Secure your spot in the finals tournament!

　The match of the day, which resumed after a three-week break from the end of the 1st stage, is the 5th round of the Nabisco Cup qualifying Group D, with Tokyo playing away against Kobe. Tokyo, currently leading Group D (at the end of the 4th round), is in a situation where they will secure a place in the top 2 and advance to the final tournament if they draw or win this match. They definitely want to win and secure their spot comfortably. On the other hand, Kobe, despite being at the bottom of the group, still has a chance to advance to the final tournament if they win this match, so it is expected that they will come out with determination at home.

　The Tokyo members are missing GK Doi, DF Kaji, and DF Shigenoba, who are participating in the Asian Cup, as well as DF Motonaga, who is suspended. However, the Olympic representative group, which joined just two days ago, is energetically participating. The starting lineup consists of GK Shioda, DF Tokunaga (special designated player) from the right, Jean, Fujiyama, Kanazawa, MF Konno, and Miura as a double defensive midfielder, Ishikawa as the right MF, Kurisawa (special designated player) as the left MF, Kajiyama as the attacking midfielder, and Lucas as the lone forward. The day before (16th), the Olympic representative team was announced, and all four Tokyo players made the squad, creating a bright mood within the team. The Olympic members will temporarily leave the team after this day's match, so the locker room before the match was filled with the consciousness of "Let's win decisively here and send off the Olympic members in a pleasant manner." At 7:00 PM, as the kickoff whistle blew, the blue and red warriors, who were more hungry for victory than usual, jumped onto the pitch of Kobe Wing Stadium.

Kurisawa scores the opening goal from the early rush!

　It was the first minute of the match. In the midfield, Kurisawa received the ball and passed it to Lucas, who was positioned at the top after dribbling. Lucas forcefully rushed between the opponent's defenders, appearing to be stopped by two defenders. However, the ball rolled towards Kurisawa, who was running with speed, in the midst of the chaos. As the ball entered the penalty area, Kurisawa swung his right foot and the ball grazed the opponent's goalkeeper's hand, finding the left corner of the goal. Kurisawa, with his quick movements before the opponent could input the data of him being the most dangerous person in Tokyo on that day, scored his valuable first goal in the J-League.

　In the following 2 minutes, Imakano received the opponent's clearance ball in a slightly left position in front of the goal, and skillfully evaded the opponent with exquisite control, unleashing a powerful left-footed volley. Unfortunately, it was blocked by the goalkeeper's fine save, but it was a wonderful shot that boldly aimed for the goal.

　After that, Tokyo's "attacking football" heated up even more. The call of "Kōgeki, Kōgeki, Hara Tokyo!" echoed from the goal end earlier than usual. In the midfield, Kurisawa appeared unpredictably and showed his abundant stamina by appearing in passing lanes, receiving the ball, and controlling the game by spreading it to the sides. From the right side, Ishikawa and Tokunaga made sharp movements to initiate crosses, while Ono repeatedly broke through the space behind the defensive line with aggressive forward runs from the left side, and Kanazawa supplied effective crosses by participating in the attack. They inflicted damage on the opponents like body blows.

Allowing an equalizing goal from a momentary gap, starting from scratch

　The rhythm was completely Tokyo's. In terms of defense, midfielder Miura crushed the opponent's player who came out aggressively with his intense play, and both center backs Jean and Fujiyama were stable.

　On the other hand, Kobe played in a 3-5-2 formation, with the top forward Hato playing as a lone striker, and below him, Fujimoto joined as a playmaker. The sides were spread wide on both left and right, but what stood out was the left defender Hojel working in a very high position. Tokyo had many moments where they were pushed back, but Kobe defended well and quickly regained possession, then played long balls to Hojel to launch counterattacks.

　In the 17th minute, when Kanazawa went up on the left side of Tokyo and passed to the vacant area, Fujiyama, who responded, mishandled the ball. Habato picked it up and rushed down the side. He put in a sharp cross with a shot-like quality from a deep position, and Hojel, who had come up from the opposite side, matched it with a right-footed shot. The ball shook Tokyo's goal net, and they were caught up in a tie.

　Tokyo started their counterattack without being discouraged by this goal. In the 18th minute, Miura dribbled through the center and took a strong left-footed shot from outside the penalty area, but it was saved by the goalkeeper. In the following 19th minute, Lucas took a forceful shot while being surrounded by the defense. In the 26th minute, Ishikawa took a free kick from the right side, and Imamura headed it in the center, but missed the target. In the 27th minute, Kurisawa passed to Imamura who made a run on the left side, but the cross was unsuccessful. Furthermore, when the ball came out to the right side from a scramble, Kajiyama dribbled past Hojel with technical skill and passed it to the center. Kurisawa took a shot, but it went over the bar. The goal end cheered for the flowing attack with the call of "Sexy, Tokyo!" In the 29th minute, Ishikawa caught up with a long pass from Tokunaga on the right side with super speed and rushed towards the goal. He cut inside and took a powerful left-footed shot, but it hit the defender and was caught by the goalkeeper. In the 33rd minute, Kurisawa received the ball from Ishikawa, who defended on the right side, in the front line. He skillfully evaded two defenders who came to mark him with a step and made a pinpoint pass to Kajiyama on the opposite side. Kanazawa overlapped behind him, and Kajiyama passed the ball to him at the right timing to cross. Although it was cleared, Tokyo overwhelmed Kobe with their flowing attack. In the 41st minute, Lucas kept the ball on the left side and passed it to Kurisawa who came close. Kurisawa passed it to Miura in the center, and he took a shot. The powerful shot was saved by the goalkeeper's fine save, but Ishikawa picked it up on the right side and took a strong right-footed shot from a difficult angle. This shot was also caught by the goalkeeper. Tokyo dominated the game with almost one-sided attacks, but they couldn't score another goal, and the match was carried over to the second half with a score of 1-1.

