An interview with former Sagan Tosu manager Kenta Kawai, who talks about modern football from various angles. Futbolista editor-in-chief Kaichi Asano and soccer writer Hideto Shimizu sat down to find out more about the front lines of soccer. In the second part, we asked him to talk about the two and a half years he spent at Tosu, his relationship with his coach, and how to make the most of meetings.
←Go to the first part
There wasn’t enough time this year.
–Tosu, which you led until midway through this season, has been relegated to J2, but when you look back, do you have any thoughts?
Kenta Kawai (hereinafter referred to as Kawai)“I’m disappointed. It’s true that we were lacking in various elements. In order to continue competing in J1, we need to address issues on the pitch as well as budget issues. However, Tosu has great supporters, so I think they will support the club and move up to J1 in the near future.”
Editor-in-Chief Kaichi Asano (hereinafter referred to as Asano)“A while agoOtawa in Shonan (Ryosuke) Vice PresidentIn an interview with J.League, he said that a long time ago it was said that it was impossible to know who would win in the J.League, but in recent years data has shown that there is a strong correlation between budget size and ranking.Publicly available sales dataEven if you look at it, Tosu is in the bottom group in J1.”
Kawai“The definition of results is vague for each club, and remaining in J1 is probably a reasonable goal for Tosu when you factor in the size of their budget.Although we were demoted this year, we’ve had a positive experience after playing for two and a half years. I think there was a part of it in the second year as well. We didn’t do it the same way as we used to, but we changed it and changed it even in the third year.There were times when we had to do it because the players were constantly changing, but in that sense we had a broader range of things and our way of thinking was really different. I became more flexible and I feel like I did my best.
However, over the past six months, the balance has been disrupted. Before the season, we aim to win every game, so we work backwards to acquire the players we can acquire. Beyond that, you don’t have to think too much about good things. If it’s good, just do it as is. But you always have to think about what will happen if things don’t go well. In such cases, I don’t know why it doesn’t work. This is the most troublesome situation. So I made all kinds of assumptions before the season. This year, I thought the defense might be a little difficult. The reason for this is that there were so many injuries between the time before the camp and the start of the camp that it was difficult to get any relief. Therefore, what was important after that was to put out the fire, and it is true that there was a little bit of a lack of time. However, I could say this if I had only done one season, but I think it’s difficult to look back on the past six months.
I think I was able to create my own hypothesis and have the players express it over the past two and a half years. Of course, it’s not just logic that is important, but also human instinct and passion. logic and passion. I knew very well that I needed to have both in order to achieve this balance, and although I may have been lacking in how to use them properly, I continued to take on challenges in that area as well.”
Asano“At footballistaSerialization of physical coach Noda (Naoji) in TosuI also did it. I was surprised at how theoretically the training load was managed using GPS. Coach Noda said that it’s important that the manager has an understanding of the physical side, but what is Kawai-san’s stance on technology such as GPS in the increasingly physical world of soccer? ”
Kawai“Football has become more and more played by athletes, so those numbers are important from training.In my head, except for goalkeepers, I have a theory of 1, 2, 3, and 10km runs and sprints. 1, 2, 3 at least 20 times at a speed of 30km/h. If the body can basically do this regardless of position, it will be OK from a player’s physical standpoint. Also, depending on each position, center backs don’t run as much, and sprinting also changes depending on the position, so look at the data. I have cherished it.
Also, in this day and age, the players are also from the gaming generation. I really just use words to make them understand, everyone is convinced, and then they go out to the game and perform. That’s the best thing to do, but as I’ve said many times before, each player is different, so for some it works, and for others, it’s based on their vision, staring at the numbers and convincing themselves that they’re not good enough. . That’s why I think numbers have become extremely important as a basis.”
When we lose, the coaches apologize seriously.
Asano「During Kawai’s era, Tosu left a lot of areas to the coaching staff.That being said, what kind of approach did you take? ”…
Remaining: 5,269 characters / Full text: 7,788 characters Continue reading this article
When you register as a member of
you can read
Profile
Hideto Shimizu
Soccer writer. Born in 1979 in Gero City, Gifu Prefecture. His unique perspective of analyzing soccer from the player’s perspective is appealing. His books include “Soccer is determined by the coach: Leaders’ leadership skills”, “The ability to watch and decide is misunderstood and makes Japanese soccer stronger”, and “100 Soccer Defense DF & GK Practice Menus”.
