Looking to build momentum in the 3rd round, facing the strong Shimizu S-Pulse

　The 3rd match of the 2nd stage will be played at home against Shimizu S-Pulse. In the previous match, Tokyo won a decisive victory in the away game against Sapporo, and they are riding on a wave of momentum. On the other hand, S-Pulse will enter the 2nd stage one round later, and they suffered a defeat against Kashima in the previous match. It seems that they are still not in their best condition, so it is important for them to firmly strike back and maintain their momentum. Both teams excel in attacking from the sides based on a solid defense. The first priority is to not lose in the battle on the sides. As coach Okuma says, it is crucial to "defend like Tokyo and score decisively to win" in this game.

　S-Pulse, who are missing Sawato due to suspension, started MF Hiramatsu in the starting lineup. On the surface, the team composition is the same 3-5-2 as usual, but in reality, Ichikawa, the right wing back, is placed in defense, making the final line 4 players. In the midfield, Ito and Toda form a double pivot, with attacking MF Hiramatsu and Alex on both sides. They have formed a formation after studying Tokyo's style of play.

Yukihiko fought hard. He frequently creates chances in a Tokyo-like manner...

　There was a fear that there would be a backlash after scoring a large number of goals in the previous game, but Tokyo showed an aggressive game from the start. In the 2nd minute, Sato crossed sharply from the right side. Although he ended up being offside in the end, Sato showed a sharp movement and was energetic today as well. In the 11th minute, Sato crossed again and Espal GK Hata punched the loose ball, which Kelly passed to the front of the goal. Kobayashi Narihiro tried to score, but the GK defended it. In the 14th minute, Komine sent a side change ball from the left to the front, and Kelly headed it. In the 17th minute, Sato's free kick hit the wall, and Narihiro Kobayashi ran into the loose ball, but fell short... Tokyo creates chances with attacks centered around Sato's right side, which is the typical Tokyo pattern. On the other hand, Espal passes neatly and when there is a chance, Alex cuts inside, but Tokyo DF marks FW Baron tightly, so they can't easily get the ball into the penalty area. On the contrary, Tokyo DF intercepts the last pass to Baron several times. They try to quickly switch to an attacking mode by passing to the front line, but Espal's DF pushes up quickly and they end up being offside three or four times. In the 39th minute, Amaral dribbles and attacks towards the left corner of the penalty area, and takes a shot that seems to be aimed at the goal, but it narrowly misses the target. In the 42nd minute, Sato once again sends a sharp ground pass to the front of the goal, reminiscent of the own goal in the previous Sapporo game, but it doesn't reach Miura who came out. They escape from the corner kick, and ultimately fail to convert the chance into a goal, and the first half ends.

Yukihiko→Amaral→Kelly's combination takes the lead, but...

　The first half was not as scary as S-Pulse's attack, but the first chance in the second half was created by Alex->Baron's post-play. In the 46th minute just after the start, Baron was fouled just outside the penalty area in front of the goal, and Alex aimed for the goal. However, the ball hit the crossbar and was saved by the goalmouth. In the 47th minute, Tokyo's Nariyoshi Kobayashi headed a cross from Kelly from the left. In the 51st minute, Tetsuya Ito attacked from an interception and took a shot. In the 53rd minute, Miura persisted and passed the loose ball to Sato, and Amaral headed the cross, but couldn't score. S-Pulse also created chances as Alex repeatedly attempted to break through from the side, but Tokyo's defenders defended bravely and didn't let the goal break.

　Both teams lost their pressing game, and the match became a fast-paced back-and-forth affair, but lacked precision. In the 64th minute, Tokyo substituted Ashizaki for Kina in an attempt to regain their attacking rhythm by utilizing his ball retention skills. Then, in the 70th minute, Miura once again won a loose ball in the midfield and passed it to Kelly in front of the goal, who was surrounded by defenders on the right side. Kelly crossed the ball to the far side where Sato was waiting, and Amalao headed the long ball down for Kelly to score with a header! Tokyo took the lead with a typical combination play.

　Tokyo, which is full of energy, launches a counterattack from Kina as a starting point and goes on the offensive, but the S-Pulse defense also shows resilience. Then, FW Kuboyama and Baron are replaced by FW Yamazaki and Yokoyama in quick succession. This player substitution would later prove to be successful... In the 76th minute, Alex, who was left free in the penalty area after a lob from the back, takes a shot. Although it is initially blocked by the post, Alex connects again and DF Saito, who had moved up for a set piece, takes a header shot. Sandro initially deflects it, but Yokoyama, who was following up, takes a volley shot. The ball forcefully pierces the net, and Tokyo is quickly caught up again.

　In the 82nd minute, Alex's free kick once again hit the bar. In the 83rd minute, Tokyo substituted Kensuke Kagami for Masamitsu Kobayashi, but then there was a back-and-forth of counterattacks and set plays. However, both teams lacked the decisive touch and the match went into extra time.

Entering overtime in the second stage of the home game...

　S-Pulse, like in the late stages of the second half, has YOKOYAMA moving wide and YAMAZAKI making fast vertical movements to break through the Tokyo DF. Tokyo changed FUJIYAMA to the right side, ITO to the left side, and KOMINE to the center, and deployed a formation to respond to S-Pulse's attacking lineup, including ALEX.

Shortly after the start of the extension, DF Ichikawa attempted a long shot on goal. In the 92nd minute, this time it was Tokyo, Kina with a middle shot. Both teams were rapidly changing their offensive and defensive strategies and were putting in all their effort to attack. In the 98th minute, Espal's picked up the loose ball from Tokyo's corner kick. As Tokyo's entire team moved forward and momentarily stopped, Alex dribbled up the center and passed to Yamazaki on the right side. At the end of Yamazaki's floated cross, there was Ichikawa, who had come up on the left side... Ichikawa shot the ball in the penalty area as if throwing his body forward. They were easily scored against and suffered a V-goal defeat...

Coach Okuma said, "The problem was the transition from attack to defense. Even though we were anticipating the short corner, we couldn't switch to defense." This forward-thinking mentality ironically led to a momentary lapse in concentration. It's disappointing to have such a result despite our efforts so far, and once again, it was a frustrating home game. We must not forget the toughness of J1 and this frustration, and we must use it to our advantage in the next game.

[Zemunovic's comment]

"Today we switched to a 4-back formation, and although we were sometimes pushed back on the sides, I think it worked well. The most important thing is to play Shimizu S-Pulse's style of football, rather than adjusting to the opponent, but it is also important to be flexible and adapt. The players showed us what they are capable of in the second half of the 90 minutes, and they continued to show it in extra time without their physical condition deteriorating."

[Coach Okuma's comment]

"In the end, we should have scored in the first half. The goal in extra time was to calmly attack and defend as a team, but individuals may have been too focused on attacking. I think the lack of balance between attack and defense led to conceding goals."