Important first match after the break, let's unite and win at home!

　J.League resumes after a break of about 3 weeks. In Sec. 14 of the league, we will face JEF United Chiba at home. During the break, we mainly focused on "how to play in difficult situations" and engaged in intense training. Based on that, this week we have been focusing on the Chiba match, training with concentration while considering various situations such as quick transitions from defense to attack and how to play in a disadvantaged situation.

　While Konno returns from the national team, Nagatomo, Shigematsu, and others have suffered injuries one after another. In this match, Sasaki and Fujiyama will play as center backs, and Kanazawa will serve as the left fullback. Coach Jofuku said, "Regardless of whether they make the lineup or not, the players are showing a united front and facing Chiba with a sense of determination. In this intense atmosphere, I hope we can turn accidents into positives."

　Chiba, on the other hand, is currently in last place in the league. However, under the guidance of coach Alex MILLER, they have been undefeated in the past 5 matches, with 4 wins and 1 draw (2 league matches and 3 Nabisco Cup matches). They have been able to maintain a solid defense with a 4-back formation and midfield players, and have accumulated points by launching sharp counterattacks. In addition, in these 5 matches, they have scored the opening goal in all of them and have demonstrated resilience in holding off the opponents' counterattacks.

　Manager Jofuku said, "During this break, Chiba should have improved their defensive system and counter-attacking after winning the ball. If we don't break through that, we won't be able to get 3 points. I think it will be a tough match, but I want us to show something better than the opponent." If we allow the first goal, it is also expected that they will retreat and strengthen their defense. We want to create chances with quick passing and superior movement to the opponent, and take the lead. Even in difficult times, we want to maintain balance, calmly initiate "Moving Football," and convert it into opportunities.

　Chiba has approached the match with a formation that is close to a 4-1-4-1, with Toda, registered as a defender, in the midfield and Ronaldo as the forward. Unfortunately, the match started at 16:04 in rainy weather at Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo.

Despite being reduced to 10 players in the 7th minute, they managed to take the lead without showing any numerical disadvantage!

　From the start, they attacked, and in the 3rd minute, Emerson aimed for a shot. In the 5th minute, Emerson advanced to the high position on the right side and crossed. Hirayama in front of the goal tried to shoot after trapping the ball with his chest, but he couldn't finish it due to the defense. However, in the 7th minute, a vertical pass from Chiba DF Bosnar went over Sahara's head and reached Chiba FW Ronaldo. FW Ronaldo quickly broke through the front line using his speed, and Imano, who had entered to cover, accidentally fouled inside the penalty area, resulting in a penalty kick... The penalty kick taken by FW Ronaldo was stopped by Shibata's great save, avoiding a desperate pinch, but Imano received a red card, forcing them to play with 10 men from an early stage.

　In the 9th minute immediately after, Chiba FW Ronaldo broke through the right side of Tokyo again and took a shot from the area. The rebound was closed down by MF Kudo, but Shioda made consecutive saves. Tokyo regained their composure by defending the goal with Shioda's excellent play. From an aggressive attacking plan, in the midfield, Kajiyama, Emerson, and Hanyu increased their defensive awareness and had to change to a strategy of counterattacking. However, they calmly connected passes and looked for a chance to counterattack by playing their own style of soccer.

　In the 23rd minute, Hirayama was fouled inside the area, and this time Tokyo got a penalty kick. However, Cabore's PK was blocked by the Chiba goalkeeper, and they also missed a great opportunity to take the lead. Nevertheless, they continued to exploit the open space and launched an attack. In the 28th minute, Kanazawa advanced towards the center and attempted to score despite being surrounded by the opposing defenders. In the 33rd minute, Cabore received the ball just outside the area on the right side, cut inside, and aimed for a shot. It was a well-controlled shot, but it missed above the frame. In the 38th minute, from a right cross, Hirayama in front of the goal turned around with a slick movement, evading the defenders, and took a shot. He created a great chance with skillful play, but the shot went straight to the goalkeeper.

　Approaching the Chiba goal with a fighting style that doesn't make you feel disadvantaged numerically, in the 39th minute, Hirayama chased after Chiba's clearance and won a left corner kick. When Hanyu kicked it, Sahara in the far post was completely free. Although there was no angle, he calmly headed it into the goal! Sahara scored his first goal in the J1 League, taking the lead with 1 point and heading into the second half.

Hideki SAHARA gets injured, taking advantage of the accident and ending in a draw...

　In the second half, we continued to launch attacks from a solid defense, and the intense offense and defense continued. In the 46th minute, Kajiyama dribbled into the middle after exchanging passes with Hayashi from a left free kick and took a shot. In the 49th minute, Kabore, who had moved up the center from a quick counterattack on the left, took a shot. However, it lacked power and went straight to the goalkeeper. In the 53rd minute, Chiba dropped a right cross in the penalty area, and Shinni was about to take a shot in front of the penalty area, but Kajiyama blocked it with his body. In the 56th minute, Hayashi expanded to the left and Kanazawa crossed from the left. It reached Hirayama in the right area, but he couldn't take a shot because his foot got caught in the pitch. Hayashi didn't give up and followed up on the loose ball to earn a right corner kick, but we couldn't create a chance from the corner kick.

