Did you see Tuesday's WSD issue about the 2012 transfer market? I did and it's shit but if you dig into it, you can dig out a few peanuts of knowledge
Like this
0 yen players (players who are free transfers if a team can sell them on coming over)
Ventforet Kofu
Mike Haavenar Forward and NT player- Rumored to have offers at Shimizu and in the Netherlands
Yutaka Yoshida Defender and U-22 player
Sanfrecce Hiroshima
Hisato Sato- Forward and former NT player
Ryota Moriwaki- Defender and NT player
Shimizu S Pulse
Keisuke Iwashita-Defender
Kosuke Ota- Defender- Left side back
Kaito Yamamoto- Goalkeeper
Yokohama F Marinos
Kazuma Watanabe-Forward-2009 newcomer of the year and borderline NT player
Ariajasuru Hasegawa-Midfielder
Yuji Nakazawa-Defender-Former NT player currently in negotiations with Yokohama
Gamba Osaka
Hideo Hashimoto-Midfielder-Former NT player
Takahiro Futagawa-Midfielder-Former NT player
Vissel Kobe
Yoshihito Okubo-Forward-Former NT player
Tsuneyasu Miyamoto-Defender-Former NT player who turns 35 in February
Nagoya Grampus
Mu Kanazaki-Forward-NT player
Urawa Reds
Tsukasa Umesaki-Midfielder-Former NT player
Keita Suzuki-Midfielder-Former NT player
Kashima Antlers
Masashi Motoyama-Midfielder-Former NT player
Tochigi FC
Ricardo Lobo-Forward
Sagan Tosu
Ryota Hayasaka-Midfielder
Now this is a partial list and its not known if some of these players already have deals in place with their existing clubs. There have been a couple of rumors about players getting offers...surprisingly one floating around is Kim Jin Hyeon coming to Urawa from Cerezo. If I get more information or a full list of 0 yen transfers, I'll post it and any ridiculous, unsubstantiated rumors as well.
Credibility, Schmedibility!
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Elevator man-part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BC_Lb2fpbZo
With perennial attendance padders Urawa stuck right in the middle of the relegation fight, the question on everyone's mind (who are in Saitama of course) has to be "Who's Going Down?". 7 points seperate 16th place Urawa from 11th place Cerezo. While it looks like Montedio Yamagata (20 points) and 18th place Avispa Fukuoka (18 points) are locks for a 2012 in the netherworlds of J2, it's still a little premature to totally count either team out.
The first installment of Elevator man will examine Montedio and Avispa, the two squads nestled at the bottom.
Avispa Fukuoka
18 points 5-3-21 -37 goal differential
Record against last 5 opponents 0-0-5 -12 goal differential
Starting off the season with a 13 game winless streak probably wasn't in the original plans for J1's southernmost side. The team has been competitive in the second half of the season, going 5-2-8 after the initial disaster. However, Avispa really didn't do a good job in the offseason and came in with a team that lagged behind others in J1 caliber players. The last five games can be looked at in one of two ways.....either Avispa is happy.....the highest ranked team they face is 8th place Shimizu, or they are worried because they failed to score against any of their last 5 opponents. In order to survive relegation, Avispa will have to run the table and hope Urawa, Montedio, and Kofu all slump badly.....it's already impossible to catch either Omiya or Albirex.
What does the future hold?
Tetsuya Asano stepped in during the middle of the season for embattled manager Yoshiyuki Shinoda. Having nothing to lose, Asano has experimented with his lineups, dropping captain Kosuke Nakamichi in favor of Toshiya Sueyoshi and Jun Suzuki. Avispa managed to pull off a couple of upsets against midtable squads Kawasaki Frontale and Sanfrecce Hiroshima but they haven't been able to dig themselves out of last place. Rumors are floating around already that changes are imminent with talks of former Shonan Bellmare manager Masaaki Kanno coming in to help Asano learn the ropes as well as disappointing target forward Rafael Ramazotti already on his way out after a few brief appearances. Young rentals Takuya Maatsura (Jubilo) and Kentaro Shigematsu (Tokyo) will probably either go back to reinforce their parent clubs or join other J1 strugglers in order to get more experience.
