Official 2024 Nadeshiko Japan Thread [R] - なでしこジャパン（英語スレッド）

Second goal at 9' by #36 Fujisaki (a player I am not very familiar with: probably the coach had a experimental line-up in this first game vs a likely weak team? ): Odisha's defense is so still that it seems made of statues: Urawa will score 10 goals or such.

This is the starting line-up for Urawa:
Ikeda
Endo - Ishikawa - Nagashima - Kurishima
Fujisaki - Shibata - Ito - Takatsuka
Shiokoshi - Shimada

Meanwhile, 3rd goal at 13' by Takatsuka, from the ground after falling in the box from GK's intervention. She had been easily set-up by her team-mates. Chances are coming like the rain is falling.

 

4-0 at 15' by Shiokoshi from another backheel assist in the box: my prediction of a 10-0 could have been too optimistic for Odisha!

I am sorry for the Indian side, but, at the first game of group stage we're not guaranteed that the other teams in the group won't score a similar amount vs Odisha, so goal difference could count and Urawa can't actually put the foot off the pedal.

Two goals again at 17' at 18' from Shimada and Shiokoshi! It's not even worth describing the actions anymore, looks like a training match vs a sparring partner....

At this rate, let me count... 6-0 at 18'... It should end with a 30-0 score.

 

@lukephan, are you watching Urawa's match? You can't even blink or you're going to miss a goal...

 

7-0 by Yuzuho Shiokoshi at 30' with a good, technical trap-and-volley in the box.

We're back at a projection of a final score 21-0 (7-0 x 3).

 

The referee calls a cooling break at 33': it has to be hot weather despite the rain.

 

But betting on the final score could be a thing.

 

Odisha change a player after the cooling break: not sure it will change the game, but still it's probably some adjustment.

 

Mei Shimada scores her second goal at 45'; both were headers from a Yuzuho Shiokoshi's CK.

Now the projection says "just" 16-0.

The difference I see, it's Odisha's defense looked petrified in the first minutes; now they swarm towards the ball all together like crazy or try to shield their goal with a wall of bodies. Not sure which one is more effective, but they took less goals in the second part of this half, so it somehow seems to work.

 

At 45'+3', Sakiko Ikeda finally touches the ball (not a save, she just came off to kick a stray-ball ).

After that, the ref whistle the end of the 1st Half: the score is 8-0 and it doesn't even seem a contest.

 

All the goals are being endlessly replayed at HT, so you can see them all, sleepy heads (not true: I am aware @Manchester Nadeshiko was up early to watch Ehime's win ).

It's impressive how Odisha took two identical goals from a Corner-Kick that Mei Shimada headed from the same position in the box to the same angle of the goal.

I mean, vs such a defense, a player like Yuzuho Shiokoshi (an hat-trick for her so far) looks like Maradona.

We're going to see if in the 2nd Half Urawa will want to shore their goal-difference even more or if they will slow down.

 

Meanwhile, in the game of Group A that started at the same time, Wuhan Jiangda (China) are winning by 3-0 vs the weakest team of the group, Sabah (Malaysia): they'll have to clash vs Incheon Red Angels (South Korea) in the last game of the group, so their win today could be not enough to avoid 3rd place in the group (that would mean direct elimination or a very bad pairing in the quarter-finals.

 

Gives you a rough idea of the league.

 

Two changes for Urawa at HT: Wakaba Goto replaces Ryon Ishikawa and Ririka Tanno replaces Mei Shimada.

No need to tire important players on a surface that's heavy from the rain, considering that this group stage will consist of three games in just one week.

 

And sub Ririka Tanno scores at 52', followed by Akari Kurishima one minutes later.

10-0 and we're back to "Don't blink or you'll miss a goal" mode.

 

What did I just say? A goal for Miki Ito also, at 56'.

The assist was by Ririka Tanno: I didn't know her, she looks good.

Meanwhile, another goal, but it was disallowed for off-side (on the goal-line).

 

This time, this is it, at 59', 12-0 from another Ririka Tanno-Miki Ito connection. Odisha keep taking carbon-copy goals. Of course, if it worked once, Urawa players will try it again.

 

13-0 at 61', from Miki Ito again, but this time not from a Ririka Tanno's cross from the Left-Side, it was an Ami Takeuchi's one from the Right-Side, another sub (she had just replaced Yuzuho Shiokoshi).

My projection will bust, if they are back at scoring at this rate!

 

Another cross from Ririka Tanno and another goal, but this time it was an own goal wrong-footing Odisha's GK.

14-0 at 65'. Any bet?

 

Apparently, I had missed some other substitutions that had happened at Half-Time : Hanon Nishio for Reina Nagashima and Fuka Tsunoda for Satoko Fujisaki.

Now Fuka Tsunoda scores at 67' from another assist by Ririka Tanno (this girl is an assists-machine!!! ).

 

I noticed that one of the few but noisy Urawa's supporters of the standings is waving a flag that reads: "Forza Red Diamonds" (basically "Forza" is the same as "Ganbare" in Italian). Is the use of this Italian word very common for Japanese supporters?