Aiming for the first victory in 7 league matches

　Sec. 13 of the 2nd stage will be an away match against Niigata. This will be the first time the match is held at Niigata Stadium since the Niigata Chuetsu Earthquake. Last week, the Emperor's Cup was held, and Tokyo achieved a long-awaited victory with a 1-0 win against Sendai in a full 90-minute match. However, in the league matches, there has been no victory since the 6th round against Urawa on 9/23. We hope to win all remaining 3 matches and improve our position even a little.

　Niigata is currently in 2nd stage with 5 wins, 2 draws, and 5 losses, earning 17 points. After the earthquake, they have suffered 3 consecutive defeats, and it is also unfortunate that all matches have been held outside of Niigata. However, recently they have been struggling to achieve victories. Considering their 14th place finish in the 1st stage, it is clear that their current situation is different from the team they faced in the opening match of the 1st stage. In particular, the foreign trio of Edmilson, Ozeas, and Fabiano in the attacking line-up poses a significant threat. As evidence, their total goals in the 2nd stage are 24, ranking 3rd behind Urawa. In this match, Ueno will replace Ozeas, but they will approach the game with their proud attacking formation.

　Tokyo, on the other hand, increased their two center-backs, Mashihiro and Fujiyama, in place of the injured Moriba and Jean. Although there are some defensive concerns, the rest of the team is almost at full strength, and they hope to achieve their first victory in 7 league matches. The match started with Tokyo's kickoff under clear skies. In addition, Toda, who started in this match, achieved his 100th appearance in J1 league matches.

Take the lead with a brilliant goal by Miura, but...

　The head coach sent the team onto the pitch with the instructions to "score more than two goals and win" and to "play a good game no matter what". Both teams attacked aggressively from the start of the match. In the 2nd minute, Kelly passed to Lucas, who then sent the ball to Toda on the left side. Toda immediately crossed the ball, but the opponent's defender intercepted it and it resulted in a corner kick. In the 4th minute, Kelly passed to Lucas, who then passed to Imano, and then back to Lucas, showcasing intricate passing skills to outmaneuver the opponent's defenders. Finally, Lucas took a shot, but it hit the crossbar.

On the contrary, in the 5th minute, MF Kenji SUZUKI of Niigata took the ball from Tokyo and passed it to MF Shin Suzuki on the left side, then ran up and earned a corner kick. In the 6th minute, FW Edmilson cut off Inamoto's back pass and dribbled, then connected with FW Fabinho for a shot. Both teams have been attacking each other from the beginning.

　In the 11th minute, Kelly broke through with a brilliant direct pass and took a shot. In the 13th minute, Toda dropped the ball that was passed behind the opponent's defense by Kaji's long feed, and Lucas shot it as it was, but both shots hit the crossbar. Furthermore, in the 16th minute, Kanazawa broke through the left side with a passing play, but it resulted in a corner kick. In the 20th minute, Ishikawa kept the ball on the right side and earned a free kick. Ishikawa put the ball near the goal, but Toda couldn't redirect it into the net with a header from the far side. Tokyo effectively created chances through passing plays from both sides, and in the 21st minute, the opening goal was scored, giving a sense of anticipation for more goals.

　From their own half, Kelly dribbles up and passes the ball to Toda on the left side, who then switches it to Ishikawa on the right side. Ishikawa traps the long ball, bypassing the opponent's defender, and cuts back after reaching the end line, passing it to Miura who has come up. Miura shoots the ball directly from outside the penalty area, and the ball pierces the side net on the left side of the goal! They took an auspicious lead with a fine goal that hasn't been seen in recent matches.

Easy goal from a mistake

　However, just as they were celebrating, they conceded a goal just one minute after taking the lead. In the 22nd minute, Edmilson forcefully dribbled through the center, shaking off Fujiyama who was marking him, and entered the penalty area. He then crossed the ball back to the center along the ground, and Ueno, who had been making a run, perfectly connected with it, bringing Niigata back to square one.

