side of our thread!

Thank you very much, @zaku_II, for taking the time to write down that.

 

Mmm, this makes me wonder what would have happened in these last two years if Minamino had swapped places with Mina Tanaka. Would they have scored the same number of goals?

 

Actually not true! One from Okino, one from Inoue, one from Yasumoto (who didn't even score one of the two goals in Nadeshiko League Cup, that were scored by Hamada and Mihashi instead). Basically, in the two competitions, Vegalta scored a total of 5 goals, all by different players.

Sorry for the misinformation.

 

Nagano's Haruhi Suzuki's call is interesting: had she been called before?

 

International update; two big European leagues found their 2018 Champion on Sunday, but with very different results for our Japanese players:

- VfL Wolfsburg won the title of Frauen-Bundesliga. Meanwhile, 1.FFC Frankfurt sit sadly at 6th place and lost another home game, this time to SC Freiburg, by 1-2. Kumi Yokoyama played 1st half only.
Highlights: https://tv.dfb.de/video/highlights-1-ffc-frankfurt-vs-sc-freiburg/21653/

- Olympique Lyonnais won their 12th consecutive national title with 60 points out of 20 games (all wins) and celebrated with a 7-0 home win vs Olympique de Marseille . Saki Kumagai was subbed-out at 63' (and her sub, Amandine Henry, scored a brace). I didn't find any video-highlights of the match or of the post-game celebrations yet (at least not free non-geo-blocked videos), apart from the one on this page from OL official website. Oddly, I can't seem to locate Saki among the players who lifted the trophy. In foreground, you can see three players who made the history of OL and of France NT, who will retire at the end of this season: Corine Petit (who wasn't anyway playing much lately), Élodie Thomis and, especially, Camille Abily (I can't help wondering how @Virany will feel about that). When any video-footage of these moments (match, post-game celebrations, retired players) will surface, I'm going to make sure to post here.
Meanwhile, it's interesting to notice that both contenders of Women's Champions' League final in Kiev will walk on the pitch as national champions.

- Real Betis won an away game in Sevilla. Once again, though, Erina Yamane was on the bench. Did she lose her place in club also, after missing out on National Team?

 

Yes, I would be especially interested in knowing what Sawa has to say about Hasegawa and Iwabuchi. Also, I would like to know if, during this conversation, Homare-san did ever mention wanting to look for a coaching career later.

If I got the dates right, this interview was made before Asian Cup and was aired after the first match vs Vietnam, so I would also be curious to know how Sawa and Takakura were seeing the development of National Team at that moment (i.e., before knowing they would have won the cup).

The footage of a very young Sawa and Takakura being team-mates in Yomiuri Beleza and in National Team was very funny (and 17 yo Homare's bobbing haircut was atrocious! ).