<Match Review>
In the previous round, Tokyo lost 2-3 to the top-ranked Vissel Kobe away. In this round, they returned to their home Ajinomoto Stadium to face Yokohama F.Marinos in hopes of a comeback.
Teruhito NAKAGAWA, who will face his former team, was selected as a starting player on the right wing. Takuya AOKI, who made his first starting appearance in the league this season, was placed as an anchor, supporting Kei KOIZUMI and Shuto ABE as inside halves. Kuryu MATSUKI, who just returned from the U-20 World Cup, was placed on the substitute bench.
1stHALF—Diego scores twice to complete comeback
The game starts moving right away. In the first minute of the first half, a fast cross ball is sent into the goal area from the left side. Anderson LOPES, who was in the center, changes the trajectory of the cross ball with a header and scores it in the upper right corner of the goal.
In the 5th minute of the first half, a long ball fell into the penalty area and Matheus YAN jumped in, but his looping shot was saved by Jakub SLOWIK who closed the gap, avoiding any danger.
Tokyo's first big chance came in the 17th minute of the first half. After stealing the ball from the opponent in their own half, they quickly connected and sent the ball into the space behind. Nakagawa flew into the space on the right side and carried the ball into the penalty area with speed. He aimed for the far side and sent a ground pass, but it was cleared by the pressing opponent defender.
In the 20th minute of the first half, Nakagawa carried the ball deep into the opponent's half and passed it to the right space inside the penalty area. Abe made a run and put a ball in the opposite direction in front of the goal, and Watanabe Ryoma took a direct shot. The shot was blocked by a defender, but Watanabe hit the rebound ball again with a direct shot, but the shot went wide to the right of the goal.
The game development where both teams hold the ball and bring it deep into the opponent's territory. The opponent has a pattern when holding the ball, and scenes where the ball is smoothly carried to the penalty area were observed. On the other hand, Tokyo also countered with the propulsion power to quickly move the ball vertically before the opponent's defensive formation was organized, and headed towards the goal without wasting opportunities.
By maintaining intensity without getting impatient, opportunities will come. In the 34th minute of the first half, a pass from Aoki on the right side finds a gap in the middle range. As Nagakawa breaks through the opponent's defensive line, he takes the ball out to the right side of the penalty area and puts in a speedy cross. Diego OLIVEIRA, who had made a near-post run, takes a one-touch shot and the ball is sucked into the bottom right corner of the goal.
When the score becomes even, the strength of both teams increases. Who will take control of the ball? In the intense battle, Tokyo was able to turn their possession into a chance.
In the 44th minute of the first half, Watanabe, who opened on the left side, glanced at the goal and quickly crossed the ball when he saw that the opponent's defense was weak. Diego player headed the ball that fell in front of the goal, and the ball that the opponent goalkeeper reacted to could not be blocked and Tokyo succeeded in a comeback by shaking the net.
Tokyo, who came at once, made a chance with a corner kick in the 45+2 minute of the first half. Shuhei TOKUMOTO put the ball into the near side and Masato MORISHIGE headed it, but unfortunately it bounced off the crossbar. Taira SHIGE followed up on the loose ball, but his one-touch shot was blocked by the opponent's goalkeeper's good defense.
2ndHALF - Continue to fight until the end despite the numerical disadvantage
Tokyo will substitute Kozumi for Kuryu MATSUKI at the beginning of the second half.
In the second half, the opponent pushed us back, but Tokyo also launched a counterattack. In the 7th minute of the second half, we made a quick attack and Yuto NAGATOMO, who received a pass from Nakagawa, created a numerical advantage on the right side and put in a cross ball. Nakagawa headed the cross that came to the far side, but unfortunately it went over the goal.
As time passes, the opponent's possession of the ball increases. In the 17th minute of the second half, a cross ball from the right side was packed by player Anderson LOPES, resulting in an equalizer.
Tokyo, who wanted to regain momentum for a counterattack, had a play where Matsuki player took the ball in the opponent's territory and kept it while carrying the opponent player on his back, which was judged as a rough play by VAR and resulted in a red card. Despite being at a numerical disadvantage, they substituted To player for Aoki player and Perotti player for Diego player in order to turn the flow of the game in their favor. In addition, Adailton player was substituted in the 39th minute to activate the attack.
Despite being one player short, they continued to slide persistently on the ball side, stealing the opponent's ball and creating scoring opportunities. However, in the 44th minute of the second half, they were brought into a situation where they were shaken wide, and they couldn't catch up with the marking in front of the goal, allowing Marcos JUNIOR to score a comeback goal. However, they continued to aim for a tie, and even in the 8 minutes of additional time, they created chances through Adailton's breakthrough and set plays with an aggressive defense, but they couldn't find the net and the game ended as a tie.
Maintaining a fighting attitude even in a numerically disadvantageous situation, we chose to face the opponent instead of retreating and defending. Although we allowed a comeback by conceding a few chances, we continued to fight for 90 minutes while sticking to our own style. We want to grab three points in the next game by clearly demonstrating our "Tokyo way of fighting" and maintaining the same quality of play.
