(CR) Giant Killing (TV)

[KiNA]

Because they are already tired from the running test before that .. They have about 30 minutes rest at most before that game.

The one touch ban means that the opposite side have to pressurized to win the ball.. Its a very tiring process.. pressuring, back to formation, pressuring .. Tatsumi also bet on the fact that the sub team have their pride and will try to win the ball at all cost. Also if he allow the one touch game from the very beginning, his team will get scared and will lose the ball more easily, but by telling the boys to keep the ball first, he ensure that they are more settled while the other team gets more irritate and tired There's a lot of psychological play involved in his strategy for that single training match.. Something that only possible after he spend his whole night watching the team on the CD.

[Casshern]

Damn, this is awesome. 23 minutes is too short, I just can't get enough of it.

[Saturn Beaver]

Originally Posted by Azuma Denton

What i can't not imagine is, why a bunch of regulars (before they're exhausted) can't make chances of bunch of subtitutes??

In addition to what KiNa has already said, it doesn't seem to suit their playstyle. Since they are more used to facing teams that are stronger than them, they employ a defensive strategy (which is why the kids call it boring), and striking back only when the opposing team makes a mistake through a counter attack. Thus, they are not used to a regular pressuring strategy that is better suited for weaker teams that they rarely face and therefore become ineffective as a whole.

[firehawk12]

Can someone explain the one touch thing? They were only allowed to touch it once before being forced to pass to someone else?

[KiNA]

Yes, basically you receive the ball and immediately distribute it to better positioned teammate. Basically its give and go. No dribbling aka run with the ball.

You need a good team with good passing and awareness to play a quick one touch game, but as Tatsumi said, because the opponent already tired up and cant keep up... they can just pass, chase, and pass again to the other side.

[Saturn Beaver]

Originally Posted by firehawk12

Can someone explain the one touch thing? They were only allowed to touch it once before being forced to pass to someone else?

Basically, yes, they are allowed to touch it once and immediately pass it to someone else the moment they got the ball. By banning them, you can see that when the players got the ball, they control it and dribble for a bit before passing it back again. You need a team with a good passwork and speed to pull it off, which is why Murakoshi is bewildered when he see they aren't doing it.

EDIT: I'm a slow typer, or at least slower than Kina...

[Guardian Enzo]

This is certainly the sleeper of what's shaping up as a very interesting season for me. So far, it's riveting stuff.

[Azuma Denton]

@KiNA and Saturn Beaver
Yeah, thanks for your explanation...

I forgot, they are a bunch of defensive minded players...

[juss]

I don't even like football or sport in general, so I'm a bit of a sports anime n00b, but there's nothing like a good story well told and this episode pushed all of the right buttons for me. I'll definitely be on board for a little while longer.

[KiNA]

Yea.. so far (2 episodes given) it been a nice ride.. The last football anime I watched is Whistle! and I was glued to my screen for the whole series

I downloaded the whole series so didnt have to wait each week

Still, this anime gave a nice challenge.. team so low in morale, broken teamwork and I'm sure theres more problem down the road, so it gave a nice challenge .. the tactic so far been tactically sound as well (well, only 1 match ). I'm watching it to test my tactical skill as well As long as there are enough info, I hope I can deduced each and every match tactic and why it is chosen.

>.< I'm a tactic junkie if you havent realised it yet

[destiny4everlove]

I’m not much of a sports manga/anime fan to be honest but after reading some comments about this anime I decided to give it a try and watch the first episode. To my surprise it was good and I really enjoyed watching.

This is not my first soccer anime; my first ones are Goal Field Hunter and Captain Tsubasa.

Episode 1

The episode was very entertaining and had some pretty good surprise moments like when we find that Tatsumi is the President’s son or like when we find that Tatsumi had been the star of ETU in his younger days or like in the end when we find the reason why he made the players take that run test and how he’ll decide who are the regulars and who the substitutes.

So far my favorite character is Tatsumi. I can’t wait to learn more about him!

Episode 2

What a cool and fun series this one is! I’m enjoying watching GK so much!

This episode made me like Tatsumi even more than before, he is just so awesome! I love his personality, his way of thinking, he is such an interesting character.

I got very excited while watching the game of the regulars vs. the substitutes, just as excited as when I watch a real soccer game.

I figured out what Tatsumi was trying to do even before Murakoshi did, that was such a smart tactic by Tatsumi.

After the conversation between Tatsumi and Murakoshi I have a new respect for Murakoshi and Tatsumi. I’m really interested in seeing how the relationship between Tatsumi and Murakoshi develops, especially because they are not in the best of terms atm and because they are so different from each other.

I so can’t wait to watch the next episode!

[KiNA]

Episode 3 .. Cant say much from the raw .... I only understand half of the dialogue

Spoiler for ep3:

But lol at the fake italian player.. Seems a good playmaker, enforced by the classic #10 as his jersey (they really stucked on Maradonaesque type of player).

But from just a glance.. he picked a very suitable roles for both his teammate for the 3 man match.. The 1st one act as his water carrier.. told to support him when he is in trouble.. and the other are told to be a run like a dog chasing rabbits? Seems a bit arrogant when he called them inu tho (his dogs?)