　After that, Niigata completely took control of the pace. In particular, Edmilson ran freely on the right side and put the ball in front of the DF that they disliked. And Niigata would score another goal 4 minutes after equalizing. In the 26th minute, Suzuki Shin put in a left corner kick with his left foot, and the Tokyo DF cleared it once. However, Maruyama, who was on the right side, put the loose ball back in front of the goal directly, and Doi, who had come out, punched it, but the clearance was small and the ball passed to Suzuki Shin, who took a one-touch shot with his right foot. The shot was unsuccessful, but Matsuoka, who had moved to the center, pushed the ball in with his head, allowing Tokyo to concede a lead.

　Tokyo is struggling to find a rhythm in their attack. In the 31st minute, Lucas forcefully dribbles past the defense and takes a shot, but the opposing defender clears the ball. Miura then takes a shot from outside the penalty area, but it goes wide to the right. In the 33rd minute, Kelly and Kaji exchange passes in the center, and eventually Kelly, with involvement from Lucas, breaks free and takes a shot, but the opposing defender clears it with a brave effort. In the 38th minute, Tokyo earns a free kick just outside the penalty area in the center. Lucas aims directly for the goal, but it is cleared by the wall. Tokyo creates several shooting opportunities, but the first half ends with a score of 1-2.

Allowing the opponent's counter until the end

　The instructions from Manager Hara at halftime were "Don't lose to Ueno in the competition for the ball, Mashiwajima" and "Let's put a low pass to Lucas and Kelly once and then spread the attack to the sides." Tokyo starts their counterattack from the beginning of the second half. In the 1st minute of the second half, Ishikawa takes a shot but it goes over the bar. In the 53rd minute, Kajiyama is substituted for Miura, further increasing the ball possession rate and the attack continues in the opponent's half.

　In the 55th minute, there was a big side change from Kajiyama to the left side to Toda. He then ran up and made a centering pass, but it was cleared by the opponent's defender. In the 59th minute, Kanazawa crossed from the left side to the center, and Lucas headed the ball near the goal, but it was saved by the opponent's goalkeeper. However, the rebound was passed between Imano and Kajiyama, and finally Lucas took another shot, but it was right in front of the opponent's goalkeeper. They just couldn't score.

　Tokyo substituted Abe for Kelly in the 63rd minute. Just as they were thinking of being more aggressive, they conceded a goal on the counterattack from a mistake. In the 65th minute, Ishikawa kept the ball on the right side, cut out a misplaced pass, and Suzuki Shin dribbled up the left side. Suzuki Shin crossed the ball with a liner-like timing between the goalkeeper and the defender, and Edmilson, who had run to the opposite side, threw himself forward and slotted the ball into the goal, giving Tokyo an undeserved additional goal.

　Tokyo made a substitution, replacing Ishikawa with Baba in the 66th minute, but they couldn't stop Niigata's counterattack and conceded another goal. In the 71st minute, Edmilson dribbled past three defenders and managed to win a corner kick. However, from that left corner kick, Shinnosuke Suzuki delivered a precise ball and Edmilson scored with a header. It was a goal conceded due to a lack of concentration, which hasn't been seen in recent matches, resulting in a three-goal difference.

Never give up and keep attacking until the end...

　Tokyo launched a full-scale attack while taking some risks. Kanazawa and Abe attacked on the left side, Kaji and Toda attacked on the right side, and Kajiyama and Baba created the rhythm of the attack with their accents in the center. However, the additional goal came in the 79th minute. Abe dribbled through the penalty area, causing the opponent's defender to commit a foul. They were awarded a penalty kick, and Lucas neatly converted it to a two-goal lead. In the 85th minute, Masushima headed the ball from the left corner kick to the center, and Lucas headed it in, but the opponent's defender cleared it on the goal line. Furthermore, Kajiyama took a shot from the loose ball, but it went over the bar and they couldn't score.

　The game ended with a threatening Niigata goal until the end, but the score remained 2-4. Although it was the team's first two goals in a while, they easily conceded a goal from a small mistake. They were unable to grasp a good rhythm in both offense and defense until the end, and once again, they could not secure a victory in the league.　

