The Sagan Tosu Herald
Squad27 Aug 2035
A one-man rearguard from Ryota Izumori
There were 6 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Market27 Aug 2035
Karamoko Bamba is on his way
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Sagan Tosu is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Boardroom27 Aug 2035
Karamoko Bamba signs for Yokohama F. Marinos while still at Sagan Tosu
The rules permit it and it stings anyway. Karamoko Bamba has agreed terms with Yokohama F. Marinos for the summer, and until then he pulls on this shirt as a player who has already chosen his next one.
Squad27 Aug 2035
Tempers go at Sagan Tosu
Tatsunori Sakurai was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad27 Aug 2035
Mehdi Ghayedi falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Match25 Aug 2035
Sagan Tosu see off Shonan Bellmare
Three points for Sagan Tosu, 2‑0 the final word against Shonan Bellmare in a contest settled by the finer margins.
Match25 Aug 2035
Shonan Bellmare blown away early
There is a particular helplessness in conceding 2 times before the twentieth minute. Shonan Bellmare tried to reorganise, Sagan Tosu did not allow it, and the result was written long before it was confirmed.
Squad27 Aug 2035
The manager makes an example of Sora Ogawa
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Player ratings27 Aug 2035
Bernardo shuts the door
Defensive actions: 17, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
In brief
- Player ratings Richard Harris takes the honours
- Player ratings A defender's afternoon for Basam Za'arura
- Player ratings Mehdi Ghayedi runs at them all day