10 Apr 2003(Thu)

It is a sign of the troubled times at Urawa when the biggest cheer of the afternoon is reserved for a substitute getting off the bench.

But this was the case Sunday at Komaba Stadium when the Reds played host to Nagoya Grampus Eight.

The visitors had controlled most of the match, but the spirits of the home fans were raised when Koji Yamase went on as a sub for the last 17 minutes to replace attacking midfielder Makoto Hasebe.

This was Yamase's first appearance in the J.League since August 17, when he suffered a serious knee injury in the first half of Consadole Sapporo's final first-stage match of the 2002 season at home to Tokyo Verdy.

Despite this injury, Urawa still went ahead with the transfer in the winter, and Yamase seems to be well on course for a full recovery.

This is good news for Urawa and for Japan, as there is no doubt the 21-year-old Yamase is a bright and inventive playmaker. There is still room for him in Japan's Olympic team if he continues to make good progress.

With the Reds in chaos in terms of their overseas players, it is vital they have stability and emerging talent among their Japanese players.

In this aspect, things are looking up, despite the fact they have not won in the league since October 19.

At the back they have Keisuke Tsuboi, who was given a tough time Sunday by the dangerous Brazilian striker Ueslei but always stayed on his feet, the sign of a good defender; in midfield there's Yamase and the industrious Keita Suzuki; while up front, Yuichiro Nagai continues to impress many people, including the Grampus defender Panadic, and Tatsuya Tanaka has great pace and potential.

On the foreign player front, Edmundo walked out on the club toward the end of last month and is now back with Vasco Da Gama; Emerson is not fully fit but still expected to carry the forward line, and the unlucky Australian libero Ned Zelic is nursing a torn left hamstring suffered at the preseason training camp in Australia.

Zelic is hoping to do some work this week in training, and Reds fans will hope he recovers fully as he can be a big asset to the team.

At least Yamase gave the long-suffering Reds fans something to cheer about with his brief appearance Sunday.

ends