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 first part, we talked mainly about things happening on the pitch, such as the remarkable athleteization of players at the top level in Europe and the difference in how they perceive offense and defense compared to Japan.
After Tosu retires as manager, he will tour Europe
Kenta Kawai (hereinafter referred to as Kawai)“I received a request for an interview this time, but to be honest, ever since I resigned as the coach of my former team (Sagan Tosu), all interviews, including the media, have been shut down.Since mid-September, I have been working with England, mainly in Manchester. I stayed in the Netherlands and played 6 games. I guess I saw the leprosy. I met various people and watched matches, and while I was organizing them in my head, I received this kind of talk, so I guess you could call it an output for me as well. With that in mind, I decided to do an interview for the first time in a while.”
–It was the perfect timing (lol).
Kawai“I was there incognito, so I wonder how they found out about it (lol).While there, I mainly watched matches against Manchester City and Arsenal, and also Leverkusen and Feyenoord in the Champions League.Of course, this is It’s not everything, but the timing was very good to see what mainstream Europe is like right now, so I wanted to see that.
Last year I went to Liverpool, but as a manager, I usually go to Europe in the winter. (off-season) from late December to January. However, this time I had the opportunity to go in September, and the European teams were just starting to get started, so I went with hopes that I would see something different, both physically and in terms of the penetration of tactics.”
European defenders have become athletes
–What did you see?
Kawai“I don’t know if there were any discoveries that were significantly different from the hypothesis, but within the basic premise of athletes playing football, we did start to go one step further than the J.League. It’s hard to convey on TV, but even though there may be language issues, the athletes are communicating frequently and playing football closely together. It was valuable to see them communicate and prepare in advance.
In the match between City and Arsenal (round 5 of the Premier League), one player was sent off while Arsenal were leading 1-2, resulting in a one-sided attack by City, which was very interesting. Even with Erling Haaland, all his crosses were bounced back. If Haaland were in the J-League, he would probably send a cross towards one player and cross the goal, but Arsenal were able to handle that, and not only that, but they were also able to hold Haaland down with two players in terms of communication. Ta. I thought that the quality of the communication between the two of them was high, as they were not fixed, but took turns. In the J League, there are probably foreign players who are good at interpersonal skills, and (Yuya Osako) is one of the Japanese players, but if we just send the ball to the surrounding areas, they will do something about it. However, that was not the case in the European games I watched.
When I said earlier that they had become athletes, I was referring to center backs and full backs. Many people may have imagined offense, but I think the attackers are fast and strong first, and the defenders have become more athletic in order to prevent them from doing so.
Editor-in-Chief Kaichi Asano (hereinafter referred to as Asano)“Yes, especially the Arsenal defenders.”
Kawai“Soccer is often said to be a microcosm of the world, but this kind of thing is similar to the evolution of humanity.That’s why each team also uses the ball to move the opponent and create space, which is the basic premise of football. The time when we can create that space and the time our opponent gives us is short, but we have to focus on exploiting that space.The simplicity of this was an outstanding match.”
–Europe is moving one step ahead by closing off everything that can be managed by individuals.
Kawai“Yes, of course, there are times when individuals are defeated, but it has already been established that the defending side almost never loses when it comes to individuals, so Europe has to figure out how to break that down. , I realized once again that I am in the current situation.”
–Recently, the J.League has seen an increase in long balls, and the power trend has become more noticeable, and it feels like it’s in a different direction than Europe’s top-level players such as City, or rather, it feels like it’s one step ahead of it.What is the current state of the J.League? What do you think?
Kawai“That’s not entirely true, but I think players should go to teams that suit their style, and I think it’s good to have a variety of styles.In Japan in particular, culturally, diversity is important.However, I like the phrase “history rhymes,” but when I say that most European champion teams have the same style to some degree, It may be a disadvantage, but similar styles have become champions.Of course, a team like Leicester (counter-based) may become champions once every 10 years, but statistically speaking. This is a rare case, and broadly speaking, the styles of teams that win at the top have converged.I think this is a major premise.
On the other hand, one overwhelming difference between Japan and Europe is the climate. After all, it would be difficult to do something similar to what you would do in Europe during the summer in Japan. I once again realized that the chances of winning are higher if you gamble a little, such as by playing with loose balls or playing the position game.
In Europe, there is no such thing as drinking time, and the game almost never stops. I’ve been to Europe many times, and I’ve always thought that there aren’t many squeeze bottles. Even though the J-League is closely lined up all around. The summer environment in Japan may be one of the reasons why dominating the game through possession of the ball is not the norm. However, I think that aspect will also change.”
What is required is precision block breaking similar to handball.
Asano“In the match between City and Arsenal, there were some sending offs, and Arsenal had a[5-4]block, making it a 100% defensive match, but when that happened, even City, who have one or two of the best attacking powers in the world, We were almost unable to break down. Even in the Japan national team’s match against Australia, we were tightly defended[5-4]but we had to figure out how to break down when an opponent who knows the principles of positional play seriously and systematically strengthened their defense. Mr. Kawai, do you have any thoughts?”
Kawai“That’s right. First of all, Arsenal were defending[5-4]but halfway through they changed it to[6-3].”
Asano“That’s right.”
Kawai“I think the three main factors were the situation: Arsenal had a one-point lead, the opponent was City, and the fact that they were away, but I was also surprised that Arsenal were able to take it so seriously. I guess the reason for that was because I was confident that I could defend. It’s almost like handball. It’s very difficult to break that block. As I said at the beginning, he’s an athlete and has good communication, so it’s difficult to attack from various angles. , you have to have a variety of methods, but I think that’s really difficult.
It’s just a way of thinking. For example, if there is a block at 5-4 at the kickoff, and a team draws the final line in the penalty area, the opponent already thinks they are at a disadvantage with a probability of about 80% before the match. That’s the premise behind it. The block[5-4]is. Unless you have a really sharp counter. That’s my way of thinking, and I’m the type of person who thinks I’m surprisingly lucky. They said they couldn’t compete with the other team in terms of football, so they came this way. At that point, I’m the type of person who feels superior. That’s why I break his heart. Even though we defended the score[5-4]we lost by two points. Ah, even my fundamental belief that I can no longer compete with this team is destroyed. I think that’s important.
However, in the J-League, not many teams are able to do things like center back quality, or simply bouncing the ball on defense, so they don’t have to have that many different methods. I think there are some places you can go. However, it will definitely be more fun if you can prevent it, overcome it, and make the other person realize that this is not a good idea. The offense and defense in front of each other’s goal will increase in various ways. Although it was difficult, I found it worthwhile.”
Asano“Recently, Flick’s Barcelona and Conte’s Napoli have been using overload tactics to break down defensive blocks by crowding people in the center, but in the future, soccer will focus on communication and relationships between players rather than breaking them down individually. Do you think you will go in the direction of breaking it down due to gender?”
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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 publications include “Soccer is decided by the coach: Leaders’ leadership techniques”, “The ability to watch and make decisions that strengthen Japanese soccer is misunderstood”, and “100 Soccer Defense DF & GK Practice Menus”.
