Review: Kamatamare Sanuki 1-5 Cerezo Osaka (Levain Cup 1st Rd)

The “Brazilian Quartet” all started and helped the team win 5-1 against Kamatamare Sanuki in the first round of the J.League YBC Levain Cup.

The J.League YBC Levain Cup has finally begun. Cerezo Osaka traveled to the home stadium of Kamatamare Sanuki, who play in the J3 League, for the first round match. There were five changes in the starting lineup from the last match against Yokohama FC in the Meiji Yasuda J1 League. Up front, four Brazilian players all started in an attacking 4-3-3 formation, with Shunta Tanaka at anchor and Motohiko Nakajima and Vitor Bueno at inside half. Kyohei Noborizato made his first start in an official match this season, returning to Kagawa Prefecture where he spent his high school years.



From the start, Cerezo controlled the game by pressuring their opponents and forcing them to make mistakes. In the 10th minute, Lucas Fernandes fired in a shot from a short counterattack, and in the 14th minute, Rafael Ratao met Thiago Andrade's cross after a pass from Bueno. The “Brazilian Quartet” was aggressive in their pursuit of the goal, and in the 21st minute, Cerezo took the lead. After winning the second ball of a corner kick, Ratao made a cross into the middle of the pitch. Hayato Okuda picked up a ball cleared by a defender, advanced vertically, feinted off an opponent, cut back, and sent in a left-footed cross that was met by Andrade's head in the far corner. Another chance came in the 24th minute from a short corner. Ratao met Fernandes' cross, but missed the target. Cerezo continued to switch quickly between attack and defense, using their press to induce mistakes from their opponents and counterattack. Andrade, who used his natural speed to get behind the opponents many times in this match, also came close to scoring from the flanks. The first half ended as a one-sided game for Cerezo, with Sanuki having only one shot on goal, a header from a corner kick.





Cerezo made a good start in the second half as well, with Ratao pouncing on Andrade's cross from Nakajima's pass down the flank. As in the first half, they took advantage of their vertical drive to score a goal, but soon after, a momentary lapse in possession resulted in conceding a goal. A throw-in on the left flank was intercepted by the opponents and a quick change of sides resulted in Fernandes being unable to get back and Okuda, who was dealing with the opponent's left wing-back, being unable to prevent him from dribbling. Goalkeeper Kim Jin Hyeon reacted quickly to play a crossed shot from there, but it hit the foot of Shinnosuke Hatanaka, who was forced to react while going back, and went in for the goal. In the 48th minute, an own goal equalized the score. Sanuki, cheered on by the home crowd, attacked hard for about five minutes, but Cerezo held firm in front of the goal to prevent a goal from being scored, and in the 59th minute, they succeeded in scoring the winner. After a corner kick, Cerezo picked up the second ball and attacked aggressively, and finally Ratao scored the winner after getting behind a defender from a pass by Hatanaka. Thereafter, Cerezo dominated the game, creating a number of chances on the counterattacks against Sanuki, who had to attack forward. In the 74th minute, Fernandes scored the third goal with a penalty kick he won himself, and in the 77th minute, Bueno scored the fourth goal with a gentle pass from Ratao, who cut off an opponent's back pass. In the 84th minute, after carefully passing the ball from their own half, Uejo scored the fifth and decisive goal when he met Sota Kitano's cross from Tanaka's through ball on the left side with a direct finish.







Jaroensak Wonggorn, making his official debut for Cerezo, also had a good chance, and Cerezo kept pushing until the very end to win 5-1. “The win was a testament to the team's (attacking) mentality,” said the manager, who had a look of satisfaction after the victory. The team now advances to the second match of the first round, where they will face the winner of Tokushima Vortis vs FC Imabari.