In the Visco quarterfinals, break open Oita's goal and win with more than 2 goals

　The Nabisco Cup quarterfinals will be played away against Oita Trinita. In the first match held at home at Ajinomoto Stadium, we lost 1-2, so we have no choice but to win with two or more goals to advance to the semifinals. We have a league match coming up in three days, but first, we want to focus on this game and fight with all our might. If the score is 2-1, it will go into extra time (⇒PK shootout), so the way we play will change depending on the situation. It will be a crucial match where we cannot overlook the tactics of both benches.

　Oita, on the other hand, has been in good form with no losses in the last 6 league matches. Especially at home, they have 7 wins, 1 draw, and 1 loss in the league, and 2 wins and 1 draw in the Nabisco Cup. Since the 8th section on April 26th, they have not been defeated and have shown overwhelming strength. To fill the absence of injured forward Takamatsu, forward Morishima joined the team in July. Midfielder Takahashi has also fully recovered, aiming to increase the scoring power, while the solid defense based on a strong three-back formation remains intact.

　Tokyo used Shigeno and Fujiyama as center backs, with Kanazawa playing as left fullback. Coach Jofuku listed three points: "To score more than two goals by breaking through Oita's solid defense, we need to move the ball in the midfield, come up with ideas with a shared awareness in the attacking area, and also have the tenacity to push forward with our bodies." Against the opponent's three-back formation, we want to create opportunities from midfield passing and Emerson and Hanyu's fluid positioning, and utilize Kabore's speed and Akamine's runs.

　Furthermore, "Even if it's 1 vs 1 or 1 vs 2, the result is the same (Coach Jofuku)," so it may become a situation where we have to take risks. It is a condition for victory to unify everyone's will and aggressively take action. We want to bravely challenge a formidable opponent and make it the start of the "August Counterattack". The match started at 19:00 with the kickoff in Oita at the Kyushu Oil Dome, where there is no wind and high humidity.

Take the lead with Cabore's goal, but caught up and ended the first half

　Tokyo seizes the chance immediately. In the 3rd minute of the match, Emerson sends a lobbed pass aiming for the space behind the opponent's defender from Yu's cross on the right side. The ball grazes the opponent's defender and falls forward, where Cabore takes advantage of his speed and runs in to shoot. The bouncing ball goes over the opponent's goalkeeper and is sucked into the net for a goal. Tokyo takes the lead in the early stages of the game.

　Without panicking, they continue to aim for the second goal without disrupting the balance between offense and defense. In the 16th minute, Tokunaga dribbles and sends a through pass into the area, but it doesn't reach Kabore. In the 19th minute, Emerson, who is slightly withdrawn in the midfield, sends a through pass to the center of the front line. Akamine runs in from the right, but the ball is slightly too long and doesn't reach him. In the 23rd minute, they earn a free kick just outside the left area, but Tokunaga's kick is blocked by the wall. They create chances, but the lack of coordination and accuracy in the final moments continues, and they are unable to bring it to a finish.

　Then, in the 40th minute, Oita's left MF Suzuki's sharp early cross was met by MF Edmilson who rose in front of the goal and scored with a header, resulting in a goal. The defense had been holding up well until then, but they were caught off guard and allowed the equalizing goal. Tokyo continued to attack without giving up. In stoppage time, they launched a counterattack and Emerson sprinted up the right side and crossed. Akamine was blocked with a smile, and the ball went to Hayashi who was free in the left area. It was a decisive moment, but the jumping volley missed the mark and was caught by the goalkeeper. In the end, the first half ended like this, with a 1-1 tie.

Despite launching a fierce attack, they were unable to break through the opponent's defense and were eliminated in the quarterfinals

　Tokyo aggressively attacks from the start of the second half. In the 55th minute, Emerson is fouled and earns a free kick from just outside the right area, but the cross is cleared by the last line of defense. In the 56th minute, Kabore breaks through and earns a corner kick from the right side. Akamine heads Takahashi's cross from the short corner, but it goes wide. In the 58th minute, Hayu plays a long through pass into the right area. Tokunaga runs a long distance to catch up, but his cross is intercepted and results in a corner kick from the right side. Emerson kicks the ball far post, but no one can connect with it.

