National hosting for the first time this season. Aiming for consecutive victories in the Nabisco Cup

　The 4th section of the Nabisco Cup will be held at the Japan National Stadium, where Júbilo Iwata will compete. In this qualifying league, Tokyo is currently in 3rd place. They aim to continue their winning streak after the previous match against Oita and rise up by defeating Iwata, who is in 4th place. At the same time, they want to achieve a victory at home with renewed determination at the National Stadium. However, in this section, Masahiko INOHA is suspended from playing due to his expulsion in the 5th section match against Niigata. Additionally, Ikegami has fallen ill and left the team. As a result, the defensive line will be arranged with Imano as the center back and Tokunaga as the right side back.

　The head coach analyzed, "The balance in the midfield has been poor lately. Despite attacking with numbers, we have been losing the ball and getting countered. There is a big gap in front of the center-back, allowing the opponents to face forward and gain momentum." At the same time, the defensive line is also a makeshift combination, so the coach decided to start Asari, who will solidify the final line. Fukunishi and a double pivot will be formed. Lucas will be in the front line, Baba will be in the attacking midfield, Kurisawa will be on the left wing, and Ishikawa will be on the right wing. They will face the match with a fresh lineup.

　Iwata has been plagued by injuries, with DF Tanaka leading the way. However, in the 5th round league match against Urawa on the 8th, they were able to compete with sharp movements and midfield passing centered around MF Fabricio, although they allowed the winning goal in the final stages. They should come to get 3 points in order to advance to the final tournament, as they are still winless in the Nabisco Cup. However, Tokyo cannot afford to lose in their third match against them this season. Coach Hara said, "We gained momentum after becoming 10 men in the Niigata match. There is a hint there. Even with fewer players, we can create decisive chances, so I want to attack without fear while adjusting the balance and return to Tokyo's original style of play to aim for victory!"

Seize the rhythm and take the lead with Fukunishi's goal in the first half injury time

　The cold rain that started in the evening gradually subsided. However, the Japan National Stadium, where the cold could be felt, started with a kick-off in Tokyo at 19:04. From the beginning, Lucas and Baba became the starting points in the front line, and Ishikawa and Kurisawa also moved well, drawing out attacking full-backs from fluid positioning and grasping the rhythm. In the 8th minute, Ishikawa, who had drifted to the left, crossed from the goal line. It was initially blocked by the opponent's defender, but Kanazawa regained possession and made a through pass to the front line. However, it did not reach Kurisawa, who had run in from the right. In the 9th minute, Baba boldly aimed from mid-range. In the 10th minute, Lucas cut inside from a left throw-in, exchanged passes with Baba, and took a sharp shot. However, it missed the target.

　Iwata also had a strong and fast cross from the right back Inuzuka in the 12th minute. Although it did not match with FW Karen Robert who jumped in, in the immediate 13th minute, a long through pass was sent to the front line from the left side. FW Karen Robert quickly broke through from the left area and took a shot. The ball that slipped through beside Shioda headed towards the goal, but Fujiyama cleared it at the last moment and escaped the pinch. In the 21st minute, Lucas passed to the right to Tokunaga and ran up to the goal. A floating pass was sent from Tokunaga to the area just in front of Lucas, and Lucas dropped it with a chest trap and took a shot, but it went over the bar. A great chance was missed.

　Tokyo often picks up second balls and transitions to attack, but lacks a little ingenuity in finishing, leading to a counterattack from Iwata's solid defense. In the 28th minute, MF Kikuchi breaks through against Iwata's front line with a through pass. Asari skillfully cuts it off with a sliding tackle. However, Iwata's FW Karen Robert then runs into the left area and unleashes a powerful shot. But Tokyo's defense remains focused and holds strong.

　Unable to decide while taking the lead, it seemed like the first half would end like this, but in the 44th minute, Lucas -> Baba became a wedge, and Lucas who went inside received a return pass. They created a chance from a flowing combination play. Lucas' shot towards the upper right corner of the goal was blocked by the opponent's goalkeeper's great save, but they earned a right corner kick. Ishikawa's kick was connected by Lucas in the center while playing the role of a decoy, and Fukunishi on the far side reacted quickly and kicked it neatly into the goal! They scored the long-awaited opening goal in stoppage time and took a 1-0 lead into the second half.

Lucas scores an additional point! Iwata holds back the counterattack and secures their first home victory

　Tokyo, who took the lead, came out attacking vigorously from the start of the second half. In the 45th minute, Ishikawa received a pass from the back and turned around to shoot. In the 48th minute, Fukunishi broke through on the left side, passed to Baba in the center, and then to Ishikawa on the right side. Tokunaga, who had moved up from the outside, crossed the ball along the ground. It was cleared by the opponent's defender, but Tokyo continued their wide attack. In the 52nd minute, Asari, who had kept the ball on the left side, took a well-controlled shot from the middle. However, it went wide to the right.

