Emperor's Cup kicks off, Komazawa University faces off

　The Emperor's Cup of this season has begun. We are approaching the 2nd Round where J teams will appear and compete against Komazawa University. We want to start this new tournament well and gradually climb the path to the final, step by step.

　We are facing the first match of the quarterfinals of the Nabisco Cup just three days after the previous match. During this time, Konno left the team for the activities of the Japanese national team and Kim Young Gwon left for the activities of the South Korean national team. Additionally, Ishikawa and Kanda got injured. In this situation, Coach Shirofuku explained his decision regarding the lineup, saying, "We want to win the Emperor's Cup until the end and we don't want to miss the chance in the Nabisco Cup. It's a decision made in that context." The starting lineup consists of GK Shiota, with Hirayama and Shigematsu as the two forwards. Matsushita and Tanabe form a double pivot in midfield, with Suzuki and Otake on the wings. The center-backs are Morishige and Takahashi. Mokuhara and Hirade will serve as the full-backs on both sides.

　Komadai won the "34th Prime Minister's Cup All Japan University Soccer Tournament" held in July. As a university seed, they earned the right to participate in the Emperor's Cup and advanced to the second round by defeating Tokyo Verdy Youth. Komadai is also a strong team nationwide. In the Kanto University League, they finished the first half of the season in second place after 11 matches, boasting a total of 12 goals scored and 6 goals conceded with a solid defense. Their attack is led by 184cm forward Natusme (4th year), and their vertical fast-paced soccer is their specialty. They have players on the bench who are over 180cm tall, giving them power and strength in set plays. They press from the front line based on their endurance that doesn't drop throughout the 90 minutes, aiming to launch quick short counters.

　Tokyo, on the other hand, wants to take advantage of the gap in the defense line. If they can avoid the press from the Komadai front line and connect their attacks, the duo of Ohata and the Suzukis on the sides should be able to coordinate and launch a diverse attack. They want to break down the defense by repeating this strategy, rather than relying on isolated attempts.

　The players of Komadai have all aimed to "overthrow FC Tokyo" since immediately after winning the Prime Minister's Cup. Their unity and loyalty to the team, typical of university students, are outstanding. It will be difficult for FC Tokyo to play against a university team in the Emperor's Cup for the first time, but they will aim to advance to the 3rd round with Tokyo-style soccer without being on the defensive. The match started at 19:00 with Tokyo's kickoff at the Ajinomoto Stadium, where the heat and humidity still lingered.

In the early stages, we were overwhelmed by the momentum, but we regained our composure and found our rhythm.

　In the early stages, the line dropped against Komadai's long ball. In the 4th minute, Komadai's right cross was punched by Shioda. Komadai MF Kanekubo picked up the loose ball and took a direct shot. In the 9th minute, Tokyo had their left throw-in cleared and Komadai MF Usui took a shot. In the 12th minute, Tokyo's Hirade attacked and Matsushita took a middle shot, but it went over the bar. From there, there were noticeable moments of passing mistakes during the connecting phase even after winning the ball, and the lack of coordination in the front line resulted in conceding counterattacks.

　It was a closely contested match between Komadai and a strong team, with neither team able to score a decisive shot. Gradually settling into a rhythm, Tokyo started to attack with their characteristic passing play. In the 24th minute, Shigematsu took a shot from Suzuki's pass on the left side of the field. In the 29th minute, Takahashi dropped Matsushita's vertical pass, and Otake sent a through pass back into the penalty area, allowing Shigematsu to break through. However, both attempts were blocked by the Komadai goalkeeper. Then, from Suzuki's cross on the right side, Otake found himself free in the left area and struck a volley. It was a clear opportunity, but the shot was blocked by a sliding Komadai defender.

　In the 39th minute, Tanabe dribbled and launched a quick attack, Suzuki and Hirayama combined and Jumatsu entered the right area with a heel pass. Mokuhara followed with a cross. Otake jumped in from the far side, but got entangled with the defender and couldn't finish. Just before the end of the first half, Suzuki dribbled and expanded to the right side. Mokuhara shot from the left area, becoming free after Hirayama collapsed in front of the goal, receiving a pass sent by Mokuhara into the area. This was also a decisive opportunity, but the ball that was struck was blocked by the Komadai defender... Despite creating chances, they were unable to break through Komadai's solid defense and the score remained 0-0 as they entered the second half.

Naotake HANYU returns, Komadai University fights back with Matsushita's free kick and Hirayama's header

　In the second half, Hiraide and Otake were replaced by Tokunaga as a defensive midfielder and Hayu as a left midfielder. Matsumoto played as a left full-back in this formation. Hayu made his comeback since the 8/8 Sec. 17 match and showed speed and great movement, putting pressure on the Komadai goal from the beginning. In the 50th minute, Tokunaga and Hirayama passed the ball inside the Komadai territory, and Mokuhara, who had made a run behind the Komadai defense from Tokunaga's through pass, took a shot but was blocked by the goalkeeper's save. In the 51st minute, Suzuki on the left side passed to Hirayama in the center, who took a shot but it went straight to the goalkeeper.

