World Champions, Real Madrid vs Dream Match

　Finally, the day has come. The dream preseason match "Suntory Dream Match Supported by GTF Greater Tokyo Festival 2003" between FC Tokyo and Real Madrid (hereinafter referred to as Real). Real, the reigning champion of the Toyota Cup last year, is truly a dream team with representatives from various countries. This is the first match against a Japanese club team and it is a highly anticipated match that attracts attention even from non-supporters. Although it is a friendly match, it is a big challenge for FC Tokyo. They will face this match head-on.

　Tokyo, Amaral, who was selected for the U-22 Olympic representative team's Egypt expedition, Ishikawa, Suzuki, Tokunaga, and the J-League All-Star Soccer, will be absent due to injury. The starting lineup consists of GK Doi, DF Kaji, Fujiyama, Shigeno, and Kanazawa from the right. In the midfield, Miura and Miyazawa. Toda on the right MF, Baba on the left MF. Kelly in the center, and Abe in the front line. On the other hand, Real Madrid will be without MF Zidane due to injury. The starting lineup consists of GK Cesar, DF Salgado, Ruben, Helguera, and Bravo from the right. Makélélé in the defensive midfield. Beckham on the right MF, Solari on the left, and Figo as the attacking midfielder. Raul and Portillo as the two forwards. The match kicked off at the Japan National Stadium, which was filled with 54,268 spectators despite the rain that started in the evening.

Without hesitation, surpass Real Madrid

　Tokyo was the first to create a chance from the start. In the 3rd minute, Abe received a long side change pass from Miyazawa on the left side and returned it to Kanazawa, and Miura took a middle shot. He took the first shot of the day. Then, after making the opponent's goal kick my ball, Abe attempted to break through in the penalty area and won a corner kick. In the 4th minute, Miyazawa crossed from a short corner kick, and Shigeki headed the ball on the far side. In the 6th minute, Miyazawa took a long shot. We firmly pressed from the front line and quickly switched from defense to attack, threatening a real goal.

　Real Madrid, who started the game, had slow movements and poor coordination, resulting in disconnected passes. However, in the 7th minute, Raul perfectly headed Figo's free kick into the goal. The ball, with a floating trajectory, was saved by Doi with one hand, but it showed the danger of converting one chance into a goal. However, Tokyo took the initiative with an aggressive attitude. They persistently stole the ball and quickly launched attacks. In the 8th minute, Baba dribbled from the left to the center and was fouled by Beckham from behind, resulting in a yellow card. Miyazawa directly aimed for the free kick obtained from this, but it was blocked by the wall. In the 10th minute, Kelly intercepted Real Madrid's feed and took a looping shot. With Fujiyama leading the way with daring interceptions, Kelly's ball control, and the passes from Miyazawa and Baba, they created a rhythm and did not allow Real Madrid to create any real chances.

　In the 18th minute, Beckham aims for the goal with a free kick from around 20 meters in front of the goal, but Doi makes a nice save. In the 20th minute, Baba competes with the opponent's defender after intercepting Shigetoshi's pass, and Miyazawa picks up the loose ball and takes a powerful middle shot. Unfortunately, it hits the defender and goes out for a corner kick. In the 24th minute, Abe passes to Kelly on the left side. Toda tries to connect with a minus cross in the center, but the defender cuts it off. In the 30th minute, Kaji overlaps and sends a ground pass to Toda in front of the goal. However, Toda's shot goes over the bar, missing a great chance to take the lead. In the 31st minute, Miyazawa picks up a loose ball near the center circle and makes a long pass. Toda, who has escaped behind the defense line, shoots directly from the ball from behind, but the ball floats.

