Survival for the championship race, 1st stage restart

　J1 League 1st Stage resumed yesterday. Sec. 11 Tokyo vs Vegalta Sendai match was held on Sunday, one day later than other matches. It is the first match after the league resumed, but today is an important match that will determine the survival in the championship race. We want to secure 3 points at home and build momentum towards the end of the 1st Stage.

　Tokyo lined up in a 4-5-1 formation with Amaral at the top, Abe on the left, and Kelly in the center. Due to accumulated yellow cards, Kaji was suspended, so Tokunaga (currently studying at Waseda University) started as the right full-back as a specially designated player. Sendai, currently in 12th place, had goalkeeper Takakuwa, defenders Komura and Morikawa, and midfielder Zaimae returning from injuries after the break. On the other hand, they were missing key players such as midfielder Iwamoto and Silvino, and forward Marcos, making it difficult to field their best lineup. However, they need to be cautious of the counter-attacks launched by forwards Yamashita and Sato, who are known for their strong defense. The match started with Tokyo's kickoff under cloudy skies and high humidity of 75 percent.

First goal with a brilliant Miyazawa's free kick!

　Within the first minute, Tokunaga crosses from the right. In the second minute, Ishikawa and Tokunaga combine to break through the right side, and Ishikawa crosses again in the fifth minute. In the ninth minute, Amalao heads down Miyazawa's free kick, and Jaan shoots but it goes over the frame after hitting the loose ball that hit the DF. In the 11th minute, Kelly swings to the side from Tokunaga's persistent dribble, and Kelly combines with Ishikawa's cross, but Sendai DF cuts it off. On the other hand, Sendai also tries to create chances from counters, but the passes don't connect. While Tokyo takes the initiative, in the 16th minute, Miyazawa takes a middle shot. In the 20th minute, Kanazawa persists on the left side and earns a corner kick. In the 21st minute, Ishikawa receives a ground FK from the right side and shoots directly in the center. It is blocked by the DF, but they continue to create chances one after another.

　And in the 24th minute, the Sendai DF committed a handball foul outside the penalty area. Tokyo earned a free kick of about 25m, with Ishikawa and Miyazawa lining up in front of the ball. Then, Miyazawa used his magical left foot to directly aim for the goal, while Ishikawa acted as a decoy. The ball beautifully curved and went into the right side of the goal! Miyazawa scored the opening goal with his artistic free kick.

　Tokyo, who gained momentum, continued to dominate the game and create chances. In the 26th minute, Amaral received Tokunaga's ground cross and swung it to the left, where Miyazawa had advanced into the penalty area. Miyazawa took a shot, but the ball went over the frame. In the 28th minute, Abe took a gamble on the left side and Ishikawa picked up the loose ball, dribbled past the defenders on the left side again, and sent a strong ground pass across the goalmouth after cutting back. However, it narrowly missed Amaral on the far side.

In the second half, dominated by Sendai but no goals conceded

　In the 32nd minute, Sendai MF Ishii took a middle shot, but this was Sendai's first shot. In the 34th minute, MF Moriyasu, who also made a pass cut, attacked himself and took a shot, but Shigeno cut it off. In the 36th minute, Tokyo connected Abe's cross in the center and Ishikawa crossed. Kanazawa shot the loose ball that the DF cut off. Kelly followed up on the ball that GK Takakuwa bounced off. Unfortunately, it was offside, but they created a good opportunity from a wide attack. In the 42nd minute, Abe received a pass from Ishikawa's dribble at the post, and Amaral, who ran in from behind, took a shot. However, the ball went wide. Tokyo continued to attack, while Sendai countered. In the 43rd minute, Sendai launched a quick attack, and Yamashita on the front line passed to the right side. Sato headed the ball perfectly timed from Ishii's cross, but missed the goal. Tokyo couldn't score an additional point, but they led by one point going into the second half.

　However, in the second half, it was Sendai who created the first chance. In the 48th minute, DF Ryo NEMOTO crossed the ball from the left throw-in, and Yamashita crossed it back from the far side, and Ishii volleyed the ball inside the penalty area. The ball slightly curved to the left. But with this one play, Tokyo's coach said, "We became scared and retreated." In the 50th minute, NEMOTO ran up freely to the penalty area from a counterattack and took a shot. In the 52nd minute, Yamashita directly shot the ball into the goal from NEMOTO's cross in front of the goal. Both times, the pinch was overcome by Doi's save, but Sendai, who picked up a loose ball in the midfield, created decisive opportunities from NEMOTO's agile movements and accurate crosses.

