Akaki Chi no Eleven

Akakichi no Eleven
First edition of the manga 1970 volume 1
Genre	Sports (Football)
Manga
Written by	Ikki Kajiwara
Illustrated by	Mitsuyoshi Sonoda
Published by	Shōnen Gahōsha
Demographic	Shōnen
Magazine	Shōnen King
Original run	1968 – 1971
Volumes	21
Anime television series
Directed by	Takeshi Yamada Nobuhiro Okasako
Studio	Tokyo TV Doga
Original network	Nippon Television
Original run	April 13, 1970 – April 5, 1971
Episodes	52

Akakichi no Eleven (赤き血のイレブン^?, Akakichi no Irebun, literally "Red-Blooded Eleven") is manga series written by Ikki Kajiwara with drawings by Mitsuyoshi Sonoda. An anime adaption directed by Ken Yamada and produced by Kimio Ikeda, Hiroshi Mishima and Takahashi Noboyuki for Tokyo TV Doga aired between 1970 and 1971, which consists of 52 episodes lasting about 24 minutes. The series aired in Japan on Nippon Television from 13 April 1970 to 5 April 1971, every Monday. In Italy it was broadcast for the first time in 1982, through local TV stations. Other transmissions aired on Super 3, Naples Channel 21 and TMC, with a different assembly of the opening theme and the end, and was better known by the title "ARRIVANO I SUPERBOYS". It is the first anime dedicated to soccer. It gained popularity among male soccer players at the time. In addition, it has been pointed out that the emphasis on spirit theory, technology commentary and had been neglected.

In the new neighborhoods that sprung up in the countryside on the outskirts of Tokyo is Shinsei High School. Among the students is the young and restless Shingo Tamai, a first year student. At the beginning of the school year he presents the new coach of the soccer team, Tenpei Matsuki, whom was also a former goalkeeper of the Japanese national football and bronze medal winner at the Olympic Games in Mexico. Matsuki intends to build a team that can compete at the highest levels. His intense workouts originally seems too much for many members of the team, including Shingo. He decides to boycott the team's "official" Matsuki team and creates his own. After a first victory, he is always defeated by that of Matsuki, which begins to be seen by Shingo as an invincible enemy. Subsequently, the two will be able to clarify their conflicting relationship and Shingo will eventually become the captain of the only school team coached by Matsuki.