We cannot afford to lose, the first J1 match against Oita!

　1st Stage also welcomes Sec. 9 and enters the second half. This round, we will face Oita Trinita, who achieved promotion to J1 this season. Oita, who will have their first match in J1, is currently in 14th place. However, in the previous round, they showed tenacity and drew against Kashima. Coach Kobayashi also speaks of today's match as an "exciting battle" and is confident. They have a powerful defense and counter-attacks, and they are not to be underestimated.

　However, as a "senior in J1", I can't afford to lose. I want to decorate the last home game before the 1st stage interruption with a victory. Asari will be suspended for this round due to accumulated warnings. Miyazawa and Miura will face the game with a double defensive midfield. In addition, Ishikawa will start for the first time in four games as the right MF. Amaral and Abe will be positioned as the two top players, and the kickoff will be welcomed.

Abe scores from Ishikawa's through pass and takes the lead!

　In the midst of a battle for possession from the beginning to the middle of the game, it was Oita who had the first chance. In the 4th minute, they built up an attack by connecting passes. A through pass reached midfielder Yoshida, who had slipped behind Tokyo's defense. However, the shot was quickly blocked by Tokyo's defenders. In the 6th minute, Tokyo also had a chance when Ishikawa crossed to Kanazawa and Abe headed the ball, but it went over the goal. In the 11th minute, Ishikawa dribbled through the midfield and passed to Abe on the right side, and Miyazawa ran in from behind to take a shot on the cleared cross. The ball went wide to the right. In the 16th minute, Ishikawa's cross reached Abe, who had run free into the penalty area from the left side, but his trap was too heavy and the shot was blocked by the goalkeeper. And then, right after that. After winning the ball in their own half, Kaji passed to Ishikawa, who then passed to Abe, breaking through Oita's defense from near the center circle with perfect timing. Receiving the through pass near the penalty arc, Abe calmly took the ball into the area and scored with his right foot! With Ishikawa and Abe's excellent combination play, they quickly took the lead with a goal.

Kelly's skillful goal adds another point!

　In the 24th minute, Kelly headed a cross from Kaji on the right side, but it narrowly missed the left goal. In the 28th minute, Abe jumped out on Kelly's long pass but was caught offside. Tokyo, who took the lead and aimed for additional points by using the pitch widely, did not completely take control. However, in the 36th minute, the ball connected to Umeda, who was free in front of the area, from the post of Oita FW Takamatsu, but Kanazawa quickly blocked the shot. After that, Jang bounced back Oita's crosses, and Mobata and Kanazawa showed a concentrated defense against runs behind. In the first half injury time, Mobata cut off Terakawa's entry into the penalty area with a sliding tackle. Oita did not create any decisive chances and ended the first half with a one-goal lead.

　"Tokyo wants another goal." They aggressively press from the front to steal the ball and push Oita back. Then, in the 47th minute, Kelly, who received a throw-in from Kaji on the right side, forcefully charges into the penalty area and evades two opposing defenders who came to mark him. He shoots with his right foot from just outside the goal area on the right side. The ball pierces into the left corner of the goal!! With Kelly's splendid shot, reminiscent of the skillful goal Ronaldo showcased against Turkey in last year's Club World Cup semi-final, Tokyo scores an additional goal at the perfect time!

　Tokyo, who gained momentum with this goal. From here, the game developed rapidly and intensely. In the 59th minute, Ishikawa, who received a pass from Kaji, broke through to the front line. He crossed with speed, but it was cut by the defender and did not reach Abe. Then, Ishikawa, who received a pass from Kanazawa's attack, took a ground middle shot. In the 63rd minute, Ishikawa, who received a long ball from Miyazawa, continued to create chances with crosses from the right side.

Oita counterattacks with one point, but fails to win at home

　But Oita was not silent. In the 67th minute, MF Uchimura was substituted for DF Yamazaki. They changed to a 3-back formation, with Uchimura playing as left MF and facing Ishikawa, and Terakawa as a defensive midfielder to thicken the midfield. In the 71st minute, Terakawa took a middle shot, which signaled a counterattack. In the 73rd minute, MF Komorita picked up a clear ball in front of the goal and took a powerful middle shot, but Doi made a save and Kanazawa cut off Umeda's shot on the rebound. On the contrary, in the 75th minute, Tokyo's Abe moved to the right side and became a wedge, and Ishikawa shot from the right. However, unfortunately, it hit the bar and missed the goal.

