Nagoya Coach: Putting Ryuki Izumisawa as a Forward Was in My Plan; We Have Achieved Balance Between Attack and Defense

On the 28th of this month, J.League veteran powerhouse Nagoya Grampus will host Jubilo Iwata at the Toyota Stadium. The team conducted an adjustment training session at the Toyota Sports Center in Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture, the day before the match. After the warm-up, head coach Kenta Hasegawa spoke to the media and discussed Ryuki Izumisawa, who has been performing well recently.

Kenta Hasegawa said, “Putting Izumisawa from midfield to the front line was within my plan. I knew he was suitable for this position. Since last season, I’ve been trying him as a forward, but he was mainly placed on the flank. He is very agile and can play in any position, so I have to put him where we are lacking. His connection with Humble Yasuyuki and Shiki Morimasa is very close, they perform smoothly in attack, and their cooperation in defense is also good; we have now achieved balance between attack and defense.”

Currently, in the J.League standings, Nagoya Grampus temporarily stands at 8th place with 13 wins, 4 draws, and 14 losses, with a gap of up to 15 points from the AFC Champions League qualification spots. Additionally, at the beginning of this season, Kenta Hasegawa proposed helping Nagoya become the team with the fewest goals conceded in the J.League and scoring more than 50 goals throughout the league season, but currently, Nagoya’s goals scored and conceded are both 38, making it challenging to achieve both targets.