　As time passed, both teams gradually stretched their lines and the game became a back-and-forth battle. In the 58th minute, a pass was intercepted on the left side by Tokyo, leading to a quick run into the goal area by Iwata MF Naruoka. Naruoka's sharp shot was saved nicely by Shibata in the upper right corner of the goal! After that, Tokyo also refrained from pressing too aggressively and instead organized their defense in their own half, waiting for a chance. In the midst of that, in the 66th minute, Lucas chased after a loose pass from Iwata's DF in front of the opponent's goal. He was brought down by goalkeeper Matsui inside the penalty area, earning a penalty kick. Lucas himself took the penalty kick with a powerful shot and scored an additional goal at a good time!

　Iwata, who had no choice but to attack, launches a fierce counterattack from here. In the 71st minute, the ball is passed to FW Karen Robert from a right cross, and he is persistently challenged in front of the goal and takes a shot. In the 76th minute, Iwata was awarded a free kick from the left just outside the penalty area, but MF Fabricio's kick was blocked by the wall. In the final stages, it becomes a back-and-forth of counterattacks, and in the 82nd minute, Iwata makes two substitutions at once. With this substitution, Ueda, the left full-back, moves up to the attacking midfield position.

　In the 83rd minute, Ota from Iwata cut in from the right side and allowed a shot. This pinch was avoided with the help of the opponent's mistake, but in the 85th minute, Ueda and Nakayama from Iwata exchanged passes and allowed entry into the area. Tokyo was broken down by taking advantage of the gap in marking and finally conceded a goal. After this, they continued to be pushed back, but they countered with a united defense and the time was up. They scored goals from corner kicks and penalty kicks, achieved consecutive victories in the Nabisco Cup with a balanced offense and defense, and also secured their first victory of the season at home!

　【Player Comments】《Asari》"We approached the game with the mindset of 'regaining momentum' together, but today we had a strong attack. My role was clear, so I was able to defend while Hyun Soo JANG made runs forward. In addition, my teammates covered for me when I went forward. Being used in the game requires a balancing role. We conceded a goal in the end, but overall, I think I fulfilled my role. Until now, we've been experiencing setbacks over small things, but I believed that we could achieve results if we played with determination. This time it was at the National Stadium, but in the next home game, I want to play good soccer at Ajinomoto Stadium and share the joy with everyone."《Baba》"I haven't been able to play in many games so far, but I've always been prepared to play whenever I get the chance. I'm most happy that we won as a result of getting the opportunity in this way. Today, I was thinking of receiving the ball in a high position and playing it simply. I was instructed to receive the ball fearlessly and clearly differentiate between shooting and passing. If I don't take shots, the opponent's defenders won't come forward, so I tried to shoot as much as possible. It was a rainy pitch, so I aimed for low shots as much as possible... Unfortunately, I didn't score or assist, so next time I want to aim for both. I will prepare myself to win by getting into condition."

　[Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference] "Until now, we haven't been able to win at home, and I think everyone has been putting in a lot of effort. Although it is the Japan National Stadium, we were able to win today, so from now on, we need to show our true strength. Inoha was suspended, so we thought about what to do with the final line, but we decided to focus on Nakanou as a stopper and moved Tokunaga to his natural right position. There was also the option of using Yoshimoto and Ikegami, but winning or losing in today's Nabisco Cup is completely different. We decided on this formation in order to definitely win. And because the final line changed, we used Asari in front of it, but the balance was good. We aimed to defend firmly and then attack quickly from there. Baba also received the ball well, and Ishikawa had a good run. Kurisawa also balanced things well. Despite it being a weekday and raining, 10,000 fans came to support us. We talked about playing a game with a lot of spirit to respond to the fans who support us so much even though we haven't been winning. I think everyone did that. Today, in addition to Inoha, we didn't use players like Hirayama and Kajiyama who are Olympic representatives, but we think it's important to win without using them, so we deliberately continued with the same formation until the end. They will do their best in the Syria match, and the remaining players will do their best in the league matches here. I think the team's strength will continue to improve in this way. But we can't just be happy. We have a league match coming up soon, so we need to switch our mindset quickly. Based on this kind of battle, we have to fight the next match against Oita."

　[Summary of Iwata-Adilson coach's press conference] "From the beginning, Iwata's players entered the pitch in a state where they seemed still asleep and not mentally focused, and we conceded a goal in the first half injury time. At halftime, I encouraged the players and brought out their motivation. Also, since the opponent is winning, they will come out on the counterattack, so we discussed countermeasures for that and told them to spread the ball and cross it from the outside to score goals from there. However, the opponent scored another goal, and although we had several good chances ourselves, unfortunately, we could only score one goal. It has become difficult for us to advance in the Nabisco Cup qualifiers, but we also have the league, so we want to switch our focus to that."