Of the players signed directly to Avispa, striker Hideya Okamoto looks to be the player most sought after by other teams. The 24 year old leads the team in scoring with 7 goals and probably will get some notice from teams desperate for bench scoring despite his erratic year. Nakamichi is another player that could get some notice from teams looking for a player to bolster their midfield. I'm not sure how the rest of the players will react to returning to J2. It seems like the team has bought into Asano's style and might be content to stay with the club and try to get them back to top flight. It's not over yet, but it's close
More info at Avispa Eigo http://avispafukuoka.wordpress.com/
Chances of survival 5%
Montedio Yamagata
20 points 5-6-18 -24 goal differential
Record against last 5 opponents 2-0-3 1 goal differential
When a team is dealing with a very limited budget, it's important to get the most oout of your foreign signings. The pre-season signings of Hugo, Maicon, and Osama El-Samni have yielded no goals on no shots and no minutes played. A Job-like influx of injuries, combined with the awful decision to start Yuki Uekusa over net stalwart Kenta Shimizu early in the year got the squad off on the wrong foot. The big problem though has been replacing departed loanee Yuzo Tashiro (Kashima). Yamagata sits at the bottom in terms of passing, dribbling, and shots....probably a reason why they sit last in the league in scoring with 21 goals. Shinji Kobayashi did an admirable job keeping an undermanned team disciplined for two years but it looks like the talent gap and time has finally caught up with the manager and the squad.
What does the future hold?
It's another tough call with Yamagata players. Of the group, Kenta Shimizu seems to be the player most ready to step in and start for a J1 squad. the keeper should get some looks from teams hoping to shore up bad defenses. Yu Hasegawa has been out of form and injured over the past two years after a breakthrough 2009, if rumors about Mike Haavenar heading to Europe are to be believed, Yamanashi native Hasegawa seems like a good candidate to compete for Haavenar's target forward spot. Aging sideback Tatsuya Ishikawa is also a candidate to land a job somewhere in J1 after resurecting his career in Yamagata. Ishikawa seems to always be in and out of the training room but has a good free kick and is competent at left back, a spot most teams have trouble filling.
The squad has some young talent to base their foundation on, namely Shun Ito and Tetsuhiro Ota but it's unlikely they will be able to come back in the near future. Kobayashi hasn't done an awful job but probably will bear the brunt of the squad going down.
Chances of Survival 5%
With perennial attendance padders Urawa stuck right in the middle of the relegation fight, the question on everyone's mind (who are in Saitama of course) has to be "Who's Going Down?". 7 points seperate 16th place Urawa from 11th place Cerezo. While it looks like Montedio Yamagata (20 points) and 18th place Avispa Fukuoka (18 points) are locks for a 2012 in the netherworlds of J2, it's still a little premature to totally count either team out.
The first installment of Elevator man will examine Montedio and Avispa, the two squads nestled at the bottom.
Avispa Fukuoka
18 points 5-3-21 -37 goal differential
Record against last 5 opponents 0-0-5 -12 goal differential
Starting off the season with a 13 game winless streak probably wasn't in the original plans for J1's southernmost side. The team has been competitive in the second half of the season, going 5-2-8 after the initial disaster. However, Avispa really didn't do a good job in the offseason and came in with a team that lagged behind others in J1 caliber players. The last five games can be looked at in one of two ways.....either Avispa is happy.....the highest ranked team they face is 8th place Shimizu, or they are worried because they failed to score against any of their last 5 opponents. In order to survive relegation, Avispa will have to run the table and hope Urawa, Montedio, and Kofu all slump badly.....it's already impossible to catch either Omiya or Albirex.
What does the future hold?
