"Seeking 'results' and winning with our own football calmly!"

　The Emperor's Cup 4th Round will be against Vegalta Sendai. In the 3rd Round, the players struggled against Kusatsu's tenacity, but each player fulfilled their respective roles and achieved a solid victory. This match will be played with only 3 days of rest and in a distant location, making it difficult for the players to adjust their condition. However, they want to give their all in the upcoming match and advance to the final through a united effort.

　Sendai, on the other hand, has faced Zweigen Kanazawa in the 2nd round of the Emperor's Cup and Omiya Ardija in the 3rd round, winning both matches in extra time. They are currently in 2nd place in the J2 League. They have already secured promotion to J1 for next season and are expected to come with a strong desire to challenge Tokyo in J1. In particular, coach Jofuku is wary of the attacking lineup centered around forwards Nakahara and Nakajima, midfielder Yan, and Sekiguchi, saying, "They can break through from passing and have sharp counterattacks. They also have fullbacks joining the attack while maintaining ball possession."

　Tokyo has made changes to the lineup since the Kusatsu match. Kanda and Kajiyama returned to the starting lineup, and Suzuki, who had been carefully preparing due to a foot injury, made it in time for this match as well. The key will be how to restrain Sendai's attacking force. Hiramatsu says, "There were some aspects that were half-hearted in the Kusatsu match. First and foremost, we need to prioritize defense and be especially cautious at the start of the game," emphasizing the importance of not conceding the first goal. We want to thoroughly mark and cover without being confused by Sendai's fluid positioning of their attacking force.

　In addition, the key to breaking through Sendai's solid defense, which boasts the fewest goals conceded in the J2 League with a total of 38, lies in how to attack. We will continue to play Tokyo-style soccer, remain calm even in a stalemate, make moves to remove the marks of players like Hanyu and Suzuki, and create chances through attacking participation from the midfield. Without losing to Sendai's momentum, we seek "results" above all and aim for victory with our composed style of soccer! The match started exactly at 1:00 PM with Sendai's kickoff at the Kagawa Prefectural Marugame Athletic Stadium.

Unable to create shooting opportunities, conceding the first goal and ending the first half

　Tokyo, which carefully connects the ball and waits for the timing of the attack, and Sendai, which quickly counterattacks after stealing the ball, faced each other with a strong will to show their strengths. In the 12th minute, Kondo was fouled just outside the box and won a free kick. Suzuki aimed directly at the goal, but the ball went just wide to the right. In the 15th minute, Sendai forward Nakahara received the ball in front of the goal and passed it back to Nakajima, who was behind him while falling down. Nakajima tried to shoot directly at the goal, but Kanda made a save!

　In the 22nd minute, Hiramatsu overlapped with Hirayama on the left side and crossed the ball. Yonemoto picked up the loose ball after it was cleared once and attempted a mid-range shot from outside the left area, but it went left of the goal. In the 24th minute, Mokuhara on the right side sent a low early cross and Hirayama in the center dropped the ball for a direct shot. The ball hit the opponent's defender and Sendai launched a counterattack.

　And then, in the 25th minute, Sendai's DF Sugai allowed a central breakthrough, and FW Nakajima's shot, after receiving a pass in the center, was blocked by Yonehara, but the loose ball was kicked in by FW Nakahara, resulting in a conceded goal. After that, Tokyo calmly tried to attack while passing the ball around, but they couldn't break through the opponents who were defending deep. Even when they carried the ball to the attacking third, they continued to be unable to shoot as it was bounced back. In the end, they remained one goal behind as the first half ended.

Despite attacking relentlessly, they suffered a defeat without scoring any goals.

　From the start of the second half, Nagatomo was substituted for Kondo and played as left midfielder. Hanyu moved to right midfielder, forming a lineup with Hirayama and Suzuki as the two forwards. Shortly after the start of the second half, Nagatomo dribbled deep into the left side and connected a pass to the center, but was unable to take a shot. Despite bringing the ball into the goal area like in the first half, they were unable to shoot due to Sendai's solid defense. On the contrary, they suffered from short counters when losing the ball, creating a vicious cycle of being unable to seize the momentum.

