Control the midfield and aim for 3 points!

　As we approach two-thirds of the league season, we will face Kashiwa Reysol away in Sec. 22. In the three matches since the restart in August, we were unable to secure a victory, with 2 draws and 1 loss. However, in the matches against Nagoya Grampus and Iwata, we showed resilience by equalizing even after conceding the first goal, and our performance has been improving. Starting from this match, we will return to playing one match per week, allowing sufficient time for adjustments. During this period, Yoshiro ABE, who was on loan to Oita, has returned, and the players who were affected by colds or had their condition deteriorated have regained their energy. Today's starting lineup consists of Lucas and Sasa as the front two, with Imakano and Kajiyama forming a double pivot in midfield, and Noriyuki Suzuki playing as the left full-back in a 4-4-2 formation. Yoshiro ABE will also be on the bench as a super sub.

　Kashiwa is currently in 16th place with 22 points. In the three matches after the restart, they have had 2 draws and 1 loss, just like Tokyo. However, in the last match against C Osaka, they were caught up in the final moments and haven't been able to ride the wave. But in this match, FW Tamada, who missed the C Osaka match due to a fever, will return. He will form a two-top with new signing FW Ronaldo. They have also changed their defense to a 4-back system to counter Tokyo's system.

　The head coach said before the game, "Kashiwa thoroughly focuses on stealing and counterattacks. Ronaldo, Tamada, and Yano are also fast. They come at us with speed when facing forward, so we want to make them spend as much time and effort as possible. If we are stolen in a strange way, there is a fear of a counterattack, so we must finish with simplicity and not end with a cross in our attacks. Also, they retreat quickly, so we want to take the lead and force the opponent to go for goals. We have played against Kashiwa three times this season and have lost one and drawn two. Furthermore, we will continue to face lower-ranked teams from here on, and we cannot afford to drop points. We must take three points by any means and gain momentum for a comeback."

Nicking The Points

With two thirds of the league campaign over, F.C.TOKYO took on Kashiwa Reysol away in the 22nd. game. TOKYO had failed to win since the league restarted in August but in the two draws with Grampus and Jubilo had shown admirable character in fighting back after conceding the first goal and were certainly improving. With the match schedule returning to a one game a week pace there was ample time to refine tactics in training. Yoshiro Abe returned from his loan period at Oita Trinita and the players struggling with colds and niggles had time to recover. TOKYO lined up in a 4-4-2 formation: Lucas and Sasa Salcedo in attack, Konno and Kajiyama in defensive midfield and Suzuki as left back. Abe took up his customary "super-sub" position on the bench. 
Opponents Reysol lay in 16th. place with 22 points at kick off. Like TOKYO they were struggling with their consistency and had been held to a draw in the previous game with Cerezo after conceding a last-gasp equaliser. Ace striker Tamada returned from illness and teamed up with new acquisition Reinaldo, also in a 4-4-2 formation. 
Before kick off manager Hara commented, "Reysol are a complete counter attacking side, very fast on the break. We will have to slow down their attack and force them to commit players going forward. We must ensure we finish every movement with a shot on goal and don't lose the ball in the build-up; if we do we could be in trouble. Ideally, we'd like an early goal to force them to come forward". This was the fourth meeting of the sides this season; Reysol held a 2-1 advantage. Further, it was a meeting of two sides at the wrong end of the table and, while not quite a six-pointer, victory would put some daylight between TOKYO and the stragglers. 

Sasa's right foot explodes, scoring the opening goal in the first minute, but...

　Even though the wind started blowing, the humidity remained in Kashiwa no Ha. At exactly 7:00 PM, the kickoff in Kashiwa began. Just over 30 seconds into the game, Sasa was fouled near the left side of the area, earning an immediate free kick opportunity. Sasa himself took the FK from a distance of about 20 meters, and the ball bounced under the outstretched hand of the opposing goalkeeper, sliding into the right side of the goal. They already scored the opening goal!

　I wanted to take advantage of this opportunity and build momentum, but Kashiwa also quickly took the ball and launched a counterattack. In response, Tokyo continued to launch fast attacks. However, in the 14th minute, Suzuki Nori and Shigeki Moino on the left side back stopped the opponent's attack with persistent defense. However, just when I thought I had the ball, the referee gave a decision for the opponent's throw-in. While I was not prepared, Kashiwa DF Kobayashi threw the ball in, and MF Myojin immediately connected with a header, and FW Ronaldo jumped in front of the goal and made a header shot. We were caught off guard and conceded a goal.