　Oita made a substitution in the 76th minute, replacing FW Rodrigo with FW Andradinha, while Tokyo made a substitution in the 78th minute, replacing Abe with Baba. Immediately after that, Tokyo, who had won the loose ball in the midfield, quickly turned to attack. Ishikawa sprinted up the right side at full speed and supplied a perfect cross in front of the goal. Baba, unmarked on the far side, headed the floating ball, but his first-touch shot veered slightly to the right, missing a golden opportunity.

　And then it was one minute later. Tokyo, who cut off Oita's attack in their own half, turned to counterattack, but Oita cut off Baba's pass on the right side. It connected to Andradinha in the center and passed it to the front line. FW Takamatsu, who received the ball in front of the goal, dodged Jean with a one-touch and scored a goal. It was a truly regrettable goal conceded. In the 84th minute, Ishikawa, who received Miyazawa's ball on the left side, shot a powerful dribble shot slightly to the left. However, Oita quickly developed from GK Okanaka and quickly moved forward. Andradinha persisted in the penalty area, and Uchimura, who ran in from behind, shot continuously, but both shots were blocked by Jean and Motonii in front of the goal. In the 86th minute, Andradinha shot from Takamatsu's post, but it was blocked. In the remaining minutes, the situation was tense every moment, but in the 89th minute, Fujiyama was substituted for Miura to strengthen the midfield defense and protect the lead until the end of the game. It was a game where they struggled against Oita's counterattack without being able to score a chance, but they secured a good 3 points with a 2-0 lead.

【Player Comments】《Takumi ABE》"I have to be able to play anywhere on the field, but playing as a forward in a two-top formation made it easier because I was closer to the goal. I got caught offside, but I think it's important to keep making those (runs behind the defense) movements."《Kaito ABE》"(The pass that led to Takumi's opening goal) Takumi ABE had the same image as me and led me, so I just had to pass it to him. It was a tough game at 2-1, but I think the shape leading up to the goal was good. If I had scored there, it would have been even easier."

[Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference] "Oita is a team that defends well as a whole and launches counterattacks. We anticipated being pushed back, so we started with Amaral and Abe as the front two, and Kelly as the attacking midfielder. In the previous match, we were able to possess the ball to some extent with Amaral as the lone striker, but there were moments where we struggled because the opponent was able to regroup while we held onto the ball for too long, so we tried to keep it simple as much as possible. Ideally, we wanted to move the ball more and break through from the sides. Abe scored the opening goal in the early stages in the way he is most skilled at, but we wanted to get an additional goal, preferably in the first half. We had a high number of shots and corner kicks in recent matches, but today we only had 12 shots and 1 corner kick. It wasn't a fantastic performance, but it was good that we were able to secure the 3 points that we desperately wanted. We need Baba and Ishikawa to convert their chances and score the third goal. When Amaral scores, it also boosts the team's momentum. We will prepare well for the next match and face Ichihara, who is currently considered the strongest team."

[Summary of Oita Kobayashi's press conference] "Tokyo has many attacking players, and since it is their home ground, they will likely play with a lot of pressure and attacking football. Therefore, I thought there would be space in the midfield, but they had a very solid approach. The pitch was deep, and both teams seemed to have heavy legs, so it was a cautious start. In the midst of that, Oita made many mistakes, but I think we were able to make a good start. However, we were caught off guard and conceded the opening goal in a momentary lapse. We had some good moments in the first half, and I thought that even if we were behind, the opponent's legs would tire in the second half, and there would be a possibility if we brought in attacking players. However, just before that, we suffered a big blow by conceding a second goal through Kelly's individual skill. However, since it became 0-2, we changed the system and went for goals, and we were able to play simple football with dribbles spreading to the sides in the midfield. The momentum of needing to score at least one goal and Tokyo having to defend tilted in our favor. We wanted to play that way from the beginning. It was a rather heavy game, but I want to commend the players for not giving up and scoring one goal."