Tetsuya Asano stepped in during the middle of the season for embattled manager Yoshiyuki Shinoda. Having nothing to lose, Asano has experimented with his lineups, dropping captain Kosuke Nakamichi in favor of Toshiya Sueyoshi and Jun Suzuki. Avispa managed to pull off a couple of upsets against midtable squads Kawasaki Frontale and Sanfrecce Hiroshima but they haven't been able to dig themselves out of last place. Rumors are floating around already that changes are imminent with talks of former Shonan Bellmare manager Masaaki Kanno coming in to help Asano learn the ropes as well as disappointing target forward Rafael Ramazotti already on his way out after a few brief appearances. Young rentals Takuya Maatsura (Jubilo) and Kentaro Shigematsu (Tokyo) will probably either go back to reinforce their parent clubs or join other J1 strugglers in order to get more experience.
Of the players signed directly to Avispa, striker Hideya Okamoto looks to be the player most sought after by other teams. The 24 year old leads the team in scoring with 7 goals and probably will get some notice from teams desperate for bench scoring despite his erratic year. Nakamichi is another player that could get some notice from teams looking for a player to bolster their midfield. I'm not sure how the rest of the players will react to returning to J2. It seems like the team has bought into Asano's style and might be content to stay with the club and try to get them back to top flight. It's not over yet, but it's close
More info at Avispa Eigo http://avispafukuoka.wordpress.com/
Chances of survival 5%
Montedio Yamagata
20 points 5-6-18 -24 goal differential
Record against last 5 opponents 2-0-3 1 goal differential
When a team is dealing with a very limited budget, it's important to get the most oout of your foreign signings. The pre-season signings of Hugo, Maicon, and Osama El-Samni have yielded no goals on no shots and no minutes played. A Job-like influx of injuries, combined with the awful decision to start Yuki Uekusa over net stalwart Kenta Shimizu early in the year got the squad off on the wrong foot. The big problem though has been replacing departed loanee Yuzo Tashiro (Kashima). Yamagata sits at the bottom in terms of passing, dribbling, and shots....probably a reason why they sit last in the league in scoring with 21 goals. Shinji Kobayashi did an admirable job keeping an undermanned team disciplined for two years but it looks like the talent gap and time has finally caught up with the manager and the squad.
What does the future hold?
It's another tough call with Yamagata players. Of the group, Kenta Shimizu seems to be the player most ready to step in and start for a J1 squad. the keeper should get some looks from teams hoping to shore up bad defenses. Yu Hasegawa has been out of form and injured over the past two years after a breakthrough 2009, if rumors about Mike Haavenar heading to Europe are to be believed, Yamanashi native Hasegawa seems like a good candidate to compete for Haavenar's target forward spot. Aging sideback Tatsuya Ishikawa is also a candidate to land a job somewhere in J1 after resurecting his career in Yamagata. Ishikawa seems to always be in and out of the training room but has a good free kick and is competent at left back, a spot most teams have trouble filling.
The squad has some young talent to base their foundation on, namely Shun Ito and Tetsuhiro Ota but it's unlikely they will be able to come back in the near future. Kobayashi hasn't done an awful job but probably will bear the brunt of the squad going down.
Chances of Survival 5%
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Access
Interviewing famous people is cool. I'm not going to deny it. Interviewing famous people and then telling your friends about it gives you a feeling that is undeniably.......cool. It's almost as if you get a certain amount of fame by proxy. I experienced this situation.....once.
When I was on my way to dropping out of the WALTER CRONKITE SCHOOL OF BROADCASTING. I had the chance to interview former NBA Sixth Man of the Year Rodney Rogers after a friend with a couple of connections with the Phoenix Suns helped me set up the interview. My three main priorities were to: A. Get some quotes for my story B. Not have him punch me and C. Possibly get a chance to interview him or other team members at a later date.