　Equalized but continue to attack. In the 16th minute, Ishikawa went around from the right side and took a middle shot. There was momentum, but it went to the left. In the 19th minute, Lucas had a big chance to face the GK one-on-one. However, the shot he took from the left side into the area was blocked by the opponent GK's fine play, and he missed a good opportunity. Then, in the 26th minute, Kashiwa's midfielder Ohtani passed to Reynaud in front of the area. Reynaud turned towards the goal and as soon as he saw the front was open, he immediately took a middle shot. Although Doi made a save once, the ball spilled and went into the goal. They conceded the second goal.

　Behind but not discouraged, they counterattack. In the 29th minute, Sasa broke through with Kurisawa's pass and dodged the opponent's defender on the left side of the area to take a shot. Unfortunately, it was cut off by the opponent's defender and the goalkeeper punched it away. Ishikawa competed for the loose ball and won a corner kick. However, the two corner kicks did not result in a chance. In the 33rd minute, a free kick from the left side near the area. Jean jumped in for Kurisawa's kick, but the ball floated and the opponent's goalkeeper caught it. In the 35th minute, a cross from Kaji from the right side. Kajiyama picked up the loose ball and Suzuki Norio crossed from the left side this time. They attacked using the width of the pitch, but failed to finish.

　In the 42nd minute, Lucas received a feed from Shigeki and became a wedge, Sasa dodged the opponent's DF in the center of the area and took a shot, but it hit the bar. In injury time, there was a chance for a free kick from almost the same position where the opening goal was scored. This time, Sasa kicked it again, but couldn't find the target. Despite creating chances, they lacked the finishing touch and went into the second half trailing by one goal.

Sasa Blasts TOKYO Ahead

Reysol kicked off shortly after 7pm on a breezy but humid evening. With only 30 seconds on the clock Sasa was upended outside the Reysol area on the left and TOKYO had the first chance of the game. Sasa took the free kick himself, curling the ball across the wall and beyond Minami's despairing dive to give TOKYO a dream start. 
TOKYO sought to press home the advantage but Reysol were faster to the ball and fought back with some rapid counter attacks. In the 14th. minute Suzuki and Moniwa combined to snuff out a threat down the left. The ball went out for what seemed a TOKYO throw in but was given to Reysol; as the players registered their surprise Kobayashi quickly threw the ball in to Myojin who headed it into the goalmouth and Reinaldo nodded past Doi for the equaliser. A moment's break in concentration cost TOKYO dearly. 
The visitors continued to attack; in the 16th. minute Ishikawa raced down the right, cut inside and shot, his effort fizzing wide. Lucas had a golden opportunity to restore TOKYO's lead in the 19th. minute as he bore down on goal with only the keeper to beat. Minami produced a fine save to maintain parity. In the 26th. minute midfielder Otani picked out Reinaldo outside the TOKYO area. Reinaldo found himself in space and shot powerfully; Doi managed to make contact but was unable to prevent the ball trickling over the line to put the home side ahead. 
TOKYO rallied and went close in the 29th. minute through Sasa who cut inside a defender and shot from the edge of the area. Minami punched the effort away and Ishikawa earned a corner by battling a defender for the ball. In the 33rd. minute Jean failed to connect with Kurisawa's floated free kick from the left and Minami held the ball cleanly. Kaji and Kajiyama curled in crosses in the 35th. minute as TOKYO used the full width of the pitch to good effect but the final touch was lacking. In the 42nd. minute Moniwa and Lucas combined to set up Sasa but his shot flew over the bar. Sasa fired another free kick wide in injury time. TOKYO were creating chances but the finish was lacking and the half ended 1-2. 

Yoshiro Abe retaliates with one arrow, but sinks to Kashiwa's sharp counterattack

　At halftime, we were supposed to regroup and go for the win in the second half. However, we were caught off guard by a sharp counterattack from Kashiwa just a few seconds into the restart. FW Tamada dribbled through the center, trying to break through the defense, but then shifted to the right. He connected with MF Kleber, who then passed to Ohtani. Just as Mochida tried to intercept, Reynaldo, who was lurking behind him, slipped past and intercepted the ball. Reynaldo attracted the attention of Tokyo's defenders and passed to the left. Tamada, who had made a run into the box, scored the third goal. We were down by two goals early in the second half, making it a tough game.

