Interesting start of the volume and the shift is to the seniors playing internationally. The real focus is on Akutsu and it really shows how he is quite the outlier. It’s harder to notice with the focus normally being on Ashito, he doesn’t feel like a fundamental player. The best way to describe his play is he has a lot of passion, but the key is how he can control it. That passion is out of control when he sees Ashito doing well. Considering that he has done nothing meanwhile, it was right of Yoshitsune to call him out on it.
I do like that ego of Akutsu is a strength of his. In fact it was mentioned before how like Ashito, Akutsu is a trendecneded player that is unconventional. Fukuda much like with Ashito has full confidence in Akutsu. Now the issue is when he talks down of his teammates accomplishments, that is truly him. But he needs to make results, but for him he doesn’t waver from his playing style. He is an all-or-nothing character that brings a spark. While in practice it could be a lil much, but he can make huge plays in the big moments.
When Yoshitsune, Yamada and Shimura get promoted and finally go pro, they are on the starting line. It’s an interesting debate of going to pro right away or going to college. Fukuda’s point has merit because you could play through university, but to be the best you need to play against the best. No doubt in the game of soccer going pro and being motivated to improve is the better option. Of course you won’t be selected that early unless you have what it takes. It’s more if you can go pro earlier and you have the passion you should absolutely pounce on it.
On the flipside we see Taira announcing his retirement. The real controversy is that he mentions his spirit is broken. How both Akutsu & Ashito react really shows how unconventional they are. Akutsu mentioning why wait a game to retire if you are just going to be on the bench. His mind is very much what can you even contribute?. It makes him a terrible teammate, but he has a point. If you are retiring because your spirit is broken and it’s only one game what is the point of playing that one game on the bench?
On the flipside with Ashito he doesn’t even attend to the announcement that Taira declares it. For him to get declared as a starter he has to put everything into preparation for the game. He has to make the most of this opportunity against Funabashi. Not even seeing his teammate here is bad from a different perspective then what is the case of Akutsu.
The more concerning thing for Ashito is when his mom visits him for this game. Fukuda brings up a very interesting point that while Ashito is starting to really have fun for the first time since joining Esperion. It is a different kind of fun. In high school he could have had a blast with his teammate and enjoyed those games with him. While now his enjoyment of soccer comes from immersing himself in how to improve and he is having fun. It is not easy to say which is more fun for Ashito because the accomplishment of going pro would be outstanding for him. Though it is safe to say that with Esperion there is the risk of him being burned out that wouldn’t be there if he played for his local high school.
For Ashito what is more concerning is how he talks to his mom. He is so immersed in focusing on the next game that he barely pays attention. Hana grills him and he honestly deserves it. It is a reflection of the talk that Ashito had with Hana when he was at his low point because it was just soccer he was consumed with. He could always come back home. Here he is overly consumed with soccer that is ignoring when his family is here.
More so it shows the disconnect between Ashito and Hana. It is proper to be overly concerned to be as consumed by it, but at the same time Ashito priority is improvement. In which he has a golden opportunity. As long as he makes sure to talk to his mom after the game it should be fine. Interesting to see Ashito much like Fukuda and Kuribayashi being consumed by soccer.
