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Nagoya Grampus -- Preseason Summary
For nearly as long as the J.League has been in existence, Nagoya Grampus has been baffling those who try to predict the team's performance. But last season, for the first time since the Rising Sun News issued its first prognostication back in 1998, we actually managed to hit the target dead on. Grampus finished eleventh, bulls-eyeing our forecast of 10th-12th place. Although this is historic in the sense that it was the first time we ever managed to analyze the Red Whales accurately, though one has to admit that it partly reflects how much lower the expectations for the team have fallen in recent years.
Although Grampus does have a number of talented young prospects, none of them have emerged with the sort of talent and leadership qualities required to carry the team very far above mid-table. The only player who showed signs of possibly maturing into such a role -- Keisuke Honda -- bid Nagoya (and Japan) farewell in January and jetted off to Holland. Former coach Sef Vergoossen apparently smoothed the path for this move, and though Honda finds himself at the extremely low end of the ladder, in the form of strugglers VVV Venlo, this appears to be just a stepping stone to a larger club (posssibly Vergoosen's PSV Eindhoven) next season.
The return of Dragan Stojkovic to the club, as the new head coach, se4ems to hearken back to a more competitive era in the team's history. But Pixy will have his work cut out for him if he hoppes to revisit even the modest successes the team achieved when he was a player. At the moment, Grampus seems to exude mediocrity, and though the addition of Magnum Tavares to fill the hole left by Honda should ensure slightly better service to ace striker Frode Johnsen, we cant picture the team moving very far above mid-table with the current personnel.
Of the acquisitions that Grampus made in the off-season, the most promising contributors (apart from Magnum) are veteran defender Takashi Miki, who should add some depth and experience to the back line, and Masaki Fukai, who may be able to generate some energy and intensity in the heart of the attacking midfield. Fukai has quite a bit in common with his new head coach -- a small yet fiercely combative player with sudden speed, dribbling skill and boundless energy. We will be particularly interested to see whether Stojkovic has a role for him in the starting lineup. However, Fukai's diminutive shoulders are surely not broad enough to carry the team far without a lot more support than Grampus can offer at the moment. The emotional boost of having Pixy back in the fold may allow the team to punch above their weight class, but even if they do, that still will leave them two or three giant steps below the championship contenders.
2007 Finish: 11th Place
2008 Forecast: 9th-11th Place
Roster Changes
IN |
| Pos. | Name | Former Team | Status |
|---|
| Mgr | Dragan Stojkovic | Red Star Belgrade | New coach |
| FW | Masaki Fukai | Kashima Antlers | 1-yr rental |
| MF | Masaya Sato | Hamana HS | New signing |
| MF | Sho Hanai | Grampus Youth | New signing |
| MF | Magnum Tavares | Kawasaki Frontale | Full transfer |
| DF | Takashi Miki | Oita Trinita | Full transfer |
| DF | Milos Bajalica | | Red Star Belgrade | Full transfer |
| GK | Koji Nishimura | Kyoto Sanga | Full transfer |
OUT |
| Pos. | Name | New Team | Status |
|---|
| Mgr | Vergoosen | PSV Eindhoven | Resigned |
| FW | Sho Kamogawa | --- | Released |
| FW | Yohei Toyota | Montedio Yamagata | 1-yr rental (extended) |
| MF | Shingo Wada | --- | Released |
| MF | Kim Seo-Woo | --- | Released |
| MF | Keisuke Honda | VVV Venlo | Full transfer |
| MF | Shunichi Nakajima | Ryukyu FC | Full transfer |
| DF | Malek Spilar | --- | Released |
| MF | Yusuke Sudo | Yokohama FC | 1-yr rental |
| DF | Seiji Kaneko | Kashima Antlers | Rental term ends |
| GK | Ryo Kushino | JEF United | Rental term ends |
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