　Tokyo's Lucas in the 46th minute, and Kurisawa in the 49th minute, aimed for a shot from the middle, but the opponent's goalkeeper caught it. In the 52nd minute, Ishikawa sprinted down the right side. Near the end line, he cut inside from a deep position, but the ball went out after being contested by the defender. In the 53rd minute, Abe Yoshito was substituted for Kurisawa. There was a loud cheer, and just as they were trying to quickly regain their rhythm from here, something happened. In the 55th minute, Kashiwa Reysol took the back pass from Imano to Jean and quickly moved towards the goal. The shot was saved by Doi, but Tamada pushed in the rebound for a goal. They conceded the fourth goal from a mistake.

　Tokyo, who tried to retaliate somehow, started attacking more aggressively. In the 62nd minute, Abe Yoshi made a move from the side change by Kaji and circled around to the center, trying to exchange passes with Lucas. However, the opponent's defender cut it off at the last moment. In the 65th minute, Sasa made a through pass to the front line, and Lucas kept jumping into the goal area one after another, but he couldn't shoot due to the solid defense of Kashiwa. In the 66th minute, Suzuki Nori stole the left corner kick from the cross by Suzuki Nori. In the 67th minute, Baba was substituted for Ishikawa. However, Kashiwa's counterattack continued with momentum. In the 70th minute, from the cross by Imano who moved up on the right, Suzuki Nori shot the loose ball of the defender, but it was blocked by the defender, and from there they quickly launched a counterattack. FW Tamada brought the ball into the area and took a shot, but Doi made a save.

　In the 71st minute, Sasa attacked the area from Tokyo's fast break and took a shot. He stormed the goalkeeper, but it was escaped by a corner kick. In the 73rd minute, Suzuki Nori broke through the left side and sent a ground cross. Lucas, who was closing in on the goal, entered a shooting position, and Yoshiro Abe pushed it in when it became a melee with the opponent's defender, Goal! It was a gritty and characteristic goal by Abe, finally scoring in his favorite style. After that, Abe and Baba were often the starting points and continued to attack until the end, but they couldn't bring it to a finish in front of Kashiwa's tenacious defense. Ultimately, they were overwhelmed by Kashiwa's strength in the ball contest and lost 2-4 in the face of skillful and fast counterattacks. However, there were also promising moments such as Sasa and Abe's goals, giving hope for future comebacks. They want to use this defeat as motivation and make a comeback.

　【Player Comments】《Yoshiro ABE》"I played with the instruction to aggressively move forward and create the rhythm of the attack. I thought I would keep challenging myself and show my own style rather than just fulfilling the team's role. The goal was just a coincidence because Norio SUZUKI broke through the narrow side. It's disappointing that we couldn't produce results, but it's not over yet and I don't think we need to look down."《Sasa》"I had confidence in the free kick, so I took it. The goal didn't immediately lead to a victory, but I want to keep working hard to achieve good results."《Shigenori》"I wanted to attack with a more compact formation, but the opponent came forward and we ended up being passive. I feel like we could have done more, and I have regrets. The conceded goal was partly due to bad luck, but more importantly, our marking was off. We have a sense of crisis. I want the players to discuss among themselves about how we should fight now. We have been expected a lot by Tokyo supporters, and we have received both boos and cheers. I think that means they are saying, 'You can do better!' For my own sake, I want to fight to the end in the remaining matches."

　[Summary of the press conference by Coach Hara] "We were able to make a good start by scoring early in the game. However, we lost our rhythm after conceding a goal during the opponent's throw-in situation while saying 'My ball'. Although we were not completely broken, we also allowed the second goal by giving Kashiwa FW Ronaldo too much space. At halftime, I told the team, 'Kashiwa will come at us with counterattacks, so be careful. Let's not be afraid and continue to move the ball and attack.' However, just one minute into the second half, we conceded a goal to Tamada from a counterattack, making the game difficult for us. We tried to play our style of football by bringing in Yoshiro ABE and Baba as substitutes, but we couldn't convert the chances to score the third goal and Kashiwa escaped with the win. This season, we have had a tough time against Kashiwa, and I mentioned before the game that we need to fight hard. However, we were losing to Kashiwa's players in individual battles. It is a very frustrating defeat, but we want to stand firm together for the next game. All four goals were due to our defense gradually becoming lax, so we want to make proper adjustments."

　[Kashiwa Sano's press conference] "We had been having a series of draw games, but this week we confirmed our tactics and approached the game with the mindset of scoring two goals and winning. We conceded the first goal, but we were able to turn the game around and secure the victory. It's the first time this season that our two forwards each scored two goals. If we can continue to play in this way, we can have a stable performance. We switched to a four-back formation to neutralize the opponent's strong points and adapt to FC Tokyo's system. That's why we put Satsukawa in the left full-back position, which he is not accustomed to. Satsukawa did a good job in that unfamiliar position, and Tsuchiya and Hato showed good coordination as center-backs. Furthermore, goalkeeper Minami, who made some fine saves, was the MVP of today's match. I substituted Reynaud to ensure that we would secure all three points, and I wanted to increase our team's energy. Since the opponent was pushing forward, we also increased our energy and focused on solid defense rather than scoring another goal. There are still things that we need to work on, but we want to build on this victory for the next match."