　In the 63rd minute, Kanazawa was replaced by Hirayama, and Inomata was placed as left back and Hayabusa in the center. In the 67th minute, Oita received a wave attack in front of the area, but defended tenaciously and escaped the pinch, and countered. Cabore picked up the ball near the half line, accelerated quickly, ran up the left side, brought it into the area, and shot, but the opponent's goalkeeper saved it and resulted in a corner kick. Oita also launched a sharp middle shot from a counterattack by MF Kanazaki and attacked the Tokyo goal, but Shibata saved it and did not allow a goal. In the 73rd and 78th minutes, Tokyo took a gamble by replacing Cabore and Asari with Kawaguchi and Ishikawa.

　Connecting the ball and launching fierce attacks multiple times, but the shooting chances are all escaped through set plays in the face of Oita's tenacious defense. In the 84th minute, from Ishikawa's quick throw-in, Nakao connected in the center and the ball passed to Akamine in the left area, who turned and shot hitting the post... Hirayama followed up on the rebound but mistimed and missed. In the final stages, we obtained several set plays and everyone, including Shioda, pushed forward, threatening the Oita goal, but Mochida and Hirayama's shots were also off target. Unable to capitalize on the chances, the match ended in a draw, and we were eliminated in the quarterfinals based on the total points from the two matches.

　【Player Comments】《Shioda》"It was a 1-1 result from giving it our all. I think we were able to show our forward attitude. We were able to take the lead early on, but it became a frustrating mood when we were caught up to. However, even if we conceded a goal, we should have made it 2-1. In defense, we had a lot of players going forward, so our backline was thin, but we were doing our best to mark them... The heat also caused our attacks to be one or two beats slower. I think we could have had more ideas for set pieces. I was told before the game that I could go up for corners if we needed a goal, so I went up with a strong determination. It would have been great if I could have calmly scored, but unfortunately I couldn't. Of course, we wanted to advance to the semifinals, but the league starts soon. In these tough situations, the team's unity is even more important. We have to prepare to take 3 points in the upcoming matches against top teams."《Kanazawa》"Today, I was trying to balance as a side back. My aim was to drop back a little and attract the opponent, so that I could switch sides. I had some opportunities to have the ball, but finishing was still a challenge. The opponent also closed the middle, so it was difficult... There was almost no gain from today. We couldn't clear the conditions we had. It all comes down to the result. But there's no point in looking down. We have to take this feeling into the league matches."

　[Summary of Manager Jofuku's Press Conference] "First of all, I would like to commend Oita for their advancement. It was a game filled with the spirit befitting our first entry into the Best 4, and we want to accept that. In today's match, we needed to score two goals, regardless of conceding. We focused on defending by quickly taking the ball away from the opponents because goals do not come from situations where it is not our ball. The scene of conceding was due to a short time of ball possession and a kick. However, I want to acknowledge the intention of going for the second goal in the second half, and the players continued to attack without giving up until the end. (We have two days until the Nagoya match, right?) I told the players to have the best cooldown for Saturday. Our Levain Cup is over, so we need to focus on the league now. The defensive shape today was not bad, and the attack was also good. We want to maintain today's form and head into the league matches."

　[Summary of Oita Shamska's press conference] "In terms of today's game result, we didn't win, but by drawing the game, we were able to advance to the top 4, which I believe deserves a victory. I am proud of the efforts of all the players. Today's opponent was not easy. We conceded a goal early on, but we were able to bring it to a draw in such a difficult situation. We stayed focused until the end and had a valuable fight for us. (What was the game plan for the second half?) I told the players to mark Cabore, who made runs behind the defense. Also, there were situations where we got too close to the opponent's movements near the penalty area and left spaces, so I had Maeda, the forward, mark the opponent's defensive midfielder, which allowed our defensive midfielder to not have to chase the opponent's defensive midfielder. By doing so, we were able to fill that space and stabilize our defense. (How do you evaluate the defense that kept the opponent to one goal?) We were able to respond to the opponent's diverse movements by passing on marks properly. When Hirayama came on, there were more crosses from the opponent's left side, but Takahashi, the midfielder, was marking Hirayama. He is strong in heading and contributed to our defense. Also, I think we had some luck today. In this kind of short-term decisive battle, I believe that the team that has luck on their side will come out on top. In fact, from the energy that is born from our unity, when Akamine's shot hit the post and bounced out, I was convinced of that."