Impressive play in both attack and defense, but conceded a goal from Beckham's free kick

　Tokyo created a series of big chances, but if they let this opportunity slip, the momentum will shift to Real. In the 32nd minute, Figo dribbled through Tokyo's defense and passed to Raul with one touch, who then made a through pass in front of the goal. Portillo broke through the defense. Although Doi made a brave dive to prevent a shot, Figo -> Raul -> Portillo created a decisive scene with two passes. Additionally, due to the dedicated work of the defensive midfielder Makelele, Tokyo started losing the ball more frequently in the midfield. In the 34th minute, Solari headed Beckham's free kick from the right side. Elgerra aimed for the rebound from Doi's fine save, but it was cut off by Tokyo's defense.

　However, in the 37th minute, Akaji fouled Solari as he tried to receive a through pass in front of the goal, resulting in a free kick. Beckham took the free kick from the left corner of the penalty area, bypassing the wall on the right side and scoring a goal. Doi couldn't reach it, and they conceded the first goal. With this, Real Madrid gained momentum and gradually dominated the midfield. From brilliant passing plays, Raul and Figo alternately sent decisive passes to the front line. Then, in the 44th minute just before the end of the first half, Figo dribbled up after stealing the ball inside the Tokyo team's territory, received a return pass from Raul, and delivered a sharp through pass from the right side of the area to the center. Portillo's shot from close range was initially blocked by Doi's fine save, but Solari, who followed up, scored a shot from an angleless position to add another goal. Tokyo now faced a 2-goal deficit.

　In the second half, Tokyo substituted Abe for Chang (=Wu). Real made a quick substitution of 4 players, with Ronaldo, Cambiasso, Roberto Carlos, and Pabon coming in. In the 47th minute, Kanazawa picked up a loose ball in the midfield, dribbled past the Real defenders, and took a shot from just outside the box. Unfortunately, it missed just wide of the top right corner. In the 48th minute, Miyazawa attempted a goal from a left free kick. Tokyo showed an evenly matched performance in the beginning, but Real changed Figo to the right side and Beckham to a position in the double pivot. With calm and composed movements, they dominated the game with quick passing.

Despite conceding 3 goals against the world, they fought bravely for 90 minutes

　In the 58th minute, a vertical pass from Beckham to Ronaldo was successful. Ronaldo quickly sent the ball to the front of the goal, and Raul, who was free between Tokyo's defenders, took a shot. In the 59th minute, Figo was fouled on the right side of the penalty area, and quickly restarted the play. Raul scored a header from the resulting free kick. Both attempts narrowly missed the goal, and Tokyo escaped a dangerous situation. In the 60th minute, Miyazawa boldly attempted a shot from outside the box, but it was saved by the goalkeeper. In the 61st minute, a pass from Baba on the right side found Kelly, who had run into the penalty area, but the cross he sent inside was intercepted by a defender. In the 63rd minute, Kajiyama was substituted for Miyazawa. Immediately after that, a series of passes led to Kelly dribbling from the right side. He went around Toda, who was in front of the goal, and took a shot from a free position. However, the ball narrowly missed to the left, and a close chance was missed.

　Real Madrid passed the ball from Beckham on the right side to Ronaldo at 65 minutes. Raul finished with a flowing one-touch pass in front of the goal, but Doi escaped with a corner kick. In the 68th minute, Ronaldo received a fast and strong vertical pass from Cambiasso and shot inside the penalty area while being pressed by Shigetani. The ball crossed the goal and hit the right post. Immediately after that, Raul passed vertically to Ronaldo again from Cambiasso. Ronaldo evaded the Tokyo DF and passed through to Raul who had run up freely in front of the goal. The wave-like attack was offside, and Tokyo desperately defended against the repeated threats.

