Raccoons Rip Through
Masao Stands Tall
Grilled suffered an instant setback in their Asian Champions League foray, as they were soundly thrashed 0-4 in the opening round, by Japanese Division Four side Tokyo Raccoons. It was frankly a letdown by the reserve players, who failed to capitalize on the opportunity provided for them to impress the coaches.
Moreover, the Birds would have
Yuta Nakakita marshalling them from the middle, which should have freed his partners up to embark on some adventure. As it turned out, however, the Raccoons would mostly bypass them, with their superior invention on the wings. Homegrown pair Maya Kyoya and Koichi Ishigami made it a point to move up and down in tandem, offering each other an automatic out.
Some scrappy to-and-fro followed, but it was soon clear that it was the hosts who had a better idea of what to do when in possession. A rare fault by Yuta in the 20th minute would lead directly to the opening goal, as American centre-forward Isaac Ferris broke through right as Kota Okuda released his delicately-weighted pass. Neither of his assigned defenders were anywhere to be seen, as he caught the ball on his instep, and nonchalently popped it in.
Ferris would not be long for this match, however, as he was laid low by a stray
José Luiz Velho hack, barely two minutes later. It looked like a bad one, and Velho could have no complaints about the booking. Polish player-coach Antoni Kozakiewicz would volunteer himself as the replacement.
And he wasn't a half-bad one either, as he taught his charges a thing or two, with his deceptive play. That said, their next goal would be as direct as they came, with Maya putting in a short cross for Masao Wada. It seemed all too polished, as Masao outjumped
Ang Leong Kum to send the perfect arcing header into the opposite end.
Maya was definitely enjoying himself, with
Christian Mier certainly not translating his explosive weekend exploits to today's game. He offered next to no resistance when Maya again beat him on the outside just four minutes on, and this time delivered a raked low cross. Nobody met it on the near side, leaving Italian skipper Vito Zonarelli an easy tap-in.
The Raccoons would lose another player before the break, but this time, it would be through no fault of Grilled's. Indeed, it was midfielder Ryo Kuwahara who barrelled into
Dante Tran, before both fell right onto Kozakiewicz. Ironically, it would only be the Pole who would wind up injured, and quite badly at that.
Ryo would look extra guilty as the medics came for his stricken coach, as Russian Pavel Golodov became the third Raccoons man to take over the seemingly-cursed main striker position for the day. The veteran was a good step down from those he had replaced, however, and the Birds were afforded some much-needed breathing space.
The second half began with
Dante Tran a changed man, and for a short period, he became the real mover and shaker behind the scenes. If Grilled were to pull one back, this would have to be the time, and a nice interchange between Tran and Mier saw them free to create a huge opening down the left.
Prokop Mottl's concentration sadly left much to be desired, though, and he could only watch the pass intended for him, roll out of play.
Other than that, it was not looking good for the Birds. Yuta's tenuous command over his area was also beginning to weaken further, which left them with little to fall back on, once Tran's inspiration was spent. The difference in tactical discipline between the teams began to show through, and the home team started to camp out in the Grilled half.
Their fourth goal would come in the 67th minute, and it would be Maya Kyoya who again provided. Some weak defending on his flank would see him combine brilliantly with Masao Wada, and Maya opted to try and finish it himself, this time. His attempt from a tight angle was dragged wide, but it would take a lucky bounce off Tarin, and Golodov found himself in just the right spot to take advantage.
Masao could have added to the Birds' misery five minutes later, as he let rip a thunderbolt without warning, from the corner of the penalty area.
Krystian Rykowski chose this moment to up his level, though, and just about did enough to redirect the shot, with his fingertips.
