Chasing two hares is not easy for top dogs
May 13, 2008: A few seasons ago, Takeshi Okada described how difficult it was for a team to win both the J.League championship and the AFC Champions League in the same year.
It was like a dog chasing two hares, Okada said, during his time as manager of Yokohama F Marinos.
One hare was running in one direction, the other hare was going in the opposite direction, and the dog was in the middle, having to choose the juiciest prize.
Urawa Reds discovered this last season. After catching one hare, namely the AFC Champions League, they set off in pursuit of the J.League title, only to run out of steam and come up just short.
Now, the team that benefited from Urawa's late collapse last term, Kashima Antlers, are feeling the heat themselves.
The J.League top dogs in 2007 have fallen eight points off the pace as they attempt to book their place in the last eight of the AFC Champions League.
Gamba Osaka have already made it, joining Reds in the hat for the quarter-finals, and Antlers are well on course but must clear one more hurdle -- meaning they still need to win their last game, in Vietnam, to hold off Beijing Guoan.
Having beaten Nam Dinh 6-0 at home, it would be a major surprise if they failed to collect three points again, but, nevertheless, they must still go away and win the May 21 match to be safe.
After a recent draw against Omiya Ardija at NACK5 Stadium, Kashima manager Oswaldo Oliviera said ideally he needed two teams to cope with such a demanding schedule.
The travel, the difference in climate and conditions...and then a hungry J1 team waiting for them on their return to Japan.
This was another major factor in the fight on two fronts, Oswaldo stressed, as the J1 team had more time to prepare and focus only on the J.League fixture.
Oswaldo was not making excuses, though, Far from it. He was just elaborating on the Okada theory of trying to catch two hares at the same time.
If Antlers can follow Gamba into the last eight -- giving Japan three teams in the quarter-finals and a chance of three in the last four as they cannot be drawn against each other -- then at least they have time to regroup.
Which hare will Oswaldo try and catch then?
ends
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