After getting my quotes, I asked Rogers if he was happy to be out of the Clippers organization....it was a throwaway question, everybody knew at that time that he hated the Clippers and had burned the franchise in local Los Angeles papers, but I asked anyways. The question got a low laugh and a long drawn out response of......SHIIIIIIIIIIIT. I laughed, he laughed, two or three media guys laughed and that was it. Until the next week when more media guys were asking the same question. For the rest of the year, Rogers got questions about how much better he felt about being with the Suns over the Clippers.
I think we are getting to that point with soccer media in Japan. For the most part, the articles and features are reading more like public relations pieces instead of real journalism. We are getting a ton of video clips and pages on current and future stars that treat them more like pop idols and less like sports figures.
Look at the coverage of Freddie Llungberg. Both weekly soccer tabloids had big features that went into detail on his accomplishments with Sweden and Arsenal. Understandable. He's a big name who made his fame with those teams. However, his last three years in MLS and the SPL (arguably, not bright moments for him) were not mentioned. No mention of anything that could possibly be construed as negative.
How about Yabbechi FC's piece on brilliant talent Genki Haraguchi. A fair question was asked....who is the toughest defender you've faced? If you thought the answer would be Tulio or Komano or Nakazawa you'd be way off. It turns out the question was a setup for Genki to talk about his golden retriever for 5 minutes and how he plays soccer with his dog.
Most interviews are pretty much filled with softball questions like, "Do you want to play in Europe?", "Who is the player you model your game after?", or "What's your best moment?". I get it. They're safe, non-offensive questions that allow the journalists to keep good relations with players and don't alienate them from the teams. Job is done, nobody has to strain or put out any real effort and the publication and team both get publicity. I don't blame them. If I was a player, I wouldn't want to answer intrusive questions. If I was working in media, I'd want to make sure that I don't burn a bridge. I imagine it's difficult to find new angles on the same thing every week. I get it. I understand. I sympathize. Don't jeopardize the access.
Unfortunately, I'm neither a player nor a journalist. I'm a consumer. And I'm not satisfied with the product. I want to learn something new. I want to see how the main stars act under a little bit of pressure. It's like the game itself, interviews aren't interesting if they come too easy.
I'm not sure how many generic articles there have been this year on "young stars". It seems like that is the new De rigueur in journalistic circles. Hype up interchangable guys under 23 with generic plaitudes and bland questions. If you think about it, it's not unlike the AKB 48 phenomena. It's about as interesting as well.
I'd like to see more features on guys who havent had it so good. Or players who are stars but had struggles in their past. Until recently, I didn't realize that Yasuhito Endo was a member of the last Flugels team. I think it would be interesting to see what his thoughts are on the 1998 team. How does he think his career would have gone had the Flugels not disbanded? Does he still have any bitter feeling over Yokohama F Marinos co-opting the name? That would be a great feature. Id also be interested to hear about Endo's time in Kyoto with Kazu. How did it feel to get relegated? Did he have any regrets about leaving after Kyoto claimed the 2002 Emperor's Cup?
There's alot of good stories out there that we aren't getting. My personal choice for a story would be an interview with Naoya Kikuchi. Kikuchi, now a defender for Albirex Niigata, was a very promising National Team candidate who saw his Jubilo Iwata and National Team career go up in flames after a scandal involving an "encounter" with an underaged girl. At the time, I was ready to ban him for life. But, seemingly he kept his nose clean and has somewhat rehabilitated his career. I'm not interested in details about what happened that day (except for why the girl ended up with his wallet). I'm curious however to hear about his experiences after the event. How did he end up in Germany? Why did he choose to come back with Oita? Did he think his career was over after the scandal? How is he treated in Shizuoka? Was there any contact with people in the National Team system after the scandal broke? Is there any chance of him representing Japan in the future? That's a multilayered story which could go a thousand different ways. It's difficult but it would be interesting as hell to read. We won't see it though because there's a risk that it might offend the player and the team. It's easier to ask Gotoku Sakai about whether or not he wants to play in Europe or how excited he is to be on a team with his brother.
