Japan U21s 0, Boca Juniors 4 JAPAN’S head coach Masahiro Inui shrugged his shoulders and said ‘broken plan’ when asked why his predicted scoreline - a 1-0 win for his team - had been proved so badly wrong.
However, twice in the first ten minutes his side nearly did take the lead, first when centreback Kentoku Noborio headed against the base of post and the unmarked Shingo Akamine blasted over, and again when Noborio touched the ball on from a corner - only to see Akamine head over again.
After that, however, with two exceptions late in the game, it was all Boca.
Although younger than their university opposition, they rarely allowed them a glimpse of the ball and some of their skills were mesmerising.
No 7, Ariel Colzera, for example, time and time again took on and beat anyone attempting to mark him.
And No 10 and the scorer of the first goal, Ezequiel Scarione, was allowed far too much freedom, a point taken up by Inui after the game.
‘We gave him too much space,’ he said, ‘and after they scored we had to change the way we were playing.
We had to score and after half-time sent on a bigger player up front to try to force the game.
We were made to play a more attacking game, sending our defenders forward.
That cost us.’ For the first 25 minutes, as Inui said, the Japanese team did keep its shape but by then Boca had shown that in terms of individual skill they were more of a match for the opposition, who eventually resorted to throwing long balls forward as Boca took over in midfield.
Up front Colzera and No 11 Marcos Mondaini were taking it in turns to torment a Japanese defence and only poor finishing and a good ‘keeper kept the score at 0-0 before Scarione scored one of the best goals you’re likely to see at Springfield in many a long year.
The danger seemed to be over with half an hour nearly played when the ball came to him from 25 yards out on the right.
He turned, looked up, and with barely any back lift sent a swerving, dipping shot to the left of a startled keeper, Taku Akahoshi, who up until then had been a busy man with a safe pair of hands.
It was 1-0 to Boca and as the Juniors now had most of the possession, Japan were running out of ideas of how to get the ball back from them.
In the second half Japan’s intentions were clear.
They sent on the big No 18, Rui Komatasu up front to intimidate the younger opposition but to very little effect.
In the 61st minute Boca scored again when 16-year-old Matia Cahais ran in from the right to steer an angled header to the left of Akahoshi from a looping free kick.
In front of an 800 crowd - twice as many who saw any matches in Guernsey according to delighted organiser Iain Mackenzie - they scored again in the 81st-minute when substitute Enzo Gutierrez made a goal for Emiliano Fusco, who was able to pick his spot as he pushed the ball to the right of the ‘keeper.
Then, in the dying moments, Colzera scored the goal he had been promising to do all night, although this was from the penalty spot when Gutierrez was brought down in a clumsy tackle, Japan’s defence in tatters.
Only twice in that second half had Japan threatened and the only danger they posed to Boca came from set pieces, including a free kick from the edge of the area which their ‘keeper, Pablo Pave saved wonderfully well, seeing the ball late, and diving low to his right to push it out for a corner.
It was not always the classic it was meant to be; Boca seemed to be playing well within themselves.
There was one resounding crashing of heads midway through the first half, Boca could have been given at least one other penalty and their No 11 was yellow-carded for diving.
And afterwards the Boca coach Jorge Benitez, a former team-mate of Diego Maradona, was, interestingly, the more critical of the coaches.
‘We played well .
.
.
but only for three-quarters of the game,’ he said.
‘They were very strong; we tried to keep things simple.
I am not interested in whichever team we play next.
To be champions - we have to win every game in the tournament.’ Teams: Japan: Taku Akahoshi, Kentoku Noborio, Takanobu Komiyama, Tomonobu Hiroi, Hideyuki Nakamura, Jungo Fujimoto, Kosei Shibasaki (Takuya Honda), Daisuke Higashihira (Rui Komatasu), Shuhei Yoshimura, Shingo Akamine (Shinji Tsujio), Kazuki Hara.
Boca: Pablo Pave, Ezequiel Vicente, Emiliano Fusco, Bernardo Gagnolo, Armando Monteverde, Matia Cahais, Ariel Colzera, Victor Galarza, Lucas Jara, Ezequiel Scarione, Marcos Mondaini.
Substitues (all used): Mariano Arnulto, Eduardo Casais, Rodolfo Gonzalez, Fernando Gago, Matias Rodriguez, Enzo Gutierrez.
Article posted on 4th August, 2004 - 12.00am
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