Taiki Hirato’s thunderous shot from outside the penalty box buried itself into the upper-right corner of the net, and for a moment it was as though the last four months had never taken place and all was normal in Japanese sport.
But the Machida Zelvia striker’s third-minute goal against Tokyo Verdy was celebrated only by some shouts on the pitch and some scattered applause from the sideline, and Hirato himself refrained from hugging his joyous manager Ranko Popovic as he exchanged forearm bumps with his teammates.
"I didn’t have any special thoughts in mind, I just celebrated naturally," said Hirato, who is in his fourth season with Machida. "I wanted to shoot if I had a chance on goal, I saw a path for the ball and I took the shot."