Head Coach Hasegawa: "The players really fought until the very end and played a great game at home. I think it's really disappointing that we couldn't win such a game. Guangzhou put their bodies on the line to defend the goal until the end, and in that sense, I felt once again through the two games that they are a strong team. The away loss lingered until the end. It was hotter than I expected, and we couldn't play our own football, so it was a difficult second game, but the players took the situation into consideration and got into it from the start, they switched gears very well, and we showed almost-scored scenes until the end. We couldn't score a goal, so I think it can't be helped. We've had the opportunity to experience such a great tournament so far, and it has given us a renewed desire to win this title. There is still J-League left this season, and the Nabisco Cup final, so I hope we can switch our mindset and play in the CS and somehow get the right to represent Japan and participate in the Club World Cup at the end of the year. I'm really proud of the way the players played today, and I'd like to thank the many supporters who came to support us despite it being midweek. Thank you very much."

Q: "Please explain the decision not to start Usami. Also, considering that he performed well in the second half, do you have any regrets about not using him in the first half?"
"I have no regrets at all. From the beginning, the game plan was that if we put Takashi in at that time, we would have a chance, so in that sense, Takashi's goal didn't come, but Futagawa, who started, also played very well, so in that sense, Futagawa created the momentum for the team, and I was hoping that Takashi would score a goal at the end, but it didn't quite happen, so I made the decision to bring him off the bench after seeing Takashi's current condition."

Q: This is related to the previous question, but the Head Coach said that he judged Usami based on his current condition, but is it correct to assume that he is suffering from fatigue or something like that?
"Takashi played in the Iran match for the national team, and then came back and played against the Reds, so today's match is three days away, and if he lost his momentum at the start of the match, we might not be able to make full use of our strengths. After watching Takashi's play in the 1st Leg, I thought that we could inflict more damage on the opponent if we used him when they looked a little tired, so I started him on the bench. It's not because he was exhausted, but it was a decision made after thinking about how we could make the most of our strengths."

Q: "I'd like to ask you in general terms, what has the team gained from winning through tough matches to get to this point? And what will be the challenges for next year's ACL?"
A: Yes. With only a few members remaining from the last ACL championship, I think it will be a great asset for the new Gamba players to have had the opportunity to experience such a wonderful tournament. Also, I think they have grown stronger by playing against strong teams from Korea, China, and Thailand, so I hope they can make the most of this experience and prepare to get revenge next time.
Another thing is the schedule, and I think the J.League took the schedule into consideration a lot, and gave preferential treatment to the ACL group. However, the more we win, including the cup matches, the more important matches there are as we progress through the stages, with five consecutive matches this time, a week off, and then another consecutive match, so I think the schedule of the battles in the stages is the same in every country, but I would like them to take some consideration as the tournament progresses. We lost this time, but if we had won, we would have had to play seven consecutive matches from here, including the last match against Urawa, before the final, so I think it would be quite difficult if we didn't give up something, and I think the J.League probably took the stage league into consideration until we advanced, but as the tournament progresses, including the cup matches, there will be playoffs in the form of a CS this time, and I wonder if they really took the schedule into consideration when they advanced. If they could take that into consideration in the future, I think it would be easier for J.League teams to fight in the ACL. Also, I think this was a tournament that tested the strength of the J.League this season, but I think that Reysol and GAMBA OSAKA were able to show their strength so far, so I think we need to get one step stronger and develop the ability to win games like this.

Higashiguchi: "We had some tough battles from the beginning, and in the end we made it to the semi-finals. Of course I wanted to go to the finals, but Guangzhou was a good team and we couldn't beat them, so I was chosen as MOM, but honestly, I wanted to win and receive this award."