Day 3
On this day, there were no matches, so we conducted training in the morning at a ground near the hotel. In Germany, even small towns have local club training grounds. We will train together in this wonderful environment and beautiful scenery.
Watched the training of 1.FSV Mainz 05's top team in the afternoon. The players were observing the high-level training with great interest.
Afterwards, a discussion was held with the coach of yesterday's opponent, 1.FSV Mainz 05 U19.
After that, we took a stadium tour and returned to the hotel, and the day ended.
The third day was a day where we gained more experiences by watching, rather than from playing in the game.
Day 4
On this day, there was a match against VfB Stuttgart U19.
After winning against Mainz, the team seemed to have let their guard down or perhaps the fatigue from consecutive flights and bus rides caught up to them. As a result, they were unable to perform at their best and suffered a 0-2 loss in the first half and a 0-4 loss in the second half.
The opponent was certainly strong, but we wasted the game with the quality of our preparation. The coach had harsh words and the locker room after the game was filled with frustration among the players.
However, there were players who continued to perform at a high level and those who played with all their might without losing to the opponent, and it was in this tough and difficult environment that we were able to see the true faces of the players. We want to become even stronger during the remaining expedition period and have a fruitful expedition by growing through experiences that can only be gained in Japan.
Moved to Frankfurt at night to watch the Germany national team vs Netherlands national team. Both teams showed talent and quality in a world-class game, and the players were also excited. I'm looking forward to seeing how many players from FC Tokyo U-18 will make it to this level.
The matches will continue from tomorrow. We will continue to make good preparations and face the matches with determination.