Earned 3 points in the away opening match

　Tokyo, which started the season with a victory in the previous match, headed to Oita with the aim of continuing their winning streak. Before the game, Coach Hara rallied the players, saying, "Today is an away opening match. It will be a fierce battle for the opponents as it is their home opener. Let's not lose in spirit and definitely bring back 3 points."

　The starting lineup for Tokyo is the same as last match, with Takumi ABE and Lucas as the two forwards, Toda as the right midfielder, and Suzuki as the left midfielder. The Olympic representative players, Shoya MOBATA, Makoto IMANO, and Ishikawa, joined the team on the 19th, the day before, but they were not included in this expedition considering their fatigue.

　On the other hand, Oita's attacking lineup consists of Magnou Alves and Yoshida as the two top strikers, Umeda as the right midfielder, and Nemoto, who has just returned from the Olympic team, as the left midfielder. In the defensive midfield, Vitor Júnior, who has previously represented the Netherlands and performed well in the World Cup, stands firm alongside Seto, forming a midfield with a strong presence. Tokyo has never lost in the six times they have faced Oita in the past, and they also achieved a convincing 4-1 victory in a practice match held during the February Kagoshima camp. Therefore, the data shows that Tokyo is still in a favorable position, but Oita is by no means an opponent to be taken lightly.

In the early stages, overwhelming Oita with a fierce attack

　From the beginning, Tokyo took the initiative. There was a large space behind Oita's shallow defensive line, and scenes where passes aimed at that space would lead to scoring opportunities were seen many times. Especially when a pass goes through the space on the left side, Suzuki uses his speed to break through the opponent's defense and repeatedly delivers excellent passes in front of the goal. In the 6th minute, Toda stole the ball from the opponent in the midfield and played an exquisite long through pass to the front line. Suzuki then broke through with his speed and faced the goalkeeper in a one-on-one situation. It was a decisive moment, but the shot was blocked by the defender and no goal was scored.

　11 minutes, a decisive through pass from Oita FW was made after a defensive pass mistake in Tokyo's own territory, but GK Doi prevented it with a "hairbreadth" super save. However, this was the only dangerous moment in the early stages. After that, Tokyo continued to press aggressively from the front line, forcing the opponent's ball and quickly putting the ball into the space behind the opponent's DF to create chances, overwhelming Oita. In the early stages, Tokyo completely controlled the pace.

Take the lead with Miura's spectacular volley breaking the balance!

　In the early stages, Oita was overwhelmed by Tokyo's speed, but around halfway through the first half, they became accustomed to Tokyo's monotonous feed to the front line and started picking up second balls to enter Tokyo's court with sharp counters. In response, Tokyo also wanted to raise the line more and put intense pressure on the front line they had shown immediately after the start of the game, but because the ball could not be kept by Lucas and Abe, they could not push up the entire team and gradually became a defensive shape, allowing the opponent to easily move forward.

　In the 26th minute, DF Fujiyama stopped Magnou Alves, who attempted a central breakthrough with a high-speed dribble from a counter, with a yellow card-worthy body check. Immediately after, a perfectly controlled shot from this free kick attacked Tokyo's goal, but Doi made a super save and deflected it outside, avoiding a crisis. In the following 32nd minute, Tokyo's left side was broken through, and a header shot was taken from the center of the goal, but it went over the bar. Oita gradually formed their attacking shape by quickly feeding the ball to the front line and launching counterattacks without wasting time.

　On the other hand, just before the end of the first half, at the 40th minute, Kaji broke through the right side and sent a big cross to the opposite side. Suzuki received it freely but couldn't control it well and couldn't take a shot. In the following 43rd minute, Kanazawa crossed from the left and Abe dropped it with his chest. Lucas received the ball and took a shot after avoiding the opponent's defender, but it was blocked by the opponent's defender. In the end, both teams were able to reach the goal but couldn't make a decisive shot, and the game was carried over to the second half with a score of 0-0.

