The 2021 season of the Japanese Professional League is the most brutal season in history. From the opening on February 26 this year to the end on December 4, in 10 months, 20 teams, 380 games, and finally decided on four relegation places. However, under the new crown epidemic, this league is still a familiar taste, leaving fans with many classic and unforgettable moments.
Admission increased by 32%, and the average attendance rate of Nagoya Whale Eight exceeded 10,000
The 2021 season totaled 380 matches in the Japanese Professional League, with a total number of 2531007, an average of 6661. That's a 32 percent increase from last season, and an average attendance increase of 865. In fact, in addition to last season, the Japanese Professional League has maintained a steady growth in total attendance for 8 consecutive years, and stable attendance is an important symbol of the healthy development of a league.
In addition, only 10 games of the 2021 season of the Japanese Professional League were played in an empty field, and the highest attendance rate was the local tycoon's division Nagoya Whale Hachi, in 19 home games, a total of 210614 fans watched live, with an average attendance rate of 11,085 people. It is worth mentioning that Nagoya Whale Eight is also the only team with an average attendance of more than 10,000 in the 2021 season.
The second most popular player was the Yokohama Mariners, who played in 19 home games and 170831 fans came to Nissan Stadium to cheer on the team. In addition, the smallest number of spectators was The Bo Helios, with only 84,448 fans in 19 home games, averaging less than 5,000 per game.
Home teams' winning percentages soared, with goals per game falling slightly
Most of the 2020 season of the Japanese Professional League was played empty, and the home team's record was only 118 wins, 68 draws and 120 losses, setting a new low in recent years. With the growth of the number of fans, the record of the 2021 season of the Japanese Professional League home team has improved significantly, reaching 160 wins, 94 draws and 126 losses. It is obvious from the data that the number of wins of the home team has increased by 42 games, and due to the influence of the four relegation places, the probability of winning and losing has increased significantly, and the participating teams are more persistent about three points, especially the relegation zone teams, the competition is extremely fierce, and the final relegation quota is not determined until the last round of the league.
In addition, the 2021 season of the Japanese Professional League scored a total of 922 goals in 380 games, averaging 2.43 goals per game, compared with the average of 2.83 goals per game last season, there is a slight decline, but combined with actual analysis, such data is also reasonable, after all, there are four relegation places, and most of the teams in the middle and lower reaches are more conservative in their tactical style in order to survive.
Kawasaki Striker has four crowns in five years and is damien MVP
After a 1-1 draw at home to Urawa Red Diamonds in the 34th round, Kawasaki set another new record, winning four rounds in advance for two consecutive seasons. It was the fourth time in the history of Kawasaki Striker that he had been crowned and the fourth championship trophy in the last five years.
Undoubtedly, under the creation of Coach Onimuda, this Kawasaki striker has opened his own dynasty. It is worth mentioning that this year, while maintaining offensive firepower, the Kawasaki forward has also made significant progress on the defensive end, not only with 28 goals conceded to be the best defensive team, but also conceding an average of 0.74 goals per game is also the highest in the history of the Japanese professional league.
In 38 games throughout the year, Kawasaki Striker reached 25 games without yellow cards, accumulating only 18 yellow cards, averaging 0.47 per game, setting a new record of 0.56 yellow cards per game set by Kobe Victory Ship in 1997. Especially in the core area of the backcourt, Kawasaki forward rarely committed unnecessary fouls, conceding only 6 set-pieces in the entire season.
In addition, Kawasaki forward did not receive a red card throughout the year, and no player was banned for accumulating yellow cards, which showed his dominance and discipline.
However, the Kawasaki striker's trend this season has not been as smooth as last season, and at one point the Yokohama Mariners were chased by only 6 points when Kaoru Mitsuru and Hiryu Tanaka and Oshima were too plagued by injuries. Fortunately, Coach Onimuda adjusted in time to fully tap the potential of young players such as Tenshi Miyagi, Daimi Tono, and Kenjin Tachibana, without letting the team show signs of collapse, and won the championship in the first four rounds with a wave of consecutive wins.
In addition, Kawasaki striker Damien scorer Dairan Maeda tied for the League Golden Boot with 23 goals. From 9 goals in 23 games in 2019, 13 goals in 34 games in 2020, to 23 goals in 35 games this season, gradually adapting to the style and rhythm of the Japanese Professional League, Damian's personal data has also risen year by year, and he has won the 2021 Most Valuable Player of the Season. This is the fourth league MVP in the history of Kawasaki Striker after 2016 Nakamura Ken-Tsuyoshi, 2017 Kobayashi Yu and 2018 parent Akihiro. At the same time, Kawasaki Forwards also became the club with the most MVPs in the league, tied for first place with Iwata Joy and Yokohama Mariners.