　In the 53rd minute, Tokunaga's powerful shot resulted in a right corner kick. Hirayama headed Suzuki's kick, but it was caught by the goalkeeper. However, in the 58th minute, Hirayama was fouled just outside the left area and won a free kick. Matsushita aimed directly for the goal and the ball, kicked with his right foot, cleanly found the net on the right side. Goal! Finally, they took the lead by making use of the set piece opportunity.

　However, Komadai also applied intense pressure and sent the ball to the front line, launching a counterattack centered around set plays. In response, Tokyo concentrated on their defense. In the 70th minute, they launched a counterattack from a set play situation by Komadai. Although the pass from Hayashi to Shigematsu in the front line was intercepted, Hayashi quickly sent a left throw-in and Hanyu broke through to the right front line. In the end, he sent a pass to Hirayama running on the opposite side, but it narrowly missed.

　In the 73rd minute immediately after that, Hayashi, who picked up the opponent's defender's clearance on the right side, sent an early cross to the goal. Hirayama scored with a header in response to the pinpoint cross!! He scored the long-awaited additional goal from the flow of the game. In the 78th minute, Maeda, who made his first appearance, was substituted for Suzuki. In the final stages, Komadai also increased the number of players in the front line using player substitutions and launched a power play, but we shut down their counterattack with a calm game. Despite a difficult match, we won 2-0 and advanced to the 3rd round of the Emperor's Cup. In the 3rd round, we will play against Giravanz Kitakyushu.

　【Player Comments】《Hanyu》"Before my return, I wanted to try it out in practice matches and such, but due to the consecutive games situation and my condition being suitable, I ended up participating with limited time. However, I felt the tension in the severe situation of 0-0. Still, I was able to move more than I thought and I think I was able to do my job. (Watching several matches from the outside) Understanding the relationship between the attacker and the receiver, I want to be able to play in a way that is unpleasant for the opponent."《Hirayama》"(Regarding the goal) During practice, I often received crosses from Aoyama. I think that effort paid off. Not only the staff and teammates, but also the people who always support us from the stands, I am happy to be able to respond to them with a goal, and I want to do my best to score in the next match as well. Toho S. has always stuck to their style of soccer. There are also aspects that have been stimulated by tough competitions. In the next Nabisco match, we are in a situation where we have to score, so we want to aggressively and actively move forward."

　[Summary of Coach Jofuku's Press Conference] "Our goal today was to advance to the next round. It was the only and biggest goal, and I'm glad we achieved it. Considering the condition of injured players and the big game on the 8th (second leg of the Nabisco quarterfinals) during the busy summer schedule, we made the last-minute decisions both in terms of the squad and the game plan. We knew that Komadai would come at us with a strong determination, even with just one day of rest. We expected the first half to end in a 0-0 draw. We sent the players out with the confirmation to keep the score at zero even when it doesn't go according to our time and pace, and to score in any way possible in the second half to close out the game."

　From the stands, there were voices like "What are you doing against college students?" However, I believe that the fans and supporters understand the situation we are in and the difficulty of today's match. We didn't panic and thought that we just need to move on when the final whistle blows, and the players played the game with their feet firmly on the ground. (About the players who were substituted in the second half) Tokunaga had some stiffness in his legs and was in a risky condition. We didn't use him as a starter today because we were afraid of a relapse, so we took a cautious approach. Hayu is also recovering from his injury and can be used for up to 45 minutes at most. There is also an intention to get him used to the game, so we used the maximum time today."

　[Summary of Komadai Akita Coach's Press Conference] "It resulted in this way based on our abilities. We feel that if we could have executed our concept a little better, the outcome might have been different. There was a difference in strength. (We were pressing in the first half, right?) We were able to do so in the first half, but in the second half, Tokyo made player substitutions and Hanyu, who has good physicality and can handle long balls, came on. From there, we couldn't win with height, and we were forced to run long distances as the ball was moved around. We felt the difference in strength in how they controlled the ball, positioned themselves, and created space. They were able to exploit the gaps effectively while passing the ball. It would be great if we could also play like that, but we still have few players who can create and see the game as a whole."

　However, since it is an official game rather than a practice match, the professionals also put in their best effort with the goal of winning. I think the players felt things that they couldn't understand just by talking about them. There were various things to notice and learn, such as the speed of a step, the speed of the ball, the accuracy of kicks, and the movements before making a move. (What was lacking to score points?) I think it was a lack of determination to continue without giving up. It is difficult to compete for the ball, pick up a dropped ball, and continue doing so for 90 minutes, and although the players did their best, they lacked the ability to continue for the full 90 minutes. If we continue, since it is a competition, we don't know what will happen. We also thought that we might be able to score goals or seize opportunities."