I'm not trying to slam on the players or journalists. It's tough to look someone in the face and ask them an uncomfortable question. It's also difficult to answer a question honestly if you think you are going to offend part of your fanbase or employer. My only request is that we get a little more information, a little more creativity. A little more something instead of the same stories about the same people repackaged to lure you in. I value things that I can lean something from and I'm not getting that. I guess what Im ultimately asking for is a little more access.
When I was on my way to dropping out of the WALTER CRONKITE SCHOOL OF BROADCASTING. I had the chance to interview former NBA Sixth Man of the Year Rodney Rogers after a friend with a couple of connections with the Phoenix Suns helped me set up the interview. My three main priorities were to: A. Get some quotes for my story B. Not have him punch me and C. Possibly get a chance to interview him or other team members at a later date.
After getting my quotes, I asked Rogers if he was happy to be out of the Clippers organization....it was a throwaway question, everybody knew at that time that he hated the Clippers and had burned the franchise in local Los Angeles papers, but I asked anyways. The question got a low laugh and a long drawn out response of......SHIIIIIIIIIIIT. I laughed, he laughed, two or three media guys laughed and that was it. Until the next week when more media guys were asking the same question. For the rest of the year, Rogers got questions about how much better he felt about being with the Suns over the Clippers.
I think we are getting to that point with soccer media in Japan. For the most part, the articles and features are reading more like public relations pieces instead of real journalism. We are getting a ton of video clips and pages on current and future stars that treat them more like pop idols and less like sports figures.
Look at the coverage of Freddie Llungberg. Both weekly soccer tabloids had big features that went into detail on his accomplishments with Sweden and Arsenal. Understandable. He's a big name who made his fame with those teams. However, his last three years in MLS and the SPL (arguably, not bright moments for him) were not mentioned. No mention of anything that could possibly be construed as negative.
How about Yabbechi FC's piece on brilliant talent Genki Haraguchi. A fair question was asked....who is the toughest defender you've faced? If you thought the answer would be Tulio or Komano or Nakazawa you'd be way off. It turns out the question was a setup for Genki to talk about his golden retriever for 5 minutes and how he plays soccer with his dog.
Most interviews are pretty much filled with softball questions like, "Do you want to play in Europe?", "Who is the player you model your game after?", or "What's your best moment?". I get it. They're safe, non-offensive questions that allow the journalists to keep good relations with players and don't alienate them from the teams. Job is done, nobody has to strain or put out any real effort and the publication and team both get publicity. I don't blame them. If I was a player, I wouldn't want to answer intrusive questions. If I was working in media, I'd want to make sure that I don't burn a bridge. I imagine it's difficult to find new angles on the same thing every week. I get it. I understand. I sympathize. Don't jeopardize the access.
Unfortunately, I'm neither a player nor a journalist. I'm a consumer. And I'm not satisfied with the product. I want to learn something new. I want to see how the main stars act under a little bit of pressure. It's like the game itself, interviews aren't interesting if they come too easy.
I'm not sure how many generic articles there have been this year on "young stars". It seems like that is the new De rigueur in journalistic circles. Hype up interchangable guys under 23 with generic plaitudes and bland questions. If you think about it, it's not unlike the AKB 48 phenomena. It's about as interesting as well.
I'd like to see more features on guys who havent had it so good. Or players who are stars but had struggles in their past. Until recently, I didn't realize that Yasuhito Endo was a member of the last Flugels team. I think it would be interesting to see what his thoughts are on the 1998 team. How does he think his career would have gone had the Flugels not disbanded? Does he still have any bitter feeling over Yokohama F Marinos co-opting the name? That would be a great feature. Id also be interested to hear about Endo's time in Kyoto with Kazu. How did it feel to get relegated? Did he have any regrets about leaving after Kyoto claimed the 2002 Emperor's Cup?