Abe Scores On Return

TOKYO sought to continue in the same vein after the break but were rocked by a rapid Reysol counter in the first minute of the second period. Tamada dribbled through the middle then switched play to the right as the TOKYO defence blocked his path forward. Otani played the ball through to Reinaldo, Moniwa failed to cut out the pass and Reinaldo squared the ball for Tamada to tap in with Doi stranded. TOKYO found themselves two goals behind less than a minute after the restart. 
Lucas and Kurisawa tried their luck from distance but Minami held both efforts comfortably. Ishikawa sprinted to the byline and pulled the ball back in the 52nd. minute but the home defence cleared the danger. Abe replaced Kurisawa in the 53rd. minute and received a rapturous welcome from the TOKYO fans; any thoughts of his leading a fightback were shattered by another lapse of concentration, though. In the 55th. minute Reysol intercepted a backpass from Konno to Jean and swarmed over the TOKYO defence. Doi held the initial shot but Tamada pounced to slot the rebound home and raise the score to 4-1. 
With the game sliding out of their grasp TOKYO had no option to throw themselves into attack. Kaji's crossfield ball in the 62nd. minute found Abe on the left but a defender blocked his attempted one two with Lucas. More solid defending prevented Lucas from shooting after he raced onto Sasa's through ball and Suzuki's cross earned TOKYO a corner in the 66th. minute. Baba replaced Ishikawa in the 67th. minute. Reysol showed no signs of slacking the pace of their counter attacks and after a TOKYO move broke down in the 70th. minute Tamada raced free and only a fine save from Doi denied him a hat trick. 
Minami foiled Sasa from the edge of the area in the 71st. minute. Two minutes later Suzuki made headway down the left and fired in a low cross. Lucas shaped to shoot, then became entangled with a defender and Abe popped up to force the ball home and reduce the deficit to two. Thereafter he and Baba strove manfully to pierce the Reysol defence but chances were unforthcoming and the home side successfully held off TOKYO for a 4-2 victory. TOKYO could take some consolation from the defeat in Abe's return and Sasa's well-taken goal. 

Players' comments
Abe:
"I went on with orders to go forward positively and try to find a rhythm. I was thinking more about playing my natural game of taking people on than my role in the team. I was just in the right place at the right time for the goal after Suzuki got through and crossed. We didn't get the result but there's no reason to be down. There's a long way to go yet".

Sasa
"I felt confident so I took the free kick. My goals aren't really contributing to wins but I'm doing my best to get the results".

Moniwa
"We needed to be a little more compact in attack and were rather passive when they came out to attack us. There's definitely a feeling we could have done more in the game. I also have a feeling of crisis. We have to discuss how to approach the games amongst ourselves. The supporters were both booing and cheering us today and that shows we have much more to do. I'll give it my best in the remaining games".


F.C.TOKYO manager Hara
"We started very well and got the early goal. But as the players were appealing for the throw in it was taken and they scored; we lost our rhythm from there. They didn't really overrun us but Reinaldo was left in space for the second goal. At half time I warned the team Reysol would play on the counter attack and told them to move the ball around more. Reysol scored in the first minute of the half and that made the game very difficult for us. We sent on Baba and Abe hoping they could lift us but we just couldn't find the third goal. Reysol have been difficult opponents for us this year and before the game we discussed the importance of solid performances but they were better than us on an individual level today. It's a very disappointing defeat but we'll focus on doing our best in the next game".

Reysol manager Hayano
"We've been drawing a lot of games recently so we worked on tactics in training and were determined to score at least twice and win the game. They scored first but we came back to win the match. This is the first time this season our strikers have scored two goals each and that's the most pleasing thing. If they can score that allows us to play a steady game. We started with four backs, with Satsukawa on the left, as that negates TOKYO's strong point. He's not used to the position but played well, as did the centre backs Tsuchiya and Hato. I think Minami was the man of the match for us today; he made some vital saves at important times. I replaced Reinaldo as we needed a little more movement and were determined to take the three points. TOKYO attacked strongly at the end and instead of another goal we needed more in defence. There are still many, many things we have to do but we hope to carry over this win into the next game".