"KOKURITSU" is filled!

The second leg of the Nabisco Cup semifinal, welcoming the J1 powerhouse Kashima Antlers at home, was held at the Japan National Stadium, filled with a crowd of 40,885 people. Even in recent J1 league matches, has there been a game where "KOKURITSU" was filled to this extent? In addition, the number of media personnel was extraordinary. Although there are no exact numbers, it is not an exaggeration to say that almost all media personnel, including TV, radio, newspapers, magazines, etc., gathered together. The number of cameras surrounding the field and TV cameras was also amazing. Naturally, the excitement in the venue was on a completely different level than usual. The "Blue and Red Army" of Tokyo, who usually occupy the goal end, took their place in the center of the back stand for the first time this season, and as they raised their voices with high tension before the match, applause erupted from the entire venue except for the Antlers area. The Antlers supporters who came to the away game were also few in number, but they were not losing. They repeated their fierce support with their familiar unique style. The stage is set for the final showdown!

Defensive Antlers

Tokyo, who lost the first match 0-2 on 9/29, needed to win this game by a goal difference of 3 or more in order to advance to the final. Tokyo desperately needed to score the opening goal. If they scored first, the goal difference in the total score would be reduced to 1, creating the possibility of a draw and a comeback. On the other hand, if they conceded the opening goal, the goal difference would widen to 3, making it very difficult. Therefore, on this day, they had to play a style of soccer that prioritized scoring goals while not allowing any goals to be scored.

The game quickly turned into a fast-paced and speedy exchange of offense and defense. Tokyo, who wanted to score the opening goal, started with Wada, a speedy player, instead of Okamoto. Wada started in the quarterfinals first leg (7/20) against F. Marinos and performed as expected, contributing to a major victory. With this, Tokyo, with three speedy players, Yukihiro on the right, Kagamiki in the center, and Wada on the left, under Amaral's lone striker, waited for the counterattack opportunity after withstanding Antlers' fierce attacks. However, Antlers were cunning on this day. Antlers, who highly estimated Tokyo's strength and tactics in the first leg, chose to make the most of their two-goal "savings". They emphasized defense and refrained from attacking with their skilled fullbacks. In particular, it seems that they focused on defense by assigning Mabashi, an attacking right fullback, to concentrate on defense, learning from the lesson of being troubled by the same side by Fujiyama in the first leg. In the attack, they passed the ball around the midfield with Bismarck and Abe at the center and aimed for the goal by crossing to Hasegawa, who is strong in heading, when the opportunity arose. There were dangerous situations where Bismarck's accurate free kicks could be kicked and combined with Hasegawa from set plays, but Sandro and Yamao covered them with high concentration and did not allow a goal. On the other hand, Tokyo's attack, like in the first leg, showed great fighting spirit and gathered the ball to Almir, who controlled the team both offensively and defensively, and expanded from there to the left and right. Wada was unable to demonstrate his strengths on the left side and remained silent, but Yukihiro on the right side showed aggressive breakthroughs many times and created chances. Also, because Yukihiro was able to keep the ball firmly, Umayama, the right fullback, was able to participate in aggressive attacks, and they started to launch a solid attack. Kagamiki and Amaral also demonstrated their respective strengths and freely moved around the front line. In the 26th minute, Kagamiki broke free from the crowded situation and faced the goalkeeper one-on-one, but was blocked by a fine save. As for Amaral, he was man-marked by the Japanese national team's stopper, Akita, but showed stable post-play and took a shot from the combination with Almir. The game was truly evenly matched, and the first half ended with a score of 0-0.

Kaburagi scores the long-awaited opening goal! Tokyo continued to dominate the pace afterwards, but...

Even if they cry or laugh, Tokyo, who will lose the ticket to the final if they don't score two or more goals in the remaining 45 minutes, will show a more aggressive soccer in the second half. Following the coach's instructions, Tokyo, who strengthened their attacks from the right side with the good condition Yukihiko as the starting point, boldly attacked the Antlers defense. Yukihiro, who had the ball on the right side, boldly tried against the opposing Japan national team's left back, Soma! Yukihiro, who was superior in speed, mostly won in the one-on-one match and supplied a sharp cross in front of the goal after breaking through. Perhaps it was his star quality, but throughout both teams, Yukihiro was the most passionate and shining in this large crowd. In the 9th minute of the second half, when Amaral was persistently attacking on the right side and got a free kick after being knocked down, Almir sent a ball to the front of the goal and Amaral did an overhead kick. Kaburaki, who was filling in the gap, got the long-awaited opening goal with a powerful kick with his right foot! With this, Tokyo caught up with a one-point difference in the total score and gained more momentum. Even if they were occasionally hit with decisive shots, GK Suzuki made a series of super fine saves and didn't allow any goals. Tokyo, who wanted one more goal, had another chance in the 20th minute of the second half when Yukihiro dodged the opponent on the right side and crossed to the center, and Almir received the ball freely and shot from a close distance! However, it was blocked by the opponent's GK's fine play. In the following 25 minutes, Almir dribbled up from his own half and passed to Kaburaki who had escaped at the perfect timing. When Kaburaki tried to receive the ball, he was knocked down and got a free kick in a great position in front of the goal. Almir, who had scored consecutive free kicks in J2 on 9/25 and 10/3, aimed for it, but it bounced off the wall. After that, Tokyo continued to create chances from the right with Yukihiro and from the left with Kaburaki, but they couldn't score any additional goals. On the contrary, in the 36th minute of the second half, they were pushed in by Akita with a header from a corner kick, and once again fell behind by two points. With no time left, Tokyo pushed forward until the end with a "super attacking formation" by putting DF Sandro on the front line and substituting MF Seigo Kobayashi, but in the end, they couldn't score any additional goals and the cruel time was up, resulting in a 1-1 draw and a total score of 1-3 defeat. Tokyo, who participated in the Nabisco Cup for the first time, defeated three J1 teams in a row and showed a great fight against last year's J League champion, Antlers, but couldn't make it to the final.

Coach's Comment

<ZICO Antlers General Manager Comment>

It was a good game worthy of the semi-finals. Both teams had a good balance of offense and defense, and it was an impressive and well-coordinated game. Tokyo is a team that has defeated three J1 teams, so it's no surprise. I thought they would tire more in the second half, but I was surprised by their strong physicality, which was beyond my expectations. I think they will be able to compete well in J1 next season.

<Coach Okuma's Comment>

The players did well. They had a game three days ago, and being able to play soccer today in such a tough schedule confirms their potential and gives them confidence. Both individually and as a team, they have gained something. The speed of transitioning between offense and defense was equal, but the difference was made in the accuracy of crosses and the focus in crucial moments. They need to quickly switch their mindset and prepare for the next game against Tosu on the 11th.