　In the 59th minute, MF Tomita picked up the ball touched by Gonda from a counterattack and passed it to FW Nakajima in the center, who shot. This shot pierced the goal net, allowing an additional point. In the 63rd minute, Hirayama competed with the opposing GK for a cross in front of the goal, and Hayashi picked up the loose ball and scored a goal, but a foul was called for the competition, resulting in no goal. Gradually, due to anxiety, Tokyo's characteristic ball movement was not seen, and mistakes continued. In the 67th minute, Akamine was substituted for Hayashi. Although an attempt was made to activate the front line, the rhythm remained unchanged.

　From around 15 minutes remaining, center-back Bruno QUADROS and Muhara took on the role of left and right SB, while Nagatomo and Nakamura, who came on as substitutes, pushed Sasaki forward to attempt a power play. However, the long balls did not fit well in the forward line, and they were unable to connect them to effective attacks. In the 41st minute, Muhara sent a long ball to the forward line. It was bounced back in front of the goal, but Suzuki picked it up and immediately took a shot, only to be blocked by the opposing defender throwing his body. In stoppage time, they conceded a decisive third goal and all hope was lost. They ended the Emperor's Cup without advancing to the quarterfinals.

　【Player Comment】《Kelly》"I couldn't do what I came here to do. I feel really sorry to Sarri-san, Fuji-san, and all the supporters. Even Naoto-san, who said he would come back on New Year's Day despite being injured... I'm really sorry to lose like this. (We conceded 3 goals?) The way they were scored was bad, and in various aspects, the opponents were running more and we were losing in terms of mentality. (How do we bounce back?) We need to switch to the league matches. With 3 matches remaining, we want to focus on the league matches from the next practice, taking today's reflection into account and do our best. (Couldn't we control the game at our own pace?) There are various factors and there were also many accidents. Since we are a team that has overcome such things, we want to win all the remaining 3 matches and there is still a possibility for the ACL, so we want to do it with all the players."

　"Kanda": "Because it's the Emperor's Cup, the result is everything. When we lose, we lose like this, and when we win, we can win even by defending. Today, I think there was probably something missing to win. (What was missing?) If we had realized during the game, we could have improved more... Throughout the 90 minutes, we couldn't create many chances and we were in a situation where we were often in danger from counterattacks, so we should have done it a little faster... or rather, it would have been better if we had noticed it during the game. (The players changed and we couldn't play our own soccer?) I think that's the reason we lost today. No matter who the opponent is, no matter what kind of players we have, I think we have to play the same soccer and win. From an outsider's perspective, it may be said that it's because the players are different or because there are no national team players or because it's a series of games, but for us, that's just an excuse. In order for us to win the Emperor's Cup, we knew that we would lose national team players, and there were many injured players, and among various things, it was natural for the players who played to do their best. It's said somewhere that we're in a state of complete exhaustion, but it was most important to do what we could with the players we have now and win with the players we have now. It's the most frustrating thing that we couldn't do that. For example, even if a player who is not good at ball circulation plays in the game, that player should have other strengths to be on the field. In order to bring out that person's strengths, the people around them need to cover for them. While playing in a way that takes advantage of the characteristics of the players on the field, I think it is necessary for Tokyo to become stronger by playing our own soccer."

　[Summary of Coach Jofuku's Press Conference] "I did not anticipate holding a press conference at first. It is very disappointing. I believe the players had strong determination for this match, and they also had the mindset of not making excuses for their condition. I think they all tried their best to demonstrate their abilities. The responsibility for the loss lies entirely with me, as it was due to my lack of capability, and the players performed well. What has become clear is that we can only play three matches with this squad. With the collective strength of all the players who are fighting with various emotions in their hearts, we want to continue fighting in the remaining three league matches. *The press conference for the Emperor's Cup is held by the coach of the defeated team first."

　[Summary of Sendai Teguramori's press conference] "The opponent is the champion of the Nabisco Cup, and we are a team that has secured promotion to J1, so we approached the game with the intention of playing a match that is conscious of the J1 league. We also focused on making quick decisions and playing fast-paced soccer, as J1 is known for its fast-paced style of play. Taking the lead and winning 3-0 in a back-and-forth game shows that the way we have been playing in J2 so far has worked today as well. FC Tokyo seemed to lack speed more than we expected, perhaps due to their consecutive matches, which worked in our favor. However, we will not become complacent and will continue to do our best in both the Emperor's Cup and FC Tokyo's matches. We hope to build on today's victory and carry the momentum into the direct confrontation with Cerezo Osaka in the league."