MATCH DETAILS
＜F.C.Tokyo＞
STARTING XI
GK Jakub SLOWIK
DF Yuto NAGATOMO/Masato MORISHIGE/Yasuki KIMOTO/Yuhei TOKUMOTO
MF Kei KOIZUMI (0' Kuryu Matsuki)/Takuya AOKI (28' Keigo Higashi)/Shuto ABE
FW Ryo WATANABE (21' Takaki Tsukagawa)/Diego OLIVEIRA (28' Perotti)/Teruhito NAKAGAWA (39' Adailton)
SUBS
GK Taishi Brandon NOZAWA
DF Henrique TREVISAN
GOAL
First half 34 minutes: Diego OLIVEIRA/First half 44 minutes: Diego OLIVEIRA
<Yokohama F.Marinos>
STARTING Ⅺ
GK Jun ICHIMORI
DF Ken MATSUBARA/Shinnosuke HATANAKA/Eduardo (19th minute of the second half: Takumi KAMIJIMA)/Katsuya NAGATO
MF Kota WATANABE (32nd minute of the second half: Joel chima FUJITA)/Takuya KIDA/Takuma NISHIMURA (19th minute of the second half: Marcos JUNIOR)
FW Yan Matheus (36th minute of the second half: Kota MIZUNUMA)/Anderson LOPES/Elber (36th minute of the second half: Ryo MIYAICHI)
SUBS
GK Powell Obinna OBI
MF Riku YAMANE
GOAL
1st half 1 minute: Anderson LOPES/2nd half 17 minutes: Anderson LOPES/2nd half 44 minutes: Marcos JUNIOR
[Coach Albert PUIG ORTONEDA Press Conference Comments]
Q, please look back on today's game.
At the start of the match, player Shuhei TOKUMOTO slipped and conceded a goal early on. However, the team quickly regrouped and played in a way that clearly surpassed the opponent. They expressed good soccer and were able to launch attacking plays towards the opponent's goal quickly even after regaining possession of the ball. In the first half, we created many clear chances. Therefore, I wish we could have scored not only two goals but also added more goals, such as three or four, during the first half.
And in the second half, Yokohama F.Marinos started to play more aggressively towards a comeback, but I think we also entered the second half in a good shape. However, there was a mistake in our response to a cross ball, resulting in the second goal being scored against us.
I would like to refrain from commenting on this from now on. This is because I will have to comment on parts other than soccer. Our players fought for a tie and victory until the final whistle, and I am proud of that.
Today, we were able to create many chances. However, there is still room for improvement in converting those chances into goals. Additionally, we want to work on improving our response to crosses. Japanese defenders tend to struggle when facing tall opponents in the forward line, and instead of accepting this as a trend, we need to address it and make improvements.
Once again, my team showed a great performance today, playing good soccer. They took care of the ball and expressed a strong determination to score against the opponent's goal. They were also able to move the ball quickly and with a good tempo in the midfield, and their side attacks were functioning well. I hope the team will continue to follow this path and that is exactly what I want to leave behind at this club. This season, I want to continue to stick to this and further improve our skills.
Q: The performance of Takuya AOKI, who entered as the anchor today, was fantastic. How did the coach feel?
A, today's play by player Aoki was really amazing. I expect players who can play like that. I truly appreciate and am satisfied that the players are making efforts every day to improve their level. Right now, the players are adapting to the style they are aiming for, and I am satisfied with that. However, there are players who are struggling to adapt and young players in the growth stage with little experience, so we have to wait for their growth. We suffered last season and have been struggling for the past six months of this season as well, but this suffering must lead to the growth and success of the club in the future, and I believe we must make it happen.
[Player Interview]
<Diego OLIVEIRA player>
Q, how do you look back on the game?
A, it is a very disappointing result. Yokohama F.Marinos is a wonderful team, so we knew it would be a difficult match. It was good until we quickly turned the game around after conceding a goal in the early stages of the first half, but the second half ended up being a disappointing result.
Q, I think it was a good flow until the comeback.
A, even against strong opponents, we had a very good flow in the first half and I think we played good football. There were good parts in today's match, but also some areas that need improvement. We want to make sure to make the necessary adjustments for the next game.
Q, both goals were fantastic.
A, of course, I am happy to have scored a goal, but it is very disappointing that the team couldn't win. I want to contribute to the team's victory by scoring goals in the next match as well.
<Masato MORISHIGE>
Q, how was the defense of Yokohama F.Marinos?
A, I think we were able to defend ourselves well. We were able to target the opponent's center back effectively, and it was clear that they were confused. I think we were able to defend well today.
Q: Did you execute the counterattack multiple times as planned after winning the ball?
A, in order to fully demonstrate our strengths, we prepared for a week and were able to go for the goal in a good manner. I think the difference in being able to score the final goal led to the result.
Q, we were able to turn the game around in the first half.
A, because there were also chances other than that scene, including myself, I couldn't make the decision, which resulted in the outcome.
Q, it was a goal conceded from a cross. What do you think should be improved?
