Inside the Más Monumental stadium, the players who belong to the main squad, recently arrived from training in Hurlingham, have lunch to continue with the second shift in the Núñez gym.
There is already the brand new addition of
River
,
Ichika Egashira
, who at 21 years old dresses in red and white to join a new group, once again.
Together with her teammates, she has already prepared for what will be the first official match of 2024 for the round of 16 of the Federal Cup -this Thursday, February 1 against
Deportivo SOMRA de Escobar
at the Lionel Andrés Messi facility in Ezeiza- and Why not, his debut with the last champion, in the 2022 edition.
“Now I understand the language and the people much more, I got used to lifting weights and putting in a lot of strength in the gym
,” he explains with very specific words and in Spanish that is sometimes difficult to understand.
But Egashira thanks Argentine football for something specific, which in other parts of the world can be frowned upon
.
"I learned how to collide in soccer and to jump so that fouls are called,"
the offensive remarked, in an interview with
Clarín
, regarding an aspect that can be very decisive in this sport and that was not within his style while he played in Japan. .
This is another stage that begins almost from scratch for the first Japanese soccer player to arrive in Argentina and compete in AFA professional tournaments.
The debut was the best:
Egashira scored in one of the preseason friendlies, against SAT
(4-0) and where, in addition, he started.
Not only was he able to survive the culture shock throughout 2023 while playing for
Excursionistas
, but he was part of the great campaign that the Bajo Belgrano club did to save itself from relegation.
He contributed to a change in the team, giving him feelings of motivation, just as he needed it.
According to her now former teammates, she had a very quick understanding when it came to training and playing, something that drew positive attention throughout the female sports environment.
Now, the dreams on her list are becoming fewer and fewer, because she managed to reach none other than River Plate, one of the most important sports institutions in Argentina and the second most important club in women's football, behind Boca Juniors.
A leap from end to end that positions her today as a Millionaire, with other people and another level.
Not only that, but the “practice” of her first year in Latin America could turn her into another citizen, who does not need much time to identify 100% with Argentines.
Photo: Mariana Nedelcu - CLARIN
His adaptation to the great change in his life was very positive from the beginning, despite having survived the nerves and fears of arriving in another nation without company, being his first trip outside of Asia.
But in Argentina he had great experiences such as having parties, experiencing soccer classics and
meeting Lionel Messi
, among many other memorable anecdotes.
There are 18,059 kilometers that separate her from her homeland, but she is increasingly immersed in Argentina and the Buenos Aires routine.
She understands 50% of Spanish, including lunfardo and gestures from this side of the world;
She understands the dynamics of things, she adapted to the organizational changes that so characterize our country.
Of course, the impact of the training and how his body adapted had a lot to do with it, as well as his diet and daily life.
- Is the training very different from that in Japan?
- Yes, quite a bit.
In Japan it is more tactical and we don't use as much weight or force as we do now.
We didn't go to the gym, only 3 kg of weights, but here we lift like 20 hahaha.
- Did you need some time to adapt to the training here?
- Yes, about three months to get used to it.
From last year until now the muscle grew a lot, I had body aches during the adaptation.
The difference in food was a little difficult but I got used to it.
Of course, there was no choice but to accept the demands and obligations required to participate in the Argentine tournament and live on the streets of Buenos Aires.
The desire to play in another country brought with it other details that were not easy to carry out.
But, like everything, he overcame it and today he can be on par with any group.
- Is women's football there better or worse than here?
- It is better, it has a higher level and it is more technical.
The Japanese women play in Europe and important clubs, also like the Japan National Team, which is very important.
-And why didn't you decide to stay?
- In my club (Iga Football Club Kunoichi Mie) I didn't play much, I didn't have filming.
I didn't feel well and I didn't want to be there anymore, I didn't feel like it.
Furthermore, my dream was always to play in another country, especially in South America.
I always thought about Argentina, which is where Messi and Di María were born.
Photo: Mariana Nedelcu - CLARIN
No growth could have advanced without the support of her first colleagues in Excursionistas, the club that opened the doors to her.
Ichika remembers them with great affection and describes them as those who “removed her nerves and fears from the first day” and that thanks to them she learned a lot about their language.
Particularly, she maintained a special bond with
Ivana Macias
,
Macarena Latorre
,
Dana Mujica
and
Rosa Allende
, belonging to the 'Villeras' squad, who hugged her so she felt part of it, shared moments outside the club and welcomed her. to her apartment.
- Did you go out at night here in Buenos Aires with them?
Yes. I didn't go out to clubs, but I went out to eat and to my friends' house where we had parties.
She started at around 8 at night and finished at around 7 in the morning (expresses surprise and laughing), 12 hours of dancing!
I'm not used to it, it's very different.
I ended up tired but I really liked it, I had fun with them.
Among the moments he exchanged outside the fields, he learned about national music and the most popular artists, the kind that is usually heard in the locker room.
She highlighted that she usually chooses "a lot of cumbia and reggaeton" but that in her alone time she takes the opportunity to put on "her headphones and enjoy songs from Japan."
- Do you have a favorite artist from Argentina?
- I really like La Joaqui.
Also Wos, the song “Arrancármelo” by Messi.
I know her a lot from the World Cup.
- Would you like to go to a recital?
- I never went but I would like to.
Here in River they give many shows, I wanted to go to Taylor Swift's (she expresses with disappointment) I would have loved it, I already knew her, obviously.
It is also very difficult to get tickets.
Although the campaign with Excursio was historic, since they managed to get a lot of points to move three places away from the last relegated team, it was not a year of pure enjoyment.