　【Player Comments】《Miura》"I couldn't win when I scored the first goal. I felt like the opponent's passion was stronger. I knew that Niigata would come with the determination to win for those affected by the disaster, as it was their first home game in a while. We talked about not backing down and fighting with our pride, but in reality, it was difficult to push back with just our emotions. Niigata was quick to move and anticipate the next play. We need to think about different ways to attack against teams that sit back and defend, as we have been conceding a lot of counterattacks and losing control of the game. We need to finish our chances and make our shooting practice translate into wins. Our next game is the final home game, so we have to win there. We apologize to the fans who came out today despite the inconvenience of transportation. We want to make it up to them in the next game."《Mashima》"It was good to score the first goal, but we immediately conceded and lost our rhythm. The atmosphere got worse after that. Our defense was not working well together, as we had not played with this lineup before. We were able to adjust in the second half, but we were still vulnerable to counterattacks. We need to communicate better and fix the small details in practice. We wanted to win and gain momentum, but..."

　[Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference] "Due to the impact of the earthquake, the Niigata team played a home game at their stadium after a long time. Also, Niigata has been on a losing streak lately, so we expected a tough game. The Niigata team, including the fans, came with high motivation, so I told the players not to lose to that and to have a good game. As expected, Niigata had a speedy attack, and we couldn't attack well, and they intercepted our half-hearted attempts and turned them into counterattacks, which was unpleasant. However, in the 21st minute, Miura scored after Toda and Ishikawa connected, and I thought we finally scored in a good way. But soon after, we were scored against, which didn't go well for today's game. In that goal scene, in the midst of tension, Mashima, who is still young and inexperienced, and Fujiyama followed Edmilson, and if they had marked him properly in the middle where there was no angle, nothing would have happened, but they were somehow drawn to the ball and lost their mark. At halftime, I told Mashima not to be afraid and to compete against Ueno, because in the first half, Fujiyama was competing, which made the balance in the middle bad, and I was worried about the fullbacks when we squeezed in, and it was a continuous attack from Suzuki and Edmilson in the vacant space. The second goal was also due to Doi's punching going to the opponent, and considering the third goal was also due to Ishikawa's pass mistake, we were defeated by mistakes today... However, I think the players kept attacking until the end without giving up. I think Kajiyama and Baba, who came on as substitutes, did well, but today, some of Niigata's players were more powerful than us, even while having cramps, and I honestly have to admit that they were amazing. We haven't won in the league, so in the next match, which is the final home game, I want to switch our mindset and go for a win no matter what. I think Mashima has great potential, but he needs to overcome his moments of weakness. We definitely miss Jean and Shigeyuki Morino, but Mashima and the team need to overcome such things. I want to learn from Niigata's passion today and defeat Ichihara at the next Ajinomoto Stadium."

　[Summary of Niigata / Kamimachi Coach's Press Conference] "First of all, congratulations to Urawa for winning the league and Omiya for their J1 promotion. I think Saitama must be in a state of joy. I am very happy that we were able to play a high-speed soccer game that is characteristic of Niigata in our long-awaited home game. Even if we ignore the goals conceded, I think it was great that we showed the Niigata style in terms of content and results. Today, those who came to the stadium had various thoughts, and it was good that we were able to respond to their hopes and expectations. After the Reysol game, I used the expression "lukewarm bath," but I told the players that the last three games are the final sprint, and in a marathon, it is most frustrating to be overtaken by the opponent at the final sprint, but it feels good to overtake the opponent. I wanted them to show a proactive and active attitude by running faster than the opponent and taking the lead. I think that was evident throughout the game. Considering that we were one step ahead of the opponent in both the first and second goals, and that it led to scoring by making it our ball, I think today we saw the players' sincere attitude and the team's inherent sincerity. FC Tokyo is also a team with a sincere attitude, and I thought it would be a speedy and quick game for both teams, and it turned out to be a good game. I am happy that we were able to win in such a situation."