There's alot of good stories out there that we aren't getting. My personal choice for a story would be an interview with Naoya Kikuchi. Kikuchi, now a defender for Albirex Niigata, was a very promising National Team candidate who saw his Jubilo Iwata and National Team career go up in flames after a scandal involving an "encounter" with an underaged girl. At the time, I was ready to ban him for life. But, seemingly he kept his nose clean and has somewhat rehabilitated his career. I'm not interested in details about what happened that day (except for why the girl ended up with his wallet). I'm curious however to hear about his experiences after the event. How did he end up in Germany? Why did he choose to come back with Oita? Did he think his career was over after the scandal? How is he treated in Shizuoka? Was there any contact with people in the National Team system after the scandal broke? Is there any chance of him representing Japan in the future? That's a multilayered story which could go a thousand different ways. It's difficult but it would be interesting as hell to read. We won't see it though because there's a risk that it might offend the player and the team. It's easier to ask Gotoku Sakai about whether or not he wants to play in Europe or how excited he is to be on a team with his brother.
I'm not trying to slam on the players or journalists. It's tough to look someone in the face and ask them an uncomfortable question. It's also difficult to answer a question honestly if you think you are going to offend part of your fanbase or employer. My only request is that we get a little more information, a little more creativity. A little more something instead of the same stories about the same people repackaged to lure you in. I value things that I can lean something from and I'm not getting that. I guess what Im ultimately asking for is a little more access.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
This One Goes Out To The Team I Loathe
Back in college, we used to have house parties when my mom would go out of town. A bunch of friends from different walks of life would come over and hang out, drink beer, and do all the normal things that happen at parties. A couple of people (myself included) were big fans of REM. This was around the time that REM were nearly at the height of their popularity, being crowned THE BEST BAND IN AMERICA. Most hardcore REM fans I knew (myself included) tended to be self important, pretentious, and unbearable. Anyhow, my REM buddies would gather around my pool and sing off key.
Now, there are pretentious douchebags who celebrate nearly every form of entertainment from music to film, art to erotica. The J League is no different. Until this month (with the breakup of REM coinciding with Nabisco Cup matches), it didn't occur to me that there could possibly be any similarity to one of my favorite bands and a team that wells up more negative feelings in me than I care to bring up......I hate the fucking Reds but even I can see qualities in them that are admirable. I guess I should explain.
The first connection I saw was negative. As I stated before, hardcore REM fans back in the 90's were really kind of assholes. A lot like your average Urawa fan, fresh off the plane from Heathrow and dying to tell you how great the Urawa Boyz are and how their fanbase "Owns you" in your own house. When you get past this and dig deeper, there is some real connection.
1. Both started out with "Cult" followings- REM burst onto the scene in 1981 with the classic song "Radio Free Europe", a rough sounding tune that you could barely make out the words to. It was catchy though and the people who liked it, really liked it and stuck with the new band. Urawa for their part fielded alot of bad teams but did things right in other ways, foremost by building a strong base in their hometown. The people who liked the REDS, really liked them and created an atmosphere that brought in more people.
2. Both gradually built themselves into powerhouses through grassroots efforts- REM honed and created a southern sound. They toiled for years playing the colleges of the American South and developed a real following amongst a relatively young and loyal audience. Urawa did a similar thing by developing alot of young talent through their youth system setup and good signings from high school powerhouses. The early days of REM produced some of their best work (including a song called So.Central Rain, a beautiful and melodic tune whose only real flaw is that it is criminally short.). The Reds produced Shinji Ono, a brilliant player whose only real flaw was that he couldn't seem to stay healthy for an extended period of time.
