Edogawa Shakes!?

Many were surprised by the unexpected shutout victory with a large margin of 3-0 in the first quarterfinal match against Marinos (Yokohama International). Although there is a difference in the situation between Tokyo, who is in the middle of the league, and Marinos, who has not regained their "game sense" during the league break, the news of a J2 team winning by a large margin against a J1 team with star players like shining stars was certainly "shocking". As a result, in order for Tokyo to advance to the semifinals, they need to keep Marinos within a 2-point difference (in case of a 3-point difference: the game will go into overtime and the winner will be decided by a golden goal, in case of a 4-point difference or more: Marinos will advance to the semifinals) in the second quarterfinal match to be held at Edogawa (Ku Athletics Stadium). The audience gathered to watch this big match reached a total of 5,208 people, and even before the game, the "goal ends" of both teams were engaged in a fierce cheering battle in the stands. There has never been a game with this many spectators at Edogawa, and the venue was filled with an excited atmosphere of tension and intense cheering before the game even started.

Marinos with all their might!

The revengeful Marinos, who suffered a major defeat in the first match (on the 20th), held an unprecedented emergency meeting for 90 minutes the following day and boldly declared that they would adopt a super attacking "unconventional 4-top" formation. Although there is a sense of losing composure, the determination of coach De La Cruz to "come back from a 3-point deficit no matter what" is evident. While a 3-point advantage is a very significant advantage, when weighing the defensive strength of Tokyo without Sandro and the attacking power of Marinos, it cannot be said to be completely safe, and when thinking calmly, it even became somewhat worrisome.

The match went as expected, with Marinos launching a desperate attack from the start. Marinos placed "the young ace striker of the Japanese national team" Castle as the lone striker, with Bauber on the right, "the commanding tower of the Olympic team" Nakamura Shunsuke in the center, and the Korean national team's Ryu Soo-Tae on the left, specializing in attacking. In addition, the right side back Nagayama and the left side back Hato actively participated in the attack, forming an "ultra-attacking formation" to score three goals in 90 minutes to overturn the deficit. However, learning from the first match, they adjusted by moving the Japanese national team's Miura Atsuhiro to defensive midfield to counter Tokyo's counterattacks. Miura Atsuhiro successfully fulfilled his role as the starting point of the attack and effectively prevented Wada and Kaburagi, who had struggled in the first match, from doing their job.

Endure the fierce pursuit of Marinos!

Marinos, with a fierce press that repeatedly fouls in the midfield, steals the ball and creates chances with aggressive dribbles from Bauber on the right and Yanagi on the left. In addition, Nakamura adds accents to the tempo and creates chances with one-two breakthroughs from the center to the post and side attacks with the fullbacks running. On the other hand, Tokyo responds with a combination of Koto and Yamao, who returned from injury and played well in the first game, in place of Sandro, who was suspended due to accumulated warnings, as center backs. The combination with the surrounding players is also not bad, and they calmly deal with Marinos' fierce attacks, but in the 21st minute, they finally break the balance with a skillful goal against the previously perfect castle. With this, only two more points until a tie. Marinos are stepping up their gear even more. Tokyo also occasionally breaks through the center with good rhythm from Almir and Amaral, but they are cut off by Marinos' intense play. Tokyo, who was intimidated by Marinos' determination, drops their line overall and is completely forced into a defensive position, but even Amaral cuts off the opponent's attacks with the defensive line, and they manage to keep the first half to only one goal against with everyone's high defensive awareness and concentration.

Battle against time

With 45 minutes remaining in the second half, if we don't concede two goals here, Tokyo will secure a spot in the semifinal round. However, Marinos' determination has increased even further. Marinos no longer had any pride. In any case, they relentlessly committed intense fouls without hesitation in order to score two more goals. The number of direct free kicks for Tokyo, 33, tells the story. In the 8th minute of the second half, Tokyo was broken through on the left side and Marinos scored from the center again, bringing the score to within one point. 37 minutes remaining. Tokyo responded by moving, even though they conceded a goal, as Koike balanced the midfield and improved the defensive stability and attacking shape after winning the ball. In the 14th minute of the second half, Yukihiko returned from injury. It was a move made in anticipation of Marinos attacking even more in the remaining time, aiming for a counterattack. And it was a brilliant move. In the 21st minute of the second half, as Tokyo attempted a counterattack, Yukihiko was about to break through, but Marinos' defender, Ihara, collided with him head-on. As a result, Ihara was sent off with a red card, and Marinos, now with 10 players, toned down their play. On the other hand, Tokyo, with a numerical and psychological advantage, had more opportunities to attack.

Afterwards, Marinos showed a relentless attack against the Star Corps, but they were able to withstand it without losing focus, thanks to GK Suzuki. The match ended with a score of 2-0. As a result, Marinos won the first and second matches with a total score of 3-2, becoming the only J2 team to advance to the semifinals by defeating J1 teams three times in a row. Next, they will face Kashima Antlers on 9/29 (Away) and 10/6 (Home).

＜Coach Okuma's Comment＞Regardless of the content, we fought well without Sandro. It was significant that the balance improved with Koike's entry. Being able to have a serious match against a J1 team is a big plus for the players, but today's game also revealed some issues. We want to continue to do our best in the next game.