Head Coach Crupi: "Regarding today's match, I think the result of a draw was appropriate. I don't think either team deserved to lose. I think we played well in the first half, but our performance dropped off a little in the second half, but I think the players held up well. In the sense that neither team was able to convert their chances, neither team was able to play in a way that would lead to victory, so I don't think there's any need to lament the draw or look down on the result."

Q: "Higashiguchi has returned. Can you please give us your assessment of his condition and his performance today?"
Head Coach Crupi: "I was really happy to see Higashiguchi back today, because after such a serious injury, I think it's really difficult to come back with that much confidence after such a serious injury, but I think he showed a very good performance without any fear.
Furthermore, if I may take this opportunity to say something, I think both goals in today's game were truly beautiful goals. I think that one of the things that makes soccer so interesting was packed into both goals, but it was unfortunate that one of the two goals was scored by the other team.

Q: "It's true that Gamba, who are not inferior in terms of individual strength, were able to let Marinos take the initiative in the game for such a long time, but what do you think was behind the way the game unfolded?"
Head Coach Crupi: "I think there were a lot of factors involved, but after we took the lead in the second half, it was natural that the opponents had to counterattack, and I think it was natural that we would respond with a counterattack, so I think that was one of the reasons why we conceded in the second half.
Furthermore, three substitutions were made, replacing three players. The team was not well balanced to begin with, but using the substitution slots made it even more difficult to maintain balance.

Q: This is related to the previous question, but I think Marinos had the advantage in terms of possession, but on the other hand, there were almost no instances where their defense was broken down. What did you think of Marinos' offense?
Head Coach Crupi: "I think Marinos' attack was very good, but I think the possession rate is just one reference number. I think the number that directly relates to the outcome of the game is probably the number of finishes. Gamba took the lead, so naturally Marinos came out to counterattack, and as I said before, we used three substitutions, so I think it was difficult to improve our team's cooperation.
And although we played in a new formation today, we actually only had one practice session yesterday. After giving it a lot of thought, I made the final decision to switch to a three-back formation, and we played in today's match with only one practice session yesterday. Considering that, I think the team as a whole lived up to some expectations, but to be honest, there were some parts where I expected them to do a little better. We talked about substitutions, and that was Jungo FUJIMOTO, who came on in the middle of the game. I think we can give him high praise for scoring what is probably the best goal of the season, the most beautiful goal.

Q: Now that we've talked about Fujimoto, what was the aim of the first substitution? Endo was moved down and Fujimoto was brought in.
Head Coach Crupi: "We chose today's formation with the aim of preventing conceding goals while keeping things well organized from the back, but Endo is no longer young, so we need to reduce the physical burden on him. That's why we brought in Fujimoto, but Fujimoto hasn't played many games since his return, so we have to take his physical condition into consideration. Furthermore, Konno has only played a few games since his return, so we also have to take his physical condition into consideration. I think the substitutions were made with the physical condition of the midfielders in mind."