Review: Shimizu S-Pulse 1-4 Cerezo Osaka (J1 MD36)

A dominant win with four goals, including two lightning-fast strikes. Kengo Furuyama scored his second of the season as Cerezo secured their second three-game winning streak of the year.

Two weeks after their match against Kawasaki Frontale, Cerezo Osaka traveled to face Shimizu S-Pulse, aiming for their third consecutive win in the Meiji Yasuda J1 League Matchweek 36. There were two changes to the starting lineup from the previous match: Shunta Tanaka began on the bench, while Ayumu Ohata was left out of the squad. Vitor Bueno and Niko Takahashi both returned to the starting lineup for the first time in five league matches.



In their previous match against Kawasaki, Cerezo Osaka made their best start of the season by scoring twice within the first seven minutes — and they carried that momentum into this game as well. Just three minutes in, Hayato Okuda, Hinata Kida, and Masaya Shibayama combined down the right side, and when Okuda’s cross was flicked on by Bueno, Motohiko Nakajima fired a mid-range shot. The goalkeeper parried it, but Rafael Ratao was quick to pounce on the rebound to give Cerezo an early lead. In the 11th minute, they doubled their advantage. Kida won the ball high up the pitch, Shibayama beat a defender, and his right-footed shot struck the crossbar — only for Bueno to follow up and slot home, extending the lead over Shimizu. “We knew Shimizu tend to concede early in games. We had also scored early in our last two matches, so we went in with the intention of getting a goal right from the start,” Kida said after the match. It was a blistering pair of goals before the hosts could even settle. Afterward, Shimizu pushed back, but goalkeeper Koki Fukui made key saves in the 18th and 24th minutes to keep the momentum on Cerezo’s side. Then, in the 42nd minute, came the third goal. Starting from Fukui’s long kick, Ratao controlled it and linked up with Bueno and Thiago down the left. Andrade’s low cross found Ratao again in the center, who calmly finished after a single touch. “It was a move we’ve practiced — great coordination among the three of us,” said Ratao, as the Brazilian trio combined brilliantly for the goal. Cerezo nearly struck again in first-half stoppage time when Kida played a through ball behind the defense for Thiago, whose cross found Ratao, but his touch was a bit too heavy to convert. Even so, Cerezo went into halftime with a commanding 3–0 lead — a stunning display of the attacking football that manager Arthur Papas has been building.





Shimizu brought on Takashi Inui at the start of the second half, adding a spark to their attack, and Cerezo soon found themselves under pressure. In the 46th and 52nd minutes, Capixaba—who played for Cerezo until last season—threatened with two chances, but the first was blocked by Takahashi and the second cleared by Ryosuke Shindo, as the defense stood firm. In the 67th minute, Shimizu created another big chance from a corner, but Fukui produced an excellent save. Though Cerezo were pushed back for much of the second half, they struck on the counter in the 69th and 75th minutes, breaking through the opposition but failing to convert as Shibayama’s finishes went wide. In the 77th minute, Cerezo substituted Ratao and Thiago for Kengo Furuyama and Dion Cools. Then, in the 84th minute, Furuyama had a chance, but his shot was blocked by a defender, leading to a counterattack and a goal from Inui, who finished brilliantly. “I almost lost heart,” Furuyama admitted later, but he refused to let his long-awaited opportunity end there. Driven by determination, he continued to run tirelessly—and in stoppage time, his moment came. Meeting Dion Cools’ cross from the right, after a clever pass from Shinji Kagawa, Furuyama struck it perfectly with the inside of his left foot to score. It was the very definition of a striker’s finish—a decisive, clinical goal. As the ball hit the net, teammates and staff erupted in joy, with Shindo the first to rush over to celebrate with the university rookie known as a team mood-maker. After the match, Furuyama reflected with relief: “I’ve always been confident about meeting crosses like that because I’ve worked on it more than anyone in training. I practiced that a lot with Takumi Nakamura and coach Bruno Quadros, so I’m really glad it paid off today.” He added with gratitude, “I’m also happy I could score for all the people who supported me through the tough times.” With Furuyama’s goal sealing the result, Cerezo once again scored four against Shimizu—just as they had in the home fixture—completing a season double over their opponents.





Manager Papas looked back on the match with satisfaction, saying, “We’ve started well for three games in a row. It must have been difficult for our opponents.” Following the Fagiano Okayama and Kawasaki Frontale matches, Cerezo once again made a strong start and took the lead early, seizing control of the game and securing their second three-match winning streak of the season. With just two matches remaining, the team will look to continue showing the strength they have built up throughout the season and push forward until the very end.