Lucas scores the winning goal!

　At halftime, Coach Hara gave instructions on how to start the second half, emphasizing fast balls (crosses) from the sides, diving into those areas, and taking care of Hojel. Kobe, who had no choice but to draw, came out fiercely from the start of the second half, but Tokyo also created chances with Imano's timely runs into open spaces.

　At the 50th minute, Kanazawa, who received a pass in the midfield, skillfully evaded the defender with light steps and passed it to Lucas in the penalty area. Lucas, upon receiving the pass, forcefully dribbled past the defender towards the goal and took a shot with his back to the goal. Although it was initially blocked, he quickly followed up on the loose ball in the crowded area and scored a goal! This valuable additional point was obtained from Lucas's powerful attack.

　Tokyo, who scored an eagerly awaited additional goal early in the second half, faced a decisive pinch immediately after the 51st minute. Hato kept the ball deep on Tokyo's left side and crossed it quickly and low to the center, reminiscent of Kobe's scoring scene in the first half. There, MF Sugo jumped in with a free shot, but the ball went well over the bar. Tokyo, who escaped the decisive pinch, continued to move the ball through Kurizawa and when it became the opponent's ball, Imakawa and Fujiyama aggressively took the ball with intense charges, advancing the game in their favor.

　After that, both teams were unable to create decisive opportunities and the game moved to the 57th minute. Tokyo substituted Kajiyama for Baba as an attacking midfielder. On the other hand, Kobe also brought in an attacking midfielder by moving down one defensive midfielder. With Baba's ability to play the ball behind the opponent, Tokyo had more chances. In the 60th minute, Kurizawa broke through the left side and crossed the ball, but unfortunately, it was caught by the goalkeeper. In the 61st minute, Ishikawa broke through the left side after receiving a through pass from Baba and took a left-footed shot, but the ball missed the goal to the right. In the following 62nd minute, Ishikawa intercepted a defensive mistake by the opponent and took a right-footed shot from outside the box, but it went wide to the left of the goal. In the 68th minute, Tokyo substituted Wu for Miura, and in the 73rd minute, they substituted Abe for Lucas as a forward. Tokyo, who wanted an additional goal to seal the game, used all their cards. On the other hand, Kobe also made consecutive player substitutions in the 72nd and 77th minutes, changing to an ultra-attacking formation with four forwards.

　Both teams fought fiercely, but the decisive moment never came. Tokyo, with Jean and Fujiyama at the center, remained focused until the end and did not allow any dangerous situations. On the contrary, towards the end of the game, Ishikawa received the ball on the right side, dribbled and passed it to Baba who was free in the center. Baba skillfully evaded the marker with a trap and aimed for a shot in a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper. However, the goalkeeper made a superb save and the ball did not go into the goal. In the end, the game ended with a score of 2-1. Tokyo extended their points to 12 and secured first place in Group D in the preliminary round with one match remaining.

【Player Comments】《Kurisawa》"I approached the game with the intention of showcasing my own style of play and strengths, and I'm glad that it resulted in a positive outcome. I'm surprised, but I'm happy that I was able to score a goal and contribute to the team's victory. I switch my mindset when playing for my university and FC Tokyo, but I believe I am able to perform well in both environments. My ideal is to become a player who can excel in both dribbling and passing. I will continue to work hard in order to become that ideal player."《Ishikawa》"Personally, I felt exhausted towards the end, but I think as a team, we were able to withstand the challenging circumstances. It has been a while since I played for 90 minutes after an injury, so it was tough, but I'm glad I was able to give my best in the final match before the Olympics. Although I joined the team just two days prior to this match, the motivation of each player was high and it served as a source of inspiration. Even though I will be leaving the team now, I want to approach it with a sense of urgency, knowing that my position may be at risk when I return after the Olympics. I aim to elevate my level and make a strong comeback."

[Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference] "I knew that Kobe would come out flying because a draw is not enough for them, so we had discussed pressing from the front right from the start. Everyone followed the instructions and we were able to enter the game in a good shape. And Kurisawa made a good play early on. Kurisawa can make passes, dribble past defenders, and take shots. We already knew that he is capable of playing at this level, but he performed exceptionally well today. The Olympic players returned just before the match, so we didn't have much time to adjust, and the rhythm wasn't great due to the heat, but I'm glad we were able to earn 3 points and advance to the next round. After this match, we won't have the Olympic players anymore, so we want to use the well-conditioned players and further enhance the team's strength. We have high expectations for the competition among the remaining players. Including tomorrow's satellite match, we want to boldly use the players who come and make an impression in the next Reysol match."

[Kobe Hasek's press conference summary] "First of all, congratulations to FC Tokyo for advancing in the qualifiers. Today's match was FC Tokyo's game, and they played good football for the full 90 minutes. FC Tokyo's players have high abilities, especially their midfield strength, which dominated the center of the field more than us. We only managed to get behind their defense line once. It was a decisive chance to equalize at 1-2, but we couldn't convert it, which is painful. However, we still have a little possibility of advancing in the Nabisco Cup qualifiers. We want to switch our mindset and give our best until the end."