　Tokyo, who persistently defends and does not allow goals, but in the attack, they fall behind and cannot connect passes or penetrate. In the 67th minute, Amaral's header from Kanazawa's cross became the first shot of the second half. However, in the 68th minute, Toda was substituted for Abe. The intention of Coach Hara was to "utilize abundant physicality and make big movements to run into space. Pick up loose balls and change the flow." This strategy paid off, and they gradually regained their rhythm.

Toda's beautiful goal puts Sendai in the lead!

　In the 71st minute, Kanazawa broke through and earned a corner kick. Jan hit a header, but it went to the left of the goal. In the 74th minute, Kelly persisted on the left side and Miyazawa, who had moved up to support, entered the penalty area. The cross was cut by the defender, but Ishikawa, who followed up on the loose ball, took a powerful shot. It was a decisive opportunity, but the ball was cleared by the defender Fabiano with a header. It was a splendid fine play that was blocked. In the following 75th minute, Toda received Kelly's pass outside the left area and took a shot. In the 76th minute, Toda dove with a diving header to Tokunaga's early cross. He couldn't capture the goal, but he brought it to a finish without giving up and showed a bold attitude.

　Sendai replaced midfielder Moriyasu with forward Nakahara in the 75th minute, changing to a front three to "take the first goal". Tokyo also substituted Bamba for Amaral in the 80th minute. Bamba was instructed to "create space in the front and move the ball". In the 84th minute, Asari was substituted for Miyazawa to maintain balance and aim for "another goal". And it happened right after that. Asari, on the left side of the midfield, passed to Ishikawa for a side change. Ishikawa launched an attack from the right side, sending a fast and low cross from near the goal line. In response, Toda, who had jumped into the center of the goal, was used as a decoy, and right behind him, Tanaka, who had become free, perfectly volleyed the ball into the lower left corner of the goal! It was a stunning goal!! Sendai pulled away with the long-awaited additional goal, and the game ended. They started the first match after the league resumed with a victory, and also climbed to 6th place in the standings. In the midst of a tight battle where the top 10 teams are separated by only 1 point, they will continue to push forward with consecutive victories in the remaining 4 matches!

【Player Comments】《Toda》"When I came on as a substitute, we were being pushed back, so I focused on defending from the front and entered the game with the mindset of winning even if it was just 1-0. I missed a diving header shot in front of the goal, but I was able to grasp the image of hitting the target with this play. Ishikawa made a great cross, and I think 80% of the credit goes to him for the goal, but I'm glad I was able to score."《Tokunaga》"I was nervous at first, but as I started to speak up, I got used to it. I communicated with Ishikawa and he created space for me to attack. I didn't think about the pace and just went all out from the beginning, so my legs cramped up in the end, but the most important thing is that we won. I feel that it is necessary to communicate more with those around me from now on."

[Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference] "In the Nabisco Cup match against Kashiwa, although the performance was not bad, we couldn't score. However, we didn't concede any goals, so I wanted to continue playing this style of soccer. Sendai is a team that defends and launches sharp counterattacks. I told the players to open up the sides as much as possible and attack the sides simply, so that we can score from the flow of the game and gain momentum if we can score the first goal from a set piece. It turned out as planned with Miyazawa's goal, but I wanted to score another goal in the first half... There were difficult moments in the early stages of the second half as well, but we didn't concede there and the momentum changed with Toda's entry. His earnestness and his attitude of "for the team" were evident. I'm glad he scored in the end. As for Tokunaga's selection, both I and the players knew his abilities. He played with confidence and became a significant force. I observed the Urawa vs Oita match yesterday, and the game changed completely with just one free kick. That's how there is no difference between any teams in the J-League. In the midst of a fierce battle, it is important to keep winning one game at a time."

[Sendai-Shimizu coach's press conference summary] "The first half was a back-and-forth game. Although we conceded a goal from a free kick, I think we were able to neutralize Tokyo's attacks. In the second half, until around the 20th minute, we created several chances and I think it was good. However, when we tried to equalize and took risks to attack, we were caught on the counter. It wasn't a bad development, but... We have many injured players, and the young substitutes who came on may not be functioning yet."