Osaka is a difficult brother, and Tosu Sandstone is afraid of being short-lived
Including Shimizu Agitation and Kashiwa Helios, many teams in the 2021 season of the Japanese Professional League have failed to meet expectations, and Gamba Osaka and Sakura Osaka are no exception.
You know, Osaka Shuangxiong won the AFC Champions League qualification in the 2020 season, spent a lot of money in the offseason, and is preparing to show his fists. However, contrary to expectations, the unfortunate egg Gamba Osaka suffered a collective infection at the beginning of the season, the first team was diagnosed with 8 people, all the games in March were cancelled, and the whole team was suspended for nearly a month. After the resumption of training, Gamba Osaka could not find the state of the game, Miyamoto Washijing was dismissed, And Masanobu Matsuba led the team through the difficulties, but always lacked coaching experience, and after a season of chaos, Gamba Osaka finally ended with the 13th place in the league.
If the decline of Gamba Osaka is somewhat unlucky, then Sakura Osaka's operation is purely a top-down death for the club.
With Lotina leading the team to the AFC Champions League and finishing fifth and fourth in the past two seasons, Hiroshi Morishima swept Lotina out of the house on the grounds of conservative playing style, and instead chose Brazilian coach Kulppi, who entered the palace four times. Kulppi has his own means of cultivating newcomers, but as the league deepens, the Brazilian's relatively aggressive tactical style proves to be a very failed signing and transformation of Sakura Osaka.
The only thing worth noting is that the new stadium that Sakura Osaka has spent a lot of money to build is officially put into use in the 2021 season, which is the biggest comfort for fans.
I am afraid that no one expected that Tosu Sandstone, who had a serious financial deficit and aimed at relegation, exploded a wave of unbeaten records of 4 wins and 2 draws in the first six rounds of the season, and with 6 clean sheets, he equaled the record of 6 consecutive rounds of non-conceding in the opening round set by yokohama Flying Wings in 1996.
Despite the excellent record, due to the deep economic crisis, Tosu Sandstone was unable to retain the core players, Hayashi Dadi and Matsuoka Daiki left the team in the middle of the season, and head coach Kim Myung-hui was also investigated by the J League for workplace bullying.
With core players such as Yuta Higuchi and Nobufushi Sakai being sold off, perhaps next season, we can see Tosu Sandstone in the relegation zone again.
Araki Ryotaro lived up to the No. 13 jersey, and many of the legends of the uncles broke records
Kashima Antlers talented high school student Ryotaro Araki won the 2021 Season Young Player of the Year, and in his second year of joining Kashima Antlers from Higashi-Fukuoka High School, Araki Made 36 League Appearances and scored 10 goals. This is the second player in the history of the Japanese professional league since Shoji Shiro in 1994 to score in double figures in a single season at the age of less than 20 years old.
In the history of Kashima Antlers, no. 13 has always been a weighty number, and the legends Yanagisawa Andu and Shinzo Koji have worn this shirt, which shows what the club expects of him. In addition to Araki Ryotaro, Satoshi Tanaka of Shonan Marine and Nobuya Nakano of Tosu Sandstone are also worth looking forward to, among which Satoshi Tanaka is known as the successor of Endo Hang because of his technical characteristics. At the age of 17 years, 6 months and 10 days, Nakano broke the record of the youngest starter in the Japanese professional league opener set by Osaka Gamba star Junichi Inamoto in 1997.
In the Japanese professional league, in addition to many potential rookies, the legend of the shuzi generation is also worthy of attention. The 54-year-old Chira Miura came off the bench in the third round of the 2021 season against Urawa Red Diamonds, setting a new record for the oldest appearance at the age of 54 years and 12 days.
The 42-year-old Shunsuke Nakamura made his debut in the 2021 season opener, setting a new record for the oldest appearance in the opener at the age of 42 years, 8 months and 3 days.
The 39-year-old Isamu Abe scored a goal in the 2021 season opener, becoming the oldest goal scorer in the opener after Zico at the age of 39 years, 5 months and 21 days.
The 39-year-old Yoshito Okubo scored a goal against Gonzalo Sapporo, rewriting his league goal record to 191.
The seven teams changed their managers, and the Brazilian coach fell out of favor
Up to now, 7 of the 18 teams of the Nippon PTA have changed their head coaches, namely Gamba Osaka, Tokyo FC, Sanfrecce Hiroshima, Kashima Antlers, Nagoya Whale Hachi, Tosu Sandstone and Shimizu Agitation. In all teams, there are 10 local managers, accounting for 56%.
Judging from the style of play of the Japanese professional league in the past two years, the Brazilian coach is no longer the first choice for the head coach position of each team, and at present, only Nercinho, the sun god of The Sun, is left, and even Kashima Antlers, who has never hired a European coach, has begun to make a tactical transformation.
Looking back at the 2021 season that has passed, there are actually many teams and players worth paying attention to, and I will not expand them here. After one of the most brutal seasons in history, the players can finally take a break and look forward to the 2022 season.