A, we have no choice but to organize one by one. The second goal, we conceded due to a slight misalignment in unity of purpose whether to raise or lower the defensive line. We have no choice but to build up in order to avoid conceding in the same way.
Q, even during the time when we were one player short, we continued to play with the aim of scoring.
A, after all, our strength is our driving force, so we aimed to score goals without falling back and being attacked by the opponent's offense. Of course, we also considered a draw as a possible outcome, but we couldn't show a pathetic appearance in front of our fans and supporters, so I believe we were able to have a courageous battle throughout the 90 minutes.
Q, scenes where the ball was cut in front of the last line were frequently observed.
A, I think the way we play will change with everyone's mindset, so if we lose confidence, we won't be able to play aggressively and a vicious cycle will be created where we keep falling back. The first goal was also scored by Yuto NAGATOMO, who fought for the ball in the air and carried it forward. I believe that we cannot overcome the current difficult period without competing in both attack and defense in the front.
Q: Kuryu Matsuki played with a strong determination. Did you say anything to him after the game?
A, because he is a player with a strong sense of responsibility, I told him that Matsuki's play has nothing to do with today's result. If you have been watching Matsuki's attitude up until now, I don't think anyone can blame him.
Q, before the match, a large banner saying "CAPTAIN 3" was displayed.
A, I was sincerely happy and grateful because they created an atmosphere where I felt motivated to fight for the fans and supporters. Since the Vissel Kobe match in the previous round, they have been giving me such blessings and support, so I felt that I couldn't show a disappointing performance.
<Teruhito NAKAGAWA>
Q, how was the match against Yokohama F.Marinos, your former team?
A, it was a very enjoyable game. We lost the match and had a player sent off, but we were able to create chances and I think we were able to show an exciting game.
Q: It was a unique and tense match where everyone seemed to be aware of Teruhito NAKAGAWA. How did NAKAGAWA feel about the atmosphere?
I think the boos from Yokohama FM fans and supporters contained affection. It was the first match against my former team, filled with various emotions, and I really wanted to win. But honestly, I thought, "They were strong."
Q, I think it was a fantastic first half with a comeback from conceding a goal. Please reflect on the scoring opportunities as well.
A, not only in scoring situations, but also in that area, I knew that space would be created. It was because I was able to hit that spot well that it led to chances and goals. If we could have scored another 1 or 2 goals in the first half, I think the result of the game would have been different. In order to improve in the future, we will need to put even more effort into our play. Diego OLIVEIRA's two goals were scored from good positions. In the past few games, goals haven't been coming in this way, so I hope to build on today's positive aspects and make them count in the next game.
Q, in the second half, do you have the impression that you became passive against Yokohama FM, who stepped up their game?
A, I felt the pressure from the opponent due to what happened. I don't intend to say anything about the decision, but I cannot deny that the momentum changed when a player was sent off.
Q: After a player was sent off, what kind of communication did the team have among the players to switch gears?
A, because the opponent is Yokohama FM, even if we defend by pulling back, we will be broken and concede, so we discussed the timing of pressing against the ball holder. It left an impression that we were beaten by the final quality.
Q, I was impressed by the increased ability to make adjustments in the second half compared to the previous few matches.
I think we were able to emphasize the feeling of being a challenger, but I felt a lightness in the way we conceded goals. We have been conceding goals in a similar way from crosses, so I think we need to make adjustments in marking. Giving away a goal to the opponent within the first minute is a play that should never be done in a home game. However, I think today's game was able to turn around because we were able to switch gears after conceding a goal. I want to express that kind of momentum from the beginning, enhance our unity and sense of family, and meet the expectations of the fans and supporters.
<Takuya AOKI>
Q, it was your first start in a while in the league match. How do you look back on your performance?
A, I counted it myself, but it was my first league start in 11 months. It has been a long time until now, so it is a feeling of finally being able to play in this way.
Q, although they conceded a goal just after the start, the team was effective in their attacks from the side, including a goal by Diego OLIVEIRA.
A, if we concede such a goal early on, we will end up losing games that we could have won. I believe it is important to eliminate such plays. I think we were able to score goals in a good way from quick attacks.
Q, please tell me about the role you were conscious of in the midfield.
A, as a team, we were able to be conscious of playing with a high intensity in the area of the ball. In the first half, it seemed to be progressing in a good direction. Personally, I paid particular attention to communicating with the players in the defensive line and taking care of the opponent's forward and attacking midfielder.
Q: In the second half, there was an impact from the player being sent off, and the score was reversed to 2-3. How did you perceive the flow of the game?
A, I think we had many chances to score additional points, and the simple difference of being able to decide or defend such scenes ended up affecting the game content.
Q, it was a defeat with the same score as the previous match against Vissel Kobe.
A, I think we were able to express our defense with our own aim compared to the Kobe match. Especially in the previous match, it was the impression that the opponent had the ball for a very long time. I think we were able to defend with our own intention more in this match, and although the score is the same, I perceive it as having a different meaning. However, a loss is a loss. I want to work towards winning in these kinds of matches.
