After surprisingly getting a ticket for the Asian Champions League (ACL) Final last year (although technically it was the 2022 final) I really was not expecting to go to another one anytime soon. However, when I noticed that Yokohama F. Marinos had made it to the semi final of this year’s tournament I began to think it was a possibility.

Marinos just about squeezed their way through the semi-final against Korea’s Ulsan Hyundai and so I waited patiently for tickets to go on general sale once all the proper Marinos supporters had presumably aquired their seats for the big game. With a stadium capacity of 72,327, I was never too worried about getting a ticket and didn’t feel as guilty about taking one away from a real fan this time. Having said that, I did plan to buy two tickets and take a friend but only individual seats were available so I just went alone.

Annoyingly for me, my own team Kashiwa Reysol were playing at FC Tokyo at a time when I was still in work but the 7:00 pm start for the ACL final made it possible to attend this one instead so as soon as my last lesson ended I headed to Shin Yokohama station as quickly as possible knowing I’d make it into the stadium with about 25 minutes to spare.

It would’ve been nice to be there a little earlier to savour the pre-match festivities but as it was there wasn’t too much spectacle and atmosphere, and it just seemed like any other Marinos home match with so many others arriving fairly late for this showpiece occasion. One has to assume it was a carnival-like atmosphere earlier that day or maybe it was  because everyone knew it wouldn’t be decided on this particular night.

As is often the case nowadays, particularly big occasions, there was a pre-kick 0ff tifo (choreographed display) which may look amazing for TV viewers but is kind of annoying for me as a fan as I have to hold a piece of coloured plastic sheeting above my head rather than actually watching and applauding the teams as they enter the field. That’s modern-day football though!

Australian managers Ange Postecoglou and Kevin Muscat guided Marinos to J1 League title successes in 2019 and and 2022 respectively but neither were able to take the team  beyond the Round of 16 in the ACL. This year is fellow Aussie Harry Kewell’s first season in management, and whilst he’s struggled in the league, the former Leeds and Liverpool striker has worked wonders in getting Marinos to their first continental final. Their opponents were Al-Ain from the UAE who are managed by former Argentinian international Hernan Crespo.

An entertaining first half began with an early goal on 12 minutes from Al-Ain. That was not in the script and the home faithful were stunned into silence on the half hour mark when a shot went through the legs of the Marinos keeper Popp. Luckily VAR intervened to rule it out for offside and save the day for the Japanese team. Either side of those efforts hitting the back of the net were a series of fine saves from the Al-Ain goalie Eisa who seemed in inspired form and I was already thinking it wouldn’t be Yokohama’s night as the UAE team also looked dangerous on the counter attack.

Midfielder Asahi Uenaka headed home the equaliser on 72 minutes and 12 minutes later things got better. Substitue Kota Watanabe deflected home a chance but celebrations were short-lived as the lineman’s flag immediately went up for offside. The guy in front of me accessed the live coverage of the match on his phone and let everyone around him know that it was actually onside. Expectations went up and moments later the goal was given to wild and rapturous celebrations.

My mind was already turning to the trains for getting home as it’d been a long day but it’s not every day (just every year!!) you get to attend such a final so I hung around for a bit at full time to witness the home crowd’s delight.

This is the final season of having the final as a home and away affair, and I have mixed feelings about this. A two-legged final is quite unique these days and does give fans the chance to pack out their own stadium for one of the games as Marinos did here.  However, a single-match final on neutral territory does allow for a bigger day out, and the match is decided then and there. Asia is a much bigger continent than Europe though, and with the west meeting the east in the final there really is no convenient option for both teams. No doubt money will talk when making that decision!

The atmosphere was great at the stadium on the final whistle but it normally is after a victory, and in a way this didn’t feel too different to any other J-League win. The job is only half done and so it didn’t really feel like a final to me. It’s first blood to the Japanese side though and Kewell is just one draw away from winning new silverware for the club.  There’s a long way to go in more ways than one though as the second leg is 8,000 kilometres away in the UAE in a fortnight and sadly only a small number of Marinos fans will get to experience it.

Final Score: Yokohama F. Marinos (Japan) 2-1 Al-Ain (UAE)

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