Coach Takato explained that the Osaka Team was Daiei composed of Toyotama. However, they did not field any Toyotama players in today's match, perhaps to conserve their strength, or perhaps for other reasons.
Miyagi exclaimed in surprise, "Look at that number four player, he's incredible! Kishimoto is no match for him!"
Yo Aoki said that he was Atsushi Tsuchiya, Daiei's ace.
"He's fast, his passing is precise, he's calm, and his shooting is accurate. He's an all-rounder!" Soichiro Jin exclaimed.
Yo Aoki laughed; this guy's playing style was very similar to Sendoh -senpai's.
Sendoh nodded, "He does resemble me."
Upon hearing that someone resembled him, Sakuragi immediately roared, "I'll definitely beat him tomorrow!"
The room was quiet; everyone was glued to the television, ignoring Sakuragi.
The situation was awkward. After a while, Mitsui said that Daiei's playing style was particularly stable, and they were good at positional and zone defense. With Toyotama's strong offense, they were like a tiger with wings.
Sakuragi blushed and shouted, "You Mitchy..."
Uozumi asked, "Sendoh, what are his weaknesses?"
Sendoh ignored Sakuragi, shrugged, and said, "I didn't see it. I can't see it."
That damned Sendoh!
At this moment, the others shifted their attention from Sakuragi to Yo Aoki, Shinichi Maki, and Fujima.
You guys! Sakuragi was already furious.
Yo Aoki and the others shook their heads; they couldn't figure it out either.
Left out in the cold, Sakuragi had no choice but to approach Yo Aoki. " Aoki, don't you believe I can beat him?"
Yo Aoki, of course, didn't ignore him and said with a smile, " Sakuragi, I believe in you! Your defensive ability can definitely go toe-to-toe with his!"
Haha! You really understand me! Sakuragi laughed with satisfaction. "I'll guard him tomorrow!"
At this moment, the scene showed the number five player defending Kishimoto again.
Coach Takato said that this number five is named Nitta, who is Daiei's number two player and is particularly outstanding in defense.
Uozumi said that Hikoichi had investigated Daiei before, and that Daiei was someone he was paying close attention to.
Yo Aoki nodded, reminding everyone, "This kid's reflexes are ridiculously fast, so be careful when passing the ball!"
But Fujima touched his forehead and added, "Don't forget Tsuyoshi Minami from Toyotama High School!"
After all, the image of Tsuyoshi Minami kneeling Kaede Rukawa in the eye was still etched in the minds of the Shohoku guys, who kept nodding in Shohoku.
But then Yo Aoki laughed, "Leave Tsuyoshi Minami Lie to me, I'll take on this Ace Killer!"
Everyone laughed when he said that, after all, everyone remembered the scene of Aoki defending against Akama, the black man, during the warm-up match.
At this moment, Coach Takato looked at Aoki and asked, " Aoki, do you have any suggestions for tomorrow's game against Osaka?"
Aoki rested his head on his hands and shook it gently. "No suggestions, let's just play normally."
"Oh?" Takato was taken aback. He had thought Aoki might come up with some unexpected tactics.
"Alright," Takato said, "Then you guys go and rest. We'll meet at eight tomorrow."
After all the players had returned to their rooms, Taoka suddenly asked, " Takato, are you wondering why Aoki didn't offer any suggestions?"
Takato paused for a moment, then nodded. "I originally thought Aoki would be able to find a weakness in Osaka's defenses."
Taoka suddenly burst into laughter, leaving Takato completely bewildered.
" Takato, when did you become such a coward?"
"I'm a coward?" Takato looked completely bewildered.
"We're clearly far superior to Osaka, so why are you still so hesitant?"
Takato frowned. "We can't underestimate our opponent, can we?"
"Of course we can't underestimate them, but we can't be overly cautious either. Otherwise, the players will think you don't have confidence in them!"
"That might be why Aoki didn't offer any suggestions."
Takato was stunned again. "I think you've always been worried that your opponents will figure out your weaknesses and then devise targeted tactics!"
"That's why you kept Aoki on the bench, just in case something goes wrong!"
Takato said in a deep voice, "I put Aoki on the bench because I wanted to utilize his strengths!"
Taoka said seriously, " The Takato I know wouldn't rely on a child."
Takato didn't say anything.
Taoka said earnestly, " Takato, they're all just sixteen or seventeen-year-old kids. We should let them enjoy the game on the field, don't you think?"
Taoka's words made Takato fall into deep thought.
After a long while, Takato finally realized, "So, in the end, I was the one who couldn't get over that defeat."
The match that affected you wasn't the national tournament loss to Hakata Shodai, but rather the preliminary round loss to Takezato, right?
From then on, whenever there was a match, Takato subconsciously felt that his opponents could figure out his weaknesses and exploit them.
After figuring this out, Takato smiled wryly, "How did you figure that out, senior?"
Taoka laughed, "I had this feeling from the moment you put Aoki on the bench!"
"Do you remember what I told you when the starting lineup was decided?"
Takato nodded. "You're saying Aoki should be playing a role on the field, not sitting on the bench."
Taking a deep breath, Takato said, " Taoka- senpai!"
"There's no need for such formalities between us," Taoka waved his hand.
"Should we adjust the starting lineup for tomorrow?" Taoka asked.
Takato laughed, "That's right! Tomorrow we'll send out our strongest lineup and show all the teams how powerful Kanagawa is!"