J1 Top Battle with the Champion Iwata!?

　The match of the 5th round is against last year's J-League champion, Júbilo Iwata. This season, they are challenging a new 3-5-2 system with new signings Inohara and Suzuki as the center-backs and Fukunishi as the libero. Although they lost the opening match to Kashiwa, they have won three consecutive matches since then. They are currently in first place and have a sense of being one step ahead. Their strong defense and ability to score from anywhere make them the toughest opponent in the J-League. Tokyo suffered a 0-3 defeat in the Emperor's Cup last year, but it has been four months since then... Today's match is a battle for first place. We want to limit the number of goals conceded as much as possible, score as many goals as possible, and aim for victory!

Toughest battle of the season against a skilled opponent

It was a cautious start. Due to the rain that continued until just before the match, the slippery ground made it difficult for both teams to connect passes and they struggled. However, Iwata, seeing that the passes were not connecting well, had forwards Takahara and midfielder Oku take powerful shots from outside the box, and they began to find their rhythm around the 10th minute. Occasionally, they mixed in long balls from defender Ihara to forward Nakayama, gradually gaining control of the midfield as well. In the 14th minute, Iwata's right winger Nishi made a run towards the center, drawing the attention of the defense and leaving Takahara free to take a powerful shot. Sandro barely managed to deflect it for a corner kick, but the game continued in Tokyo's half. With forward Nakayama and Takahara making movements to open up to the sides, and Oku and others making runs from the center, Tokyo's defense had no choice but to defend deep. Unable to create attacking opportunities in general, they were instead caught on the counterattack when their fullbacks tried to push forward. Still, in the 27th minute, a quick restart led to a through pass from Fujiyama to TUTO, but Iwata goalkeeper Ozaki caught it. In the 34th minute, they tried to aim for a goal with quick direct passes between Amaral, TUTO, and Kobayashi, exploiting a small opening, but Iwata players reacted quickly and the chance was missed. Iwata, including Ihara and their defenders, actively participated in the attack. And in the 35th minute, when Suzuki made a forward run, Kobayashi couldn't help but commit a foul. Ihara, who cleverly evaded his marker, headed in the free kick taken by midfielder Fujita. They conceded a goal from this set piece, but Tokyo only managed to take two shots. The first half ended with a heavy and tense atmosphere, making one wonder if there was any way to turn the situation around.

Never give up, Yukihiko's Tokyo spirit!

　In the second half, Tokyo replaced Koike with Kina, but the pace of the game did not change. Iwata continued to approach loose balls quickly and excel in technical skills, while Tokyo had to defend. They couldn't create their usual pattern of attacking from the sides, starting with Amaral. And although the shot missed the target, Takahara and Oku were able to take shots freely. In the 50th minute, Nakayama dropped down a free kick from Ihara, and Takahara, who had slipped behind the defense, took a free shot! Fortunately, the ball narrowly missed the goal. However, Iwata's failure to convert this great chance ultimately left coach Hadzievski lamenting. In the 55th minute, Kina, who had gradually fit into the team through substitute appearances in every match, finally started to keep the ball. Yukihiko cut off Iwata's sideways pass as if he had anticipated it! Tuto immediately reacted, dribbled the ball, calmly evaded the chasing defenders, and scored in the bottom right corner of the goal! Yukihiko created a chance if there was even a slight possibility of scoring, and Tuto made sure to convert it! It was a valuable equalizing goal in a pressured situation.

TUTO, Anima! The night when Kokuritsu melted with heat

The game started moving from here. In the 61st minute, TUTO and Amaral quickly closed in on the ball when Iwata's goalkeeper and defender collided. In the 65th minute, there were three consecutive corner kicks. Naito, who matched Yukihiko's low and fast ball, took a shot that almost became a goal! but it was cleared by Ihara's left foot. Tokyo created chances, but Iwata also calmly connected passes and counterattacked. Tokyo, who was eager to attack, was often pushed back, and in the 69th minute, Iwata's breakthrough was stopped by a foul in front of the goal. Hattori's free kick with his left foot was sucked into the top left corner of the goal, where there was no other option, and they allowed the opponent to take the lead again. However, the spirit of Tokyo's eleven never wavered. TUTO courageously attacked, driven by the voice of "TUTO, animau! (Do your best!)" Just two minutes after conceding a goal, Fujiyama dribbled the ball that came out from Kobayashi and passed it. TUTO, who skillfully evaded the defender with a perfect trap, dribbled and scored a goal!!! Tokyo equalized once again! The National Stadium became a whirlwind of excitement. Iwata replaced the slowing down midfielder Nishi with the fast forward Kawaguchi. Immediately after that, they also replaced the left side player Yamanishi with the center back Tanaka and moved Fukunishi up to the midfield. They repeated the attack and defense for one point, but Hattori, who had been active in both attack and defense in the bottom of the midfield, moved to the left side, and Tokyo's dominance increased. And finally, in the 83rd minute, Oku unintentionally committed a handball against TUTO, who ran into Asari's pass. Amaral confidently and neatly scored the penalty kick they earned, and Tokyo took the lead. With about 7 minutes remaining, Iwata naturally launched a fierce counterattack. However, Tokyo defended with truly, truly sacrificing their bodies... And the pitch and the stands became one, listening to the final whistle. As shown in the first half, the difference between Iwata and Tokyo was clear. There are plenty of things to reflect on, such as conceding goals from set pieces. However, it was a night when the National Stadium melted with the incredible tenacity of a team that never doubted their belief in winning no matter what.

"HADZIEVSKI Coach's Comment"

"I think Tokyo played a game that deserved victory as a 90-minute fight. Iwata, despite having more experienced players than Tokyo, made mistakes and gave away 2 goals. Until then, we had many chances and the content was definitely good. It was painful to miss the chances in the second half, but at that time there were still plenty of chances to win. However, it was very difficult to catch up after conceding a penalty kick. Nakayama, Takahara, and Kawaguchi were brought in, and Fukunishi was also moved up to the midfield, and we tried our best to change something, but there was too little time left in the remaining 7-8 minutes, and we ended up getting nervous. If the handball that led to the penalty kick was accidental and not intentional, it would be good, but if a mistake like that happens, we won't be able to win. In any case, Tokyo ran a lot and was a good team."

"Coach Okuma's comment"

"In the first half, we were unable to play our own soccer for the most part, and it was disappointing that we conceded a goal due to a lack of concentration during the restart. Along with that, it became a soccer game where we could have conceded two goals in the first half because it was unclear what we should not do or what we should do when it was not our rhythm. We must reflect on what we should do as a team in times like this. However, the players must have had confidence that they could somehow equalize if it was only one goal, and I thought we could manage if it was 0-1, so I tried to keep the first half with the minimum number of goals conceded. In the second half, Kina functioned well, and we were able to create a tempo in the midfield and the front line, and I think we played with a good rhythm."