3. Both had relatively short stints at the top of their profession. REM (1987-1993) and Urawa (2003-2007) both had about a five year period in which they were hailed as the best in their respective fields. REM broke through with Document, an album featuring the song (This one goes out to) The One I Love, their first mainstream hit. The band built on their success with subsequent efforts Green and Out of Time, albums which brought in guest performers like KRS One and B-52s Diva Kate Piersen to add to very different types of albums. Out of Time was highlighted by the song "Losing My Religion". Religion highlighted the talent and technical efficiency of the band, however it also was slightly whiny. Urawa started their run of success with a Nabisco Cup victory in 2003 and the last stage win in J League history in 2004 (the league would move to single table in 2005). Two Import players from Germany, Tomislav Maric and Brazilian Robson Ponte would blend in with a young core to help push the squad over the top. 2006 would see the team win their first J League Championship behind a big Japanese Brazilian defender by the name of Marcus Tulio Tanaka, a very talented and technically proficient player who has a penchant for whining. Both teams would hit their peaks with highly successful and arguably overrated performances. REM put out the highly popular and virtually unlistenable effort "Automatic for the People", best known for the Andy Kaufmann inspired "Man on the Moon". Urawa went on to claim the Asian Champions League behind the goalscoring and frequent tantrums of Washington and Tulio. Urawa would lead the table up to the last day of the season. They would fall short after dropping a shock 1-0 decision to historically bad Yokohama FC.
4. Personnel problems- 1995 marked a transition for REM when drummer and rhythmic motor Bill Berry collapsed in Switzerland. Eventually he would find out that his collapse was caused by a brain aneurism. Berry would continue on for a couple of years but eventually retire due to the dual fatigue of recovering from a serious illness and the grind of touring. Arguably the band was never the same after Berry's departure. Urawa suffered a crisis of their own when talented duo Ono and Makoto Hasebe decided to leave the club. The squad has never been the same and has seen more talent leave, especially in the center midfield positions.
5. Rudderless performances with few bright spots- After the success in 1997, REM tried to admirably expand its musical horizons by creating albums that sounded completely different from their previous successes. Starting with Monster, the band put out a string of albums that were critically panned and not well received by their fans. There were a few real gems like Imitation of Life and the beautiful It Happened Today, however the efforts were inconsisent and ultimately unsatisfying. Urawa for their part brought in highly touted foreign coaches to blend together a mishmash of talent. Flagging results and a sense of self entitlement built by syrupy praise from the media saw the fan base become more edgy and less likeable. The fanbase fall from grace was marked by an ugly incident against Gamba Osaka, fueled by a thrown pet bottle and Tulio egging on an irritated base with his actions at the center of the field. The team has had a few bright spots over the years, most notably the development of brilliant wing player Genki Haraguchi, however the team has been a disaster.
On September 21,2011, REM made an announcement that they would stop existing as a band after a 30 plus year run. Urawa is not in the same position, but a draw at Kashima a mere 4 days later saw the squad drop to 15th, a mere two points out of relegation territory. For the past 14 years, I've been pretty upset at the efforts coming out of REM. However, I always assumed they would be together as a band and I'll truly miss the anticipation (and ultimate disappointment) of a new album from the group. I'm not sure I'd miss Urawa if they ultimately drop to J2......however I'm more than willing to find out.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLHOZpuMI4Q
Now, there are pretentious douchebags who celebrate nearly every form of entertainment from music to film, art to erotica. The J League is no different. Until this month (with the breakup of REM coinciding with Nabisco Cup matches), it didn't occur to me that there could possibly be any similarity to one of my favorite bands and a team that wells up more negative feelings in me than I care to bring up......I hate the fucking Reds but even I can see qualities in them that are admirable. I guess I should explain.
The first connection I saw was negative. As I stated before, hardcore REM fans back in the 90's were really kind of assholes. A lot like your average Urawa fan, fresh off the plane from Heathrow and dying to tell you how great the Urawa Boyz are and how their fanbase "Owns you" in your own house. When you get past this and dig deeper, there is some real connection.
1. Both started out with "Cult" followings- REM burst onto the scene in 1981 with the classic song "Radio Free Europe", a rough sounding tune that you could barely make out the words to. It was catchy though and the people who liked it, really liked it and stuck with the new band. Urawa for their part fielded alot of bad teams but did things right in other ways, foremost by building a strong base in their hometown. The people who liked the REDS, really liked them and created an atmosphere that brought in more people.
