Shoot! Goal to the Future

Enjoyment
Overall the story will make one root for the characters and hope the team will win. One of the rare anime series, which I had no expectations. But ended up rooting and getting curious how the characters overcome their struggles.

Shoot! Goal to the Future! is one time watch for me. To me animes with slice of life are more rewatchable, such as K-ON!, Shin Chan, Classic Sailor Moon.

If there is a sequel or more of Shoot! Goal to the Future! I will definitely want to watch it!

Story
First episodes is getting to know more about the main character. Most of the time 1 or two episodes ... finishes a story and you will know more about the characters (main/side)
Sometimes one might get confused whether an episode has been skipped… but that was not the case. Once a story is finished, the next episode could start with different story focussing on another character.
I don’t think there were plot holes or things left unanswered. One could question whether the ending is satisfying based on the match result. Upon finishing there is no urge to have season 2 ASAP, but it would be nice to see continuation!

Art
The art style is average in general. Nothing special, but still unique that it won’t be confused with other soccer anime, such as Inazuma Eleven, Blue Lock etc.
The character designs are pretty safe, you got the smart look, the more aggressive, the common protagonist. The chance is high there will be at least one character that will be likeable and distinct enough with his own story!

Sound
I watched the series with Cantonese (Chinese) dub. The voice acting is decent. If you watched more anime with Cantodub… you will definitely link that voice to another anime character. Yet, after a while a new link is established with the help of the background music and art style.
The OST is average, but does its work as the BGM matches well with the atmosphere. The opening song is catchy and might be worth to keep listening from time to time. The fast paced and blood boiling (positive way) track that keeps one in high spirits!

Character

The three main characters (blue (ML), red, gray (glasses) were mostly fleshed out and had their story told.
You will also learn a bit more about the trainer and antagonist.
Other supporting characters has a few small bits and pieces to at least know what their here for.
In the future I will mostly remember the main trio… antagonist character design reminds me of Nagisa (Free!)

Similar series with elements containing character overcoming their hardships and making one cheer for the team.
Re-main, Free! (First 2 seasons only), Eyshield 21, Clean Freak! Aoyama-kun

It was expected to be better than that, especially with the new modern techniques. The animation during the matches is not good, also the story is not the best. However, there are few episodes which are very good, such as: 2, 9 and 13.
The best thing in it is that, the old charachters appear with the new generation, although two of them were just secondary.
There are also some OSTs which are very nice. I do not know if the others will enjoy it, but I did not stop watching it despite many weak points which I found, and also I am willing to see the ... two opposite/friend characters playing in one team.

I had high hopes for this anime. I loved the original Aoki Densetsu Shoot and I was hoping for similar vibes from this one. Long story short, this anime is visually ok, though it seems cheap and the football matches scenes are a far cry to the original's. Also, the core of the plot is classic (turning a losing team into a winning team) but in terms of pace, storyline and characters this anime completely sucks.

It's obvious that whoever created and produced this anime had not seen the original. Even the way they are trying to address friendship as the source of football joy ... is ridiculous. The original anime was centered around the love for football, friendship and even romantic love, all in a very natural way. It had a captivating magic that is touching even after 28 years. In the 2022 spin off, it's so forced and cheesy that it makes me want to stop watching anime and playing football.

Plus, why almost everyone in this anime behaves like a perv? I was looking forward to Toshi making his cameo and when he appeared it was competely cringe (the way he talked and behaved. It was almost he, a man in his 30s, was hitting on a highschool boy).

The only good thing I can find is the element of support by teammates that I person needs (even Messi had a hard time with the Argentine football team due to lack of support by the team and the public). Also, I can totally relate to that. I was a very good amateur football player until my early 20s. Mid-20s and I stopped playing so well, could not score, etc. My teammates were talking bad and it made me even more anxious and unable to score. It's very important to have teammates that are willing to support you during a bad period. I only started becoming better when I found people that would not start shouting at me for losing a shot. But this moral element is not enough to even save face for this anime.