　Tokyo made substitutions in the 70th minute, replacing Miura with Asari, and in the 72nd minute, replacing Toda with Yusuke Kondo. Yusuke Kondo was positioned on the right, with Kajiyama, Chan, and Asari in the midfield, aiming for a counterattack. In the 78th minute, Yusuke Kondo dribbled from the right side and sent a pass to the left side of the box, where Kelly took a shot. However, the shot missed the goal by a wide margin. In the 84th minute, Fukuda replaced Baba. Everyone chased the ball well and hoped for a goal, but they couldn't create a decisive goal-scoring opportunity. In the 85th minute, Real Madrid passed the ball around the field and El Higera passed it to the front line. Ronaldo entered into a shooting motion with intricate footwork, but the Tokyo defenders intercepted. Then, in the 86th minute, they intercepted Tokyo's attacking ball and passed it to Ronaldo in the front line with a single pass. Ronaldo faced off against Mochida in a one-on-one situation and made a final pass to the center. Solari trapped the ball, but Doi came out and caught it. However, in the 88th minute, Ronaldo received a pass on the left corner of the penalty area and took a shot, drawing a trajectory like an arrow and scoring a goal to the right of the goal. With a world-class play, he elicited a sigh from the stands and sealed the victory. Tokyo continued to challenge for a goal without giving up, including the 2 minutes of stoppage time. However, the time was up. They suffered a 0-3 defeat. However, this experience of competing against the world will undoubtedly lead to the next step. It should be noted that Kanazawa received the Outstanding Player Award.

《Mobata》"As we adjusted the defensive line, fatigue gradually set in for the defenders, but I think we were compact and perfect until the 30th minute of the first half. I didn't want to retreat. If it weren't for Beckham's free kick, we wouldn't have known the outcome until the end. Personally, I wanted to feel the difference in one-on-one situations with the world's best. However, the opponents focused on team play and often passed the ball. When I faced Ronaldo, I gestured with my hand to 'come on!' but it ended without a shot. That was disappointing."

[Summary of Manager's Press Conference] "We wanted to make the Real Madrid players take us seriously. We have better condition throughout the season, so we were proactive from the start. If we are afraid and retreat against world-class players, we will be defeated, and it's not interesting to just defend all the time. In the first half, as planned, we pressed from the front even if we were passed around a bit, and we were able to make some good passes to penetrate behind the opponent. If we had scored there, it would have been even more interesting, and if Beckham's free kick hadn't happened, the game might have taken a different turn. However, we conceded the first goal and allowed an additional goal just before the end of the first half, which was unfortunate. But even in the second half, while using young players, I think we were able to compete against the most famous club in the world until the end. I am very happy to have been given this opportunity, and I think it will be beneficial for both me personally and the team in the future. His world-class plays that he shows in various places are truly amazing, and it was a great learning experience to actually compete against him on the field, which I usually watch on TV. I wanted to score first if possible, and I wanted to score a goal, but I think we played well until the end as a game."

[Summary of Real Madrid Coach Carlos's Press Conference] "For Real Madrid, it was a very good game, a game with good content. We faced the expected problems, but we were able to raise our rhythm and deal with them ourselves. We were able to adjust and progress with what we have been trying to do for a while in this game. In the first half, there were pitch conditions and rain, but as time passed, we were able to control them ourselves and organize. After that, we focused on how to improve the accuracy and execution of the tactics we had planned. As a result, it led to the opening goal. I sincerely thank FC Tokyo. They are a very competitive team with a strong mentality, aiming for goals boldly."

【Real Madrid Player Comments】《Raul》"I think the audience was satisfied. We worked hard and fought for the full 90 minutes. The player from FC Tokyo who left an impression on me was Kelly. We were cautious of him and had some dangerous encounters. There were a couple of others as well, but unfortunately, I don't remember their jersey numbers. I think they were fast players."《Ronaldo》"Today's match was important for us. FC Tokyo marked us well and pressed us. But gradually they seemed to get tired, and spaces opened up on both sides, allowing us to attack. We were able to score goals that satisfied the fans by taking advantage of the chances given to us. Among the FC Tokyo players, the Brazilian player (Kelly) left an impression. I didn't know him in Brazil, but I thought he was a high-quality player after playing against him."《Elgera》"We scored two goals at the end of the first half, but we didn't perform well in the first half. We are normally an attacking team, but I think we were able to show that in the second half. Scoring three goals means we played an attacking game. Regarding FC Tokyo, I agree with Ronaldo and Raul, but rather than individual players, they were a good team as a whole."