Anyway, I still need the sub to understand most dialogue, tactic speaking I can guess a bit.. but from the preview for next week.. ETU are playing a 4-5-1 tactic ..but the interesting thing about their formation is that it wasnt symmetrical.. The right side midfielder seems more like a wingback that goes up and down, 1 Playmaker who are also more right sided - make senses .. and the other 2 .. 1 seems to be a pure Defensive midfield and the other a water carrier (or Back 2 Back Midfielder) - you can also see (if you pause a bit) during the episode before the start of the game- the strategy on the tactic sheet in front of Tatsumi

Tokyo Victory (I think I got this one right) play a 4-3-3 formation instead .. but the weird thing is that their DM starts on almost Right wingback as well...

[Tri-ring]

Well this manga/anime is unique since instead of the physical ability of sports, it focuses on the mental part of sports and it gives good insight on how a real strategist thinks on how to make a team tick.


As SunTzu said, know your opponent and know one's self and you will not be in peril of 100 battles.

[Saturn Beaver]

Originally Posted by destiny4everlove

like when we find that Tatsumi is the President’s son

Wait, I thought Yuri (the PR girl) was the President's son? I remember her calling the President's Dad and the vice president Uncle, but I can't remember Tatsumi being his son as well.

Originally Posted by Tri-ring

Well this manga/anime is unique since instead of the physical ability of sports, it focuses on the mental part of sports and it gives good insight on how a real strategist thinks on how to make a team tick.


As SunTzu said, know your opponent and know one's self and you will not be in peril of 100 battles.

Agreed, this is one of the reason why I like this series even more than just any regular soccer manga. I think it's the first I've seen for a soccer manga, or even sport anime to put a large emphasis on the coach and strategies. It doesn't mean that physical skills are not important, but there's a reason why the manager spot is the most risky position for major soccer teams.

[pseudonhym]

This is one of the good anime's of the season. Wonder why only a few are watching it. It reminds me of One Outs when it comes to sports action.

[Kaoru Chujo]

Originally Posted by pseudonhym

This is one of the good anime's of the season. Wonder why only a few are watching it. It reminds me of One Outs when it comes to sports action.

Good comparison. Except that I took an instant dislike to One Outs and its characters, whereas I've taken an instant liking to the story and characters here. Both use an unusual kind of animation and character design that many people may not like (and that isn't necessarily my favorite, either).

For another comparison, I am much more familiar with baseball, and yet this show has done far more for me in its first three episodes than Cross Game did. We'll see how things progress.

By the way, thanks to the people discussing strategy and tactics (formations, etc.). I do watch some football (soccer), but I don't know a lot about the details of the game, so I'm gaining something.

I've noted recently that in the US, some people are using the Spanish word "futbol" to refer to Association Football (i.e., soccer). Seems reasonable to me.

[destiny4everlove]

Originally Posted by Saturn Beaver

Wait, I thought Yuri (the PR girl) was the President's son? I remember her calling the President's Dad and the vice president Uncle, but I can't remember Tatsumi being his son as well.

Well…I’m a bit confused tbh, and I'm still trying to find out if Tatsumi and Yuri are cousins. I know Yuri is the daughter of the barkeeper and the barkeeper is the younger brother of the President, but since Tatsumi called the President “old man” I thought he was his son but I’m not sure anymore...

[Connavar]

Hi guys

This series is a very nice suprise for me who have always loved football. Watch many games on weekends.

I like how the eps so far show its about tactic,coaching side of football. Its about a team and not just some uber talented young player with supernatural abilities.

I dont care about the animation outside how the actual games look. Story,character wise will decide if this anime is a good series or not.


Nice to see many people who know football here. I assumed it would be people who think Soccer like an alien sport like in North America.

[Kaoru Chujo]

Originally Posted by Connavar

...assumed it would be people who think Soccer like an alien sport like in North America.

I can't deny that's basically true, at the professional level. But there is a large minority here that has played the game. Up to age 13, more kids in the US play organized soccer than any other team sport. And there are actually more youth soccer players in Canada than hockey players. And professional soccer is gaining in popularity. The Seattle Sounders had an average attendance of almost 31,000 chanting, scarf-waving fans a game last year. (Team owned by Paul Allen, who was Bill Gates' partner in founding Microsoft.)

[Saturn Beaver]

Originally Posted by destiny4everlove

Well…I’m a bit confused tbh, and I'm still trying to find out if Tatsumi and Yuri are cousins. I know Yuri is the daughter of the barkeeper and the barkeeper is the younger brother of the President, but since Tatsumi called the President “old man” I thought he was his son but I’m not sure anymore...

Well, first of all, Yuri is not the daughter of the barkeeper (younger brother), as in the first episode she clearly called the VP (the one with black haired wig) uncle (ojii-san) and the president with the white hair father (oto-san). In the manga, the translation used is 'old man' at which I first thought that he meant that literally, addressing someone significantly older that him. One of the subs said father too, so it's still possible that Tatsumi is the president's son which would make him Yuri's older brother. There's no direct evidence to contradict this as far as I remember, but it's a bit strange the way they call Tatsumi with his family name if they're his family to begin with. Can anyone who understands Japanese checks the first ep? I can't quite catch what Tatsumi says, but it's clearly not oto-san..