　At halftime, Tokyo Eleven, who received instructions from Coach Hara to "not be able to break through with only vertical shots. Let's increase the number of balls that are put in diagonally by thoroughly attacking from the sides. We are winning in the side battles, so let's actively compete in one-on-one situations in the second half," put those instructions into practice early in the second half. In the 48th minute, Abe took a perfect heading shot in the center from a right corner kick, but it was blocked by the opponent's goalkeeper and defender and couldn't break the goal. However, in the following 53rd minute, Miura, who had been filling the ball in front of the goal from the right side, volleyed with his left foot while running in, after the opponent's goalkeeper punched away the cross raised by Kaji, and the ball pierced into the right corner of the goal dramatically, taking a valuable lead with Miura's first goal of the season, breaking the balance.

Unable to score additional points, instead conceding 2 points and suffering a regrettable comeback defeat

　Tokyo, who gained momentum with the opening goal, brought the ball into the penalty area in the 55th minute with a high-speed dribble by Abe, but his shot hit the defender. In the 62nd minute, Abe met Toda's cross from the right in front of the goal, but it also missed to the right of the goal. Furthermore, in the 64th minute, Abe, who received a pass from Miyazawa on the right side, quickly sent a through pass behind the opponent's defender, and Lucas broke free from the 1-on-1 with the goalkeeper and swung his right foot, but the ball narrowly missed to the left of the goal. In the following 65th minute, Abe, who broke free from Miyazawa's through pass from the center, sharply cut back inside the penalty area and was fouled, but no foul was given. Nevertheless, Tokyo, who did not slacken their attack, had Kanazawa participate in the attack from a big side change from the right in the 66th minute, and he took a left-footed volley shot, but he couldn't catch the goal.

　Tokyo, who desperately wanted to score more points, repeated their fierce attacks. However, their final touch in front of the goal was lacking, and they couldn't convert the "one more point" right in front of them. On the other hand, Oita, who endured this difficult situation, gradually felt a sense of confidence that they could "do it," including luck. In the 70th minute, the ball cleared from Oita's attack was small, and a powerful mid-range shot was taken from the front of the goal. Hoi deflected this ball forward, and Oita's fundamental was kicked into the goal, resulting in an equalizer.

　Tokyo, who wants to change the situation, replaced Miura, who showed signs of fatigue, with Asari, and substituted Kajiyama for Suzuki to change the flow by keeping the ball in the front line. Tokyo, who desperately wants 3 points, moved faster than the opponent and took the initiative. However, in the 79th minute, they were countered and the left side was broken through, allowing Magnou Alves to score from a ground cross, conceding an additional goal.

　Afterwards, we desperately aimed for a goal by bringing in FW Yusuke KONDO, but we were unable to break down Oita, who fought fiercely as one with the strong support of their home fans, until the end. We ended up hearing the whistle that signaled Tokyo's defeat.

【Player Comments】《Dohi》"We were only beaten during that period of time. But whether attacking or defending, we need to be more clear. Today was half-hearted. We play attacking football, so even during that period of time, we should have attacked more."《Miura》"It's important to score the decisive goal. Today, we couldn't score the second goal when we had the chance, and that was the reason for our defeat. When we attack so much but can't score, the opponent thinks they can do it. I was happy with my goal in that situation, but I wanted the 3 points more than that. Because it was an away game, I wanted to at least get 1 point."

[Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference] "We started the game with our own rhythm, and Oita had the atmosphere of their home opener, so they were motivated. However, we were surpassing them. We completely dominated the left side and had many chances, but we wanted to score during that period. From the middle of the first half, Oita started to pick up the ball and our defensive line dropped, making it difficult for us. At halftime, I instructed the team to 'attack more on the sides' and 'not drop the defensive line too much', and we scored a goal in a good period of the second half, which became our rhythm. We had chances, but not being able to convert them shows that our team still lacks strength. Today, we rested the Olympic players and wanted to earn points with the available players. However, the season has just begun. The Olympic players will join us from next week. We will prepare well and create a stronger team."

[Summary of Oita Han BERGER's press conference] "Before the match today, I spoke to the players and told them to show the supporters an exciting game. We faced FC Tokyo, who had many chances and lucky moments, but we are happy with today's victory because we had lost to them during the February camp. We are satisfied that we were able to defeat a strong team like FC Tokyo. We have been building the team for the past two months, and I think we are gradually improving. And today, we achieved a good result. Last season, if we conceded a goal, it was over, but today was different. We started from 0-1 and ended with 2-1. We have become mentally stronger. We are proud of the team and the players."