Temperature 34.5℃!

The third match of the season against Kofu was held at Nirasaki Chuo Park Athletics Stadium in the scorching heat of 34.5℃, resembling midsummer. According to Kofu officials, it was considered a "cool" day, but the heat that cannot be experienced in Tokyo at this time of year was a concern for the Tokyo Eleven in terms of its impact on their physical stamina. Furthermore, the location of the match venue, described as a "stadium surrounded by mountains with a seating capacity of about 2,000 people (all grass seats in the goal end and back stands!)," made us truly feel like we were playing "away." Despite the "harsh conditions" of a weekday 2:00 PM kickoff in Nirasaki, approximately 100 fans from Tokyo came to support us. With no shade to shield them from the intense sunlight, they supported us with strong and energetic cheers in the same harsh environment as the players, and we couldn't afford to lose in front of such dedicated fans.

Only scored one point in the first half (?)

When the match started, Tokyo immediately launched a fierce attack. Tokyo's ace Amaral, who was absent in the previous match due to accumulated warnings, showed stable post-play in a vigorous movement as if to vent his frustration. In addition to Amaral, Almir, who showed an aggressive post-play in the front line, Okamoto, who persistently aimed for the back of the opponent's defense with a forceful rush, and Yukihiko, who made sharp dribbles and crosses from the right side, were involved in the "attacking midfield" and overwhelmed Kofu. In particular, Okamoto, who started in two consecutive matches from the previous match, chased after long passes from the back with abundant physical strength and exerted his "strength" to put pressure on the opponent's defense. In the 20th minute, he broke through with a vertical pass from his teammate's defense and created a scoring opportunity. On the other hand, Kofu occasionally took advantage of Tokyo's mistakes to steal the ball and aimed for a simple "one-shot" by running behind Tokyo's defense with the speed of Hori, Yoshida, and Oshiba. However, they failed to create scoring opportunities by making inaccurate passes at crucial moments despite getting into good positions. Although they seemed to be able to get behind Tokyo's defense several times, they could not overcome the "last wall" of Komine and Sandro.

Tokyo took the lead. In the 27th minute, Almir broke through the right side and centered the ball. Amaral took a shot, but it hit the opponent's defender and the ball floated to Yukihiro in the center, who took a direct shot. Although the shot didn't have much power, it had a good trajectory and was sucked into the bottom left corner of the goal. Tokyo continued to dominate the ball with a 70-80% possession rate, but their attacks lacked intensity and seemed complacent with their one-goal lead against a defensive-minded Kofu. They were unable to score an additional goal and ended the first half.

Suddenly reversed and in a difficult situation

In the first half, Tokyo, who had been worried about the heat, maintained their energy throughout the game. Even in the second half, Tokyo continued to dominate the match. In the 48th minute, Amoroso's volley, followed by Okamoto in the 49th minute and Almir's diving header in the 52nd minute, Tokyo had consecutive scoring opportunities but couldn't manage to score an additional goal. In the 59th minute, Tokyo, who had shifted their focus to the attack from a corner kick, faced a counterattack from Kofu. Kofu took advantage of a momentary lapse in Tokyo's defense caused by a foul, quickly restarted the game from the left side, advanced towards the halfway line, and made a perfect through pass to the center. Kofu's forward Hori reacted sharply, leaving behind Tokyo's defender Komine who had been marking him, and calmly scored the equalizing goal, shaking off Komine's desperate pursuit. With this momentum, Kofu scored again in the 60th minute. They intercepted a misplaced pass from Tokyo in the midfield, quickly shifted to the right, and easily crossed the ball. Forward Yoshida dived and spectacularly scored the go-ahead goal with his head.

Four goals in a furious 15 minutes remaining!

Tokyo, which was reversed in an instant, moves here. In place of Okamoto, whose physical condition has dropped due to fatigue, speedy forward Kagamiki is brought in. Kagamiki shows fierce chasing from the front line and brings energy back to Tokyo. The game becomes a back and forth battle, with Amarao's aggressive charge and Kofu's sharp movements and ball control threatening the goal. The game changed in the 75th minute when Fujiyama broke through the left side with persistent dribbling and passed to Amarao from a deep position in the center. Amarao, before the Kofu defenders could tackle, spectacularly equalized with a left-footed shot from a one-touch (no step) after a trap. With this, Tokyo regained momentum and launched a fierce attack. In the following 78th minute, Kagamiki received a pass from Koike, who came on as a substitute, in a position 45 degrees to the right in front of the Kofu goal. Kagamiki quickly turned around and shot. Although there was no angle, the ball passed the goalkeeper's left side and shook the net, successfully completing the comeback (3-2). Two minutes later, in the 80th minute, Fujiyama sent a long pass to the front line, and Almir dashed forward. The Kofu defenders, in a hurry, made a back pass to the goalkeeper from a very close distance, but the goalkeeper fumbled it. Almir took the ball and kicked it into the unguarded goal, scoring the fourth goal. Tokyo, pressing hard, in the 86th minute, Kagamiki stole the ball in their own half, sprinted about 60 meters on the right side, and passed to Amarao in the center. The Kofu defenders desperately tried to defend, but Amarao passed to Almir who came to support. Almir calmly took a shot, and the ball hit the goalkeeper and went into the goal. Tokyo, completely confident of victory, conceded an unnecessary goal in stoppage time, and the game ended 5-3. Although there was a moment of uncertainty, Tokyo obtained valuable 3 points away in a challenging environment.

＜Coach Kiyoshi OKUMA's Comment＞

I am not able to switch my mindset after conceding a goal, just like in the Sapporo match on August 29th, and it is not good to concede goals consecutively. It is a future challenge, and I want to ask the players for mental strength. Overall, I am satisfied that we were able to surpass (Kofu) in terms of physical fitness in this heat and carry the game at our pace. Regarding the (5 goals) attack, instead of making aggressive moves in a desperate situation, we need to be able to do it from the first half. I also consider this a future challenge.