　However, as time passed, fatigue began to show, and they started to face a time when they couldn't keep up with the press. In the 57th minute, Chiba replaced DF Toda with FW Maki in the front line and started to push Tokyo by sending long balls. In the 59th minute, Chiba lost the ball in the midfield, fouled Chiba FW Maki just outside Tokyo's right area, and awarded a free kick. Chiba MF Kudo's free kick was initially cleared, but they took advantage of the open space near the goal from the throw-in given. In the 62nd minute, Chiba's left long ball was dropped by FW Maki in the far area, creating a decisive scene for near FW Reynaud. It was a shot from a close range, but Shioda's save prevented the goal from being conceded.

　An accident occurred in the 66th minute. Saitama and Kanazawa collided with each other while trying to intercept the ball towards Chiba's front line. They failed to take possession, and Chiba's forward Ronaldo took a free shot from the right area. He managed to avoid danger by cutting to the left, but Saitama suffered a facial injury and was bleeding, so he had to leave the pitch for treatment. In the 68th minute, Chiba's defender Ikeda played a long pass, and forward Arnaud from the right side sent an early cross. Ronaldo, the forward in front of the goal, jumped in with his head and finally broke the goal...

　In the 74th minute, Daichi Otake replaced Hayabusa, and in the 79th minute, Kondo replaced Kabore, followed by Akamine replacing Hirayama, aiming to score additional points by introducing attacking players. However, Chiba also attacked with the midfielders Tanihara and the forwards Arata and Maki, and in the 85th minute, Maki headed the ball from Tanihara's left early cross, but Shioda caught it. In the 86th minute, Kondo was fouled just outside the left area and won a free kick. Kondo's direct ground shot was blocked by Chiba's defense wall. As the back and forth continued, in the 87th minute, a quick counterattack was launched, and Emerson dribbled up the center and passed to Kondo, who ran from left to right. Kondo circled inside and took a shot aiming for the open space, but missed the target. The intense offensive and defensive battle continued, but neither team was able to score additional points. The first match after the restart ended in a 1-1 draw.

　【Player Comments】《Shioda》"I wanted to win because it was a home game. It's a shame we ended up with a draw. However, it was good that we were able to hold on with the least amount of goals conceded while playing with 10 men for over 80 minutes. I think everyone's feelings were not scattered and we were able to come together as one. When we became 10 men, we switched to a quick attack while passing the ball, but we made sure not to lose in terms of running and fought firmly. We were able to connect well and create chances that were not inferior to the opponent... However, conceding a goal when we became 9 men was a problem we have had before. We need to either buy time or make small adjustments in our decisions. However, the 1 point we were able to get without losing here is necessary for us to continue fighting on a higher stage in the future. I want to continue to build on the fact that we were able to look in the same direction and fight together even when things were tough."《Hanyu》"I want to take the fact that we were able to get 1 point even with 10 men as a positive. We created a block with 4 defenders and 3 midfielders. However, naturally the coverage area expanded and there was fatigue. In that situation, we were able to score from a set piece and there were chances to win. The goal we conceded when Sasaki player went out of the pitch was a point of reflection. I tried to drop back to the side back position to defend, but as a result, I couldn't press from the front and allowed an easy cross. We weren't able to do what we wanted to do with 11 men, but we were able to do some things with 10 men. I want to use these experiences as a positive for the future."

　[Summary of Coach Shirofuku's Press Conference] "The J-League has resumed, and despite the bad weather, many people came to the venue, and we wanted to achieve good results. It's unfortunate that we could only get 1 point. We always simulate various game scenarios and prepare for the match in various situations, but today Konno was sent off early in the game. I didn't expect to be reduced to 10 players so early, but afterwards, we changed to a single striker and a diamond midfield. I think the flow of the game was not bad. In the first half, the opponent's formation didn't change, so we fought with the situation of being okay with a 0-0 score while building our defensive block. We were able to finish the first half with a goal, but in the second half, Chiba came with a front three, set up wide, and introduced FW Maki, so we anticipated various situations. However, we also had injuries during this time, and we didn't expect the period where we only had 8 field players to be that long. We must reflect on conceding a goal during that period. However, it is quite challenging to play for more than 80 minutes with 10 players in bad weather conditions. As for the way the game was played, I think the players fought very well."

　[Summary of Chiba Alex Miller's press conference] "I think we had a good start. We were able to make moves from the early stages and earned a penalty kick, but the opponent's goalkeeper made a good save. After that, we couldn't possess the ball and it became a difficult situation. We couldn't break through and conceded a goal from a corner kick, ending the first half in a tough situation. However, the second half was better. Goalkeeper Tateishi made several saves for us. The key to our improvement in the second half was being able to use side attacks. We made use of many side changes and created several good chances. We used the wide areas effectively from short passes, and various movements emerged from there. As a result, I think we did enough to earn 1 point. The players fought very well, and we want to continue playing like we did in the second half from now on."