2. Both gradually built themselves into powerhouses through grassroots efforts- REM honed and created a southern sound. They toiled for years playing the colleges of the American South and developed a real following amongst a relatively young and loyal audience. Urawa did a similar thing by developing alot of young talent through their youth system setup and good signings from high school powerhouses. The early days of REM produced some of their best work (including a song called So.Central Rain, a beautiful and melodic tune whose only real flaw is that it is criminally short.). The Reds produced Shinji Ono, a brilliant player whose only real flaw was that he couldn't seem to stay healthy for an extended period of time.
3. Both had relatively short stints at the top of their profession. REM (1987-1993) and Urawa (2003-2007) both had about a five year period in which they were hailed as the best in their respective fields. REM broke through with Document, an album featuring the song (This one goes out to) The One I Love, their first mainstream hit. The band built on their success with subsequent efforts Green and Out of Time, albums which brought in guest performers like KRS One and B-52s Diva Kate Piersen to add to very different types of albums. Out of Time was highlighted by the song "Losing My Religion". Religion highlighted the talent and technical efficiency of the band, however it also was slightly whiny. Urawa started their run of success with a Nabisco Cup victory in 2003 and the last stage win in J League history in 2004 (the league would move to single table in 2005). Two Import players from Germany, Tomislav Maric and Brazilian Robson Ponte would blend in with a young core to help push the squad over the top. 2006 would see the team win their first J League Championship behind a big Japanese Brazilian defender by the name of Marcus Tulio Tanaka, a very talented and technically proficient player who has a penchant for whining. Both teams would hit their peaks with highly successful and arguably overrated performances. REM put out the highly popular and virtually unlistenable effort "Automatic for the People", best known for the Andy Kaufmann inspired "Man on the Moon". Urawa went on to claim the Asian Champions League behind the goalscoring and frequent tantrums of Washington and Tulio. Urawa would lead the table up to the last day of the season. They would fall short after dropping a shock 1-0 decision to historically bad Yokohama FC.
4. Personnel problems- 1995 marked a transition for REM when drummer and rhythmic motor Bill Berry collapsed in Switzerland. Eventually he would find out that his collapse was caused by a brain aneurism. Berry would continue on for a couple of years but eventually retire due to the dual fatigue of recovering from a serious illness and the grind of touring. Arguably the band was never the same after Berry's departure. Urawa suffered a crisis of their own when talented duo Ono and Makoto Hasebe decided to leave the club. The squad has never been the same and has seen more talent leave, especially in the center midfield positions.
5. Rudderless performances with few bright spots- After the success in 1997, REM tried to admirably expand its musical horizons by creating albums that sounded completely different from their previous successes. Starting with Monster, the band put out a string of albums that were critically panned and not well received by their fans. There were a few real gems like Imitation of Life and the beautiful It Happened Today, however the efforts were inconsisent and ultimately unsatisfying. Urawa for their part brought in highly touted foreign coaches to blend together a mishmash of talent. Flagging results and a sense of self entitlement built by syrupy praise from the media saw the fan base become more edgy and less likeable. The fanbase fall from grace was marked by an ugly incident against Gamba Osaka, fueled by a thrown pet bottle and Tulio egging on an irritated base with his actions at the center of the field. The team has had a few bright spots over the years, most notably the development of brilliant wing player Genki Haraguchi, however the team has been a disaster.
On September 21,2011, REM made an announcement that they would stop existing as a band after a 30 plus year run. Urawa is not in the same position, but a draw at Kashima a mere 4 days later saw the squad drop to 15th, a mere two points out of relegation territory. For the past 14 years, I've been pretty upset at the efforts coming out of REM. However, I always assumed they would be together as a band and I'll truly miss the anticipation (and ultimate disappointment) of a new album from the group. I'm not sure I'd miss Urawa if they ultimately drop to J2......however I'm more than willing to find out.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLHOZpuMI4Q
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