I never imagined that Naohiro ISHIKAWA, who is the same age as me, and I would grow older and end up talking about "that time" again.
The cameraman from "that time" must have felt a surge of tension every time number 18 had the ball in every match. Aligning his thumb with AF-ON, he began tracking the focus. As the shutter clicked, the "’81 model prancing horse" shook the goal net through the viewfinder. This continued almost every match. I still vividly remember the brilliance shown by 28-year-old Nao (Naohiro ISHIKAWA) 16 years ago.
Imagining the person he wanted to become, he kept taking an incredible number of shots. The skill he finally acquired in his 10th professional season abruptly came to a halt after the goal he scored in the 24th minute of the second half during the Sec. 29 J1 League match against Kashiwa Reysol on October 17, 2009. At the moment of the goal, his left knee gave out in pain. Although he had to leave the season midway, he still managed to record an astonishing 18 goals in 32 official matches that season. The footage from that time has continued to play repeatedly on my or someone else's device over the years. It has already been nearly 16 years since then.
In Sec. 29 of the 2025 Meiji Yasuda J1 League against Tokyo Verdy, while Motoki NAGAKURA scored the winning goal to secure victory, Keiin Sato bit his lip. At the 28th minute of the second half with the score at 1-0, Sato picked up speed from slightly left of center, leaving one defender behind, and powerfully swung his right foot. However, the shot missed the target, and he fell backward onto the pitch from the momentum. He slammed both hands on the ground and shouted in frustration.
Nao, who was watching from the stands, said, "Maybe I should tell Kei-in," and then went down to the basement level 1 of Ajinomoto Stadium, where the locker rooms are located.
In the players' waiting area (the space where they wait before entering), Sato spotted Nao and suddenly asked, "How do you get your shots to go in?"
"That was a period when I was struggling because my shots just weren't going in. I happened to be watching some videos when footage of old Tokyo came up, and there was Nao, sharp as ever, scoring tons of goals. Since Nao was right there, I half-jokingly asked him, and that’s how it started."
Nao, who was hesitating whether to give advice, was a bit surprised when he was approached first, but they exchanged a few brief words. "How was it at that moment (the shooting scene)?" he asked in return.
Sato answered, "I was a bit tense, or rather, I really wanted to score." Nodding at that, Nao offered this advice.
"I think it's basically okay that you can carry the ball at that speed. But if you swing your foot in that flow, you'll inevitably lose control of the shot. I think you should shoot by pushing the ball with the foot as it is."
On October 4, in Sec. 33 against Shimizu S-Pulse, Sato's scoring, which had been stopped for over three months, started moving again. At the 31st minute of the second half, with the score at 0-1, he received a pass from Kota TAWARATSUMIDA and carried the ball into the area, then shifted it to the right and powerfully struck the near side. Although it was a little different from the form that Nao had conveyed, the shot, swung without force, shook the net. That dry sound is said to have awakened his dormant scoring sense.
"My body remembers the feeling of the goal I scored in the Shimizu match. Including the words I received from Nao-san, I want to start scoring many goals from here on. Not just this season, but I want to keep improving throughout my soccer career from now on."
There is a phrase that Nao has valued throughout his career: 'Equanimity — a state of mind that is fluid and free from bias.' Even 16 years ago, he scored goals in every match while in that very state. Sato also says he tries to maintain his usual mindset before matches.
"I’m generally able to relax during matches. It might be to distract myself from nervousness, but I try to talk with various people. Many have routines to focus before a game, but I don’t do anything special and just keep things as usual. That’s why I talk with different people."
Opening the interview notes from 16 years ago, they are filled with comments as if he had reached enlightenment, such as "I saw the course," "I understood the trajectory before shooting," and "After that, my body moved on its own," almost every match. When asked if such moments really exist, Sato groaned and moved his mouth, saying, "Well..."
"I think that feeling comes from continuously scoring. I haven't realized it yet, but since it was a goal just as I imagined, maybe I'm starting to grasp that feeling somehow. Perhaps I see it because my mindset is like 'if I shoot, it'll go in,' but I haven't reached that state yet. I believe it's from here on."
Saying that, Sato can be seen at Kodaira Ground practicing his shots every day. Nao also said this.
"The desire to score is not a bad thing. How to shift from 'I want to score' to the feeling of 'It will go in if I shoot' is something you won’t understand without practice. The flow up to that point is good, so now it’s about training and how to find that feeling."
The same-age teammate, now 44 years old, laughed it off self-deprecatingly and revealed the following.
"You said you have the feeling that goals will go in, so I told you, ‘That’s amazing, man. It took me 10 years,’" he said.
This is a strange coincidence. The Meiji Yasuda J1 League Sec. 34 match against Sanfrecce Hiroshima will be held on October 17, exactly 16 years after the day when Nao’s “time” stopped. Holding the baton passed down from his senior, it seems as if the stopped clock is about to start moving again by the player wearing number 16.
"I don't want to be fixated solely on scoring goals, but I want to be the kind of player who, no matter how much pressure we're under, is trusted to score. If I can be that player, I'll naturally become someone who can lead the team to victory. I think that's really the key."
Furthermore, there is something I have continued to tell Sato.
“I’m secretly aiming to be the top scorer in the Emperor's Cup. If we make it to the Final Round, the opportunities will expand. If we win the championship, there’s a chance.”
If he performs well in the Semifinal Round and then the Final Round, the team should naturally be able to seize the title and the trophy. In his own style, Sato boldly declares, “Here it comes. I’m aiming for Emperor's Cup victory and double-digit goals in the league. I’m confident, too.”
Nao said about such Sato, "He's honest," and continued like this.
"It was 16 years ago, but the footage remains. I'm glad to see the attitude and sensitivity to learn from it. For example, even in the footage of when Tokyo won the Emperor's Cup in the past, although the era is different, I think the momentum of the team at that time and some hints remain. I hope more players like that will increase. I don't know what exactly will be inherited, but the club has never won the league title in its history, and it has been 14 seasons since winning the Emperor's Cup. There has been no top scorer either. So, I want more players to develop the feeling that they can carve their names into that history, and I want to build such an organization. I believe one action will surely change history. That passion is what Keito Sato has. That's why he's so Tokyo-like."
I realized from those words that “that time” was not yet over. “I will carve my name into the history of this club.” How many times have I heard that line? The spirit full of determination was the same for someone 16 years ago. The ambition sleeping in blue and red does not stop. Now, the continuation of that day begins once again on the land of Hiroshima.
(Honorifics omitted in the text)
Text by Tadashi BABA (Freelance Writer)
