Urawa
Red Diamonds Overview
The
Urawa Reds make their home in Urawa city, a
gritty industrial city just north of Tokyo,
close to Saitama, a World Cup 2002 venue. They
boast the loudest and most boisterous fans in
the league. Even when the team's performance
began to drop off, Urawa fans have been loyal
and vocal in their support (and occasionally
in their anger at lost matches). In the 1999
season, Urawa suffered a great many misfortunes
-- injuries to key players including the loss
of star midfielder Shinji Ono for nearly two-thirds
of the season (both due to injury and on national
team duty). The team floundered, and went into
their final match needing three points to avoid
relegation to the second division. The team
fought valiantly for a win, but it was only
in overtime that they managed to get the victory
goal. The team was demoted on mere goal difference,
and was forced to spend a year in the second
division. Despite this disappointment, Urawa's
fans have remained as loyal and as loud as ever.
In fact, Urawa outdrew all first-division clubs
during the 2000 season, packing Komaba Stadium
for nearly every home match. In 2001, the team
opened Saitama Soccer Stadium -- a new 63,000-seat
state-of-the-art facility which will host one
of the World Cup semifinal matches. Although
the Reds lost their midfield leader, Shinji
Ono, to Feyenoord in Holland midway through
2001, the team more than made up for it with
the addition of speedy Brazilians Tuto and Emerson
in the front line, and a number of new youngsters
such as defender Keisuke Tsuboi, midfielders
Tadaaki Hirakawa and Keita Suzuki, and striker
Tatsuya Tanaka. Indeed, under the direction
of team manager Hans Ooft and coach Wim Jansen,
the Reds are now viewed as one of the most promising
young teams in the league. The Reds managed
to break their fans' hearts once more in 2002,
progressing all the way to the finals of the
Nabisco (league) Cup, only to fall under the
hooves of the Kashima Antlers and fail once
more to bring home any silverware. Yet the team
definitely has promise in 2003. Ooft continued
his reorganization effort at the end of 2002
by cutting a host of aging or marginal players
and usint the team's huge treasure chest to
lure talented youngsters. The team has already
picked up Consadole's 21-year-old midfielder
Koji Yamase, a regular fixture in the U-21 team
until his injury midway through the 2002 season,
and Edmundo, who was released by Tokyo Verdy
at the end of last season.
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Urawa
Red Diamonds Info
Stadium:
Urawa Komaba Stadium
QUICK
FACT
Their
fans are renowned for being the most passionate
in the J-League.
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