Head Coach: "I'm really sorry to the Gamba fans and supporters, and to those who came to Kashima Stadium today, for this result. I take full responsibility for this result, and it was my decisions, including the members and the way we played, that led to this result, so I'm very disappointed and disappointed that it turned out this way. We played against Kashima in the opening game, and we had a player sent off during the game, but we suffered a disappointing 1-3 defeat. Since then, we've been preparing in various ways to get revenge, even though today's Levain Cup is an away game, but it made me feel that we still don't have the strength to do so. We'll try to learn from this defeat and have another series of games in April, including the league games. We'll prepare well and fight so that we can play a good game and share our joy in the series of games."

Q: "It seemed like the momentum in the first half faded a bit in the second half. How do you analyze the reasons for this?"
Head Coach Katanozaka: "We dropped back a little too far, and I told them to try to steal the ball on the defensive end, but Kashima kept their movements in a bad position, and while they kept their attacks simple, they also fought for the ball, so I think it was hard for us to switch on our defense. Of course, we were behind, so we felt the pressure of them coming to score, and I don't think the players went into a defensive role just because they were leading, but I think it's very important for the front and back lines to work together in defence, so we needed to apply pressure effectively in that area, and I think we weren't able to use the ball we had stolen to develop the game. We did give some suggestions about preparations at halftime, but I think Kashima's pressure was stronger."

Q: This was Fujiharu's first appearance this season. I heard that he hadn't been in good condition for a while, so I think it's a good sign that he was finally able to play. What do you think about that?
Head Coach Katanozaka: "As for Haru (Fujiharu), he mainly plays on the left wing, often as a fullback or wing half, but he has been in good condition since training and has been performing very well, so I thought I'd go ahead and use him. I've also been using Kurokawa in consecutive games, so there was a sense of competition and coexistence with Fujiharu, and I wasn't sure how Fujiharu would perform for the full 90 minutes, but I think he managed to contribute to the team. I hope Haru himself will continue to improve his condition so that he can play for the full 90 minutes, and I hope he will contribute to the team by making crosses and scoring goals, and I hope he will compete with Kurokawa again."

Q: "Many of the goals you conceded came from set plays, so I think you were on guard. Looking back on it, how do you feel about it?"
Head Coach Katanozaka: "Yes, we conceded three goals from set pieces, so we need to improve there, and we really shouldn't have allowed them to happen. As for the fourth goal we conceded, I think we were a little late in judging whether to attack or defend, and what would be dangerous if we left players up front. We need to work closely with the players on these areas as well, and since conceding goals from set pieces is very difficult, we need to reduce them as much as possible, and conversely, we need to increase the number of goals we score, so I hope we can use this as an issue to make corrections in the future."