The 21-year-old forward said that she had her moments of uncertainty, sadness and insecurity because of her present.
“More or less halfway through the year, I didn't score as many goals and I didn't perform as I would have liked.
I was very sad and tired, that moment was the most difficult,” she contextualized between the transition between one tournament and another, plus the anguish that she experienced for the first time away from home.
- Did you ever regret choosing Argentina? Did you suffer any kind of rejection from people?
- No, I never backed down from that, I was always sure that I wanted to play here.
I was always very well received by everyone but obviously the girls and the club received me very well.
-And what was the most difficult thing for you about the country?
That everything is very free.
There is a lot of joy and it is fun.
but sometimes they organize poorly and that is difficult for me.
I need you to organize hahaha.
There they organize everything and it is very important but here not so much.
I would like him to be more disciplined sometimes to save time and work better.
- What things do you miss about Japan?
- I miss a lot.
Friends, family, sometimes food, nature and people.
The last time I traveled was in December after the whole year and it was a very beautiful reunion.
- Are you still in contact with your first club?
- Sometimes girls send me messages, but in general I no longer have contact with them, the link was cut.
Photo: Mariana Nedelcu - CLARIN
-When was the first time you thought about Argentina?
- When I was little, because of Messi who saw him play.
But he had no idea about women's football.
I think I once saw the Argentine National Team against Japan but a long time ago.
Of the masculine yes, I am a fan.
I saw the World Cup and it was at the time when I was already arranging everything to come here (he arrived in January 2023).
-How did you experience the consecration in Qatar?
- I remember that it was around three in the morning, I was in the room with my friend and she was sleeping but I was screaming excitedly.
'Please shut up' she told me and I shouted 'but Messi is going to win!', like any other Argentinian.
- You got to see Messi, how was your meeting with him?
- Without words, it was my dream.
I couldn't talk to him because the words didn't come out.
I was with a classmate and she told me “there's Messi, there's Messi!”
and I told him “yes, I know, I saw it!”
So we took out our cell phones quickly.
But you saw there is also a lot of insecurity, there were a lot of people and it was difficult.
But I went down and got there, I asked if we could take an excited photo and I got it.
- Did you know any club in Argentina?
- Newells, for Messi.
He was a Newells fan until I met River.
When I arrived they asked me if I knew the clubs here and since I didn't know what to answer I said that one, the one I knew about through Lionel.
At 21 years old, she is the oldest in the family, she has a sister and a brother, and her parents really miss having her at home, as do her grandparents.
She talks to them almost every day by video call and they never had a problem with the difference being just 12 hours.
“For example, I get up at 7 in the morning and there it is already 7 in the afternoon, all the activities are over and it is easier to communicate
,” she explained.
- Would you like someone from your family to come and accompany you?
-YEAH!
My grandmother now wants to come, but she is like 70 years old.
I want to take them to show them everything, where I live, how I play, the Monumental.
But hey, it's very far, 35 hours by plane.
My grandfather doesn't want me to be playing in another country, he wants me to be close because she misses me.
Although the beginning was very difficult, “the months went by very quickly” and he hardly remembers the first experiences in detail.
Among them, logically, Spanish.
“Before coming she had no idea
,” she says, laughing as she points to her representative, who sat next to her and guided her particularly so that she could learn the basics of the language.
Although her former teammates were the ones who helped her the most, now in River she is more comfortable.
The differences between both institutions caught her attention from day one.
Photo: Mariana Nedelcu - CLARIN
- What impressed you most about River as opposed to Excursionistas?
- The truth is everything is very different.
It has a complete set of clothing, when I arrived they gave me a very large bag and at Excursionistas only a t-shirt.
The stadium is huge and there are many fields.
They also give us breakfast, lunch and snacks, everything.
People are in the pools, there are many things.
It's more professional.
Looking to the future, Ichika already knows the football folklore to represent River Plate, being aware of the confrontation he will have during the tournaments with Boca Juniors, whom he describes as “the most difficult rival”, since in the first tournament with Excursionistas They fell 7 to 0, although in the second they rescued a historic draw against Las Gladiadoras (0-0).
“This year I want to win no matter what. Boca is very different, it has the best players in the country. The truth is it was very hard, we didn't touch the ball in that game
,” the Japanese promised.
He already has experience of the classics.
In the victory against Defensores de Belgrano, the players taught her to live them as they should and even instilled in her the phrase:
“the classics are won
. ”
“The girls uploaded photos and taught me how to write.
These meetings are very important," she said and added that "in the locker room, the week before, the girls were very different and I understood that a classic is something else, we had to win no matter what," with the added bonus that El Dragón finally It was relegated to the second division.
- You are a River fan, how do you feel about having come to play for the club you like the most in Argentina?
- I am very happy, it was my dream to play with this shirt.
I am very proud, I want to share football with the girls and the fans.
I want to jump higher with this club.
One of the positive aspects is the presence of Ignacio Lacal, new coach of the Millonarias, who left Excursio like Ichika, therefore the coach-player relationship is already consolidated.
“It helps me communicate with the girls and the technicians,” he said.
-How do you get along with the group?
- It's a little difficult for me, I'm a little nervous with everything new.
But it's very fun.
In the gym we sing and dance and I love that.
River's great addition, he doesn't think about anything other than the ball...
-If you weren't a player, what would you like to be?
- Very difficult.
Since I started playing football I never thought about anything else.
Maybe I would like to train the little ones, but when I finish my career.
I have nothing like football.
Something that I also like is related to kinesiology, I am quite interested in that world.