A crucial match that cannot be lost in the J.League restart against Verdy

　The second match, which was played after a two-week interval from the first match, was held against Tokyo Verdy 1969 in an away game. It is worth noting how this break period will affect the team, and it is a crucial match where neither team can afford to lose.

　Tokyo, Amaral, who missed the Nabisco Cup and the league opening match due to injury, made his first appearance this season. At the same time, he achieved his 300th official match appearance, including JFL, J2, and the Emperor's Cup.

　Verdy, who will face them, is in a difficult situation with key players such as DF Yoneyama and Lopes suspended, and MF Emboma and Tanaka injured one after another. However, MF Ramon, a former Brazilian national team player who has just arrived in Japan, is starting and cannot be underestimated. The match started with Verdy's kickoff in the cold rain and wind.

Create opportunities and take advantage...

　Pitch conditions and the influence of the wind made both teams cautious at the start. However, in the 5th minute, Tokyo's Jean jumped in with a header from Miyazawa's right-side free kick. In the 7th minute, Amaral competed for Kaji's cross from a quick restart, and Miyazawa picked up the loose ball and took a shot. In the 12th minute, Toda and Amaral launched a quick attack from midfield after an interception. They were blocked by the opposing defenders and slowed down momentarily, but Kanazawa, who had moved up to support, connected the play and Kelly brought the ball into the penalty area for a shot. They showed a promising attacking play, but it was caught by the opposing goalkeeper.

　After 15 minutes, there was a period where both teams struggled to move the ball forward even after cutting it. However, in the 21st minute, Ishikawa boldly took a middle shot as if trying to break the deadlock. In the 28th minute, using the wide pitch from Kelly on the right side to Amaral in the center, Toda, and then Ishikawa on the right side, Asari made a shot after running in from the right outside. In the 37th minute, Miyazawa, who had moved up the left side, passed a ground pass to the center, and Kelly, who had run in from behind, made a perfect connection, but it went over the goal. However, they continued to dominate the game and did not allow Verdy to create any chances.

　In the first half stoppage time, Kelly shoots from the front of the goal with a shot from the left FK, but the ball is blocked by the bar. Toda then shoots from close range, but the goalkeeper's fine play prevents a goal. In the end, Tokyo had 8 shots compared to Verdy's 1 shot in the first half. However, the first half ended with no goals.

Conceding the first goal on a slippery pitch from a penalty kick

　In the second half, it was Verdy who pressed forward. They connected direct passes and threatened the Tokyo goal. However, they were unable to finish. In the 50th minute, FW Hiramoto dribbled from the left side to the center of the penalty area, but Shigeno closed in and Kanazawa cleared the ball. In the 54th minute, DF Yanagisawa picked up the cleared ball from a cross from the left and unleashed a powerful shot from the right side, but Doi punched it away.

　Tokyo will try to bring their own rhythm without rushing, in the 55th minute, Toda and Amaral jumped to the cross raised by Miyazawa from the right side, but the ball hit Amaral's foot and went over the goal. In the 59th minute, Ishikawa received Kelly's pass from the left side and took a powerful shot from the right corner of the penalty area, but missed the target. In the 62nd minute, Abe was substituted for Amaral as a "super sub" (Coach Hara's words). The movement in the front line became more active, and in the 63rd minute, Ishikawa shot the ball that spilled out from the scramble in front of Verdy's goal. The game is leaning towards Tokyo's pace.

　However, it was the 67th minute. Verdy's Hiramoto dribbled freely in the midfield. He sent a lob pass to the front line. But Shigetane, in the final line, made a control mistake, and the ball rolled in front of Verdy's MF Ramon, who was trying to break through behind the defense line. Ramon accelerated towards the goal, and Doi couldn't help but bring him down, resulting in a whistle. Ramon himself took the penalty kick and Verdy took the lead.

Despite a fierce attack, Tadashi BABA's first goal brought back one point

　Tokyo, which quickly conceded the first goal, started to counterattack with fighting spirit. Jean also joined the attack at times, focusing on crosses from both sides and threatening the Verdy goal. In the 75th minute, Miura was substituted for Miyazawa. In the 77th minute, Kanazawa took a controlled shot from the left penalty area, but the goalkeeper made a save. Kelly tried to follow up on the rebound but couldn't convert the shot. Shortly after, Kanazawa's shot resulted in a corner kick. In the 81st minute, Abe's shot narrowly missed the goal to the right. In the 82nd minute, Bamba replaced Toda. Bamba was positioned at the top, with Abe on the left. However, in the 85th minute, Bamba received a pass from Kelly's post-play in front of the densely packed Verdy defense, but hesitated and couldn't take the shot. In the 89th minute, the Verdy defense had a mix-up with Kaji's long ball sent into the goal area. The ball fell at Jean's feet, who was up front, but he couldn't make the connection.

　And as we enter stoppage time, forward Takabe connects the ball from Verdy's goalkeeper and forward Iio, who came on as a substitute, receives it. Tokyo's players are pressing forward, and Iio dribbles towards the center through the open space. Seeing that the Tokyo defenders are standing still, he takes a powerful shot from just outside the penalty area. The arrow-like ball pierces into the bottom left corner of the goal. Tokyo is left behind, having conceded the second goal.

　However, they never gave up until the end and immediately after conceding a goal, they earned a left corner kick. Bamba made a diving header on the ball kicked by Kanazawa near the side, bringing the score to within one point. However, unfortunately, the time was up at this point. It was a frustrating result to lose despite creating overwhelming chances.

【Player Comments】《Amaral》"It's disappointing to have lost, but I'm satisfied that I was able to participate in 300 matches. Today, I couldn't find my rhythm after returning from injury, but I'll save the goal for the next match."《Kanazawa》"In the first half, I thought it was fine to let the opponent have the ball to a certain extent and catch them at the end. However, we may have been a little behind and lacking in aggressiveness. We want to win these types of matches and be able to control the game."

[Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference] "We created more chances than the opponent in the first half, but lacked accuracy in our shots. We conceded a penalty from a simple mistake, which may have disrupted our rhythm a bit. Amaral played after a long time, so we pushed him as far as he could go and used Takumi Abe as a super sub due to his concerns about his foot. Baba also did a good job, but it would have been better if he had scored when the score was 0-1. I don't think we were beaten by Verdy, but they are good at keeping the ball, so when we let them have it easily, they connect passes and come forward. We wanted to attack faster when we won the ball, but Amaral, who has a different rhythm from Abe, came in and there was a slight misalignment in the whole team. Abe runs into space, but Amaral drops back to receive the ball. I think the best system is one that utilizes both of them. I don't think it was a bad game at all. While continuing to play the current style of soccer, we want to improve our finishing and eliminate simple mistakes. In games like today's, I think we definitely need to earn points."

[Verdy Lori Coach's Press Conference Summary] "The best thing about today's game was the result of winning. We were missing key players and had mostly young members, and the ground was slippery, so we expected a close game. In the first half, we mainly relied on long balls and set plays, and our direct passes from the midfield were not accurate. Also, FW Hiramoto was marked and could only compete for high balls, so we made adjustments at halftime. We instructed to move the ball more and told Hiramoto to move to the sides and receive the ball. In the second half, those aspects improved and led to goals. FC Tokyo's side attacks and set plays in the first half were effective, but in the second half, Verdy's passing and the process leading to the goal were better. It should have been a game ending in 2-0, so we should have been more cautious about the last goal conceded. We have many injured players and a young team, so there are ups and downs. From now on, our motivation and condition will continue to improve."