Risking survival, we enter the away game!

　Sec. 29 of the league, Oita Trinita will play away. The league matches resume after a two-week interval. Although they lost in the previous match against Shimizu on 10/4, they currently have a 5-point difference with the top team Kashima, and it is a very important match to keep up with the top group in the fierce battle. It is an away game, but they want to secure points and continue to compete for the top positions.

　Sec. 27 Oita, who currently has 48 points in 4th place. In the 27th section, they lost both the Yokohama FM and the Kawasaki game away, suffering consecutive losses, but their strength at home is still strong. This season, they have only lost one game at the Kyushu Dome, which was in the 4th section against Gamba Osaka, showing overwhelming strength. In this section, DF Uemoto and Fujita will be suspended, but the defensive line centered around DF Fukaya and Morishige is unlikely to be easily broken. Coach Jofuku tightens his focus, saying, "Oita has become a new team with the addition of FW Morishima and others, but they function as a team and have a thorough way of playing." The biggest point is how aggressively they can attack the goal. They want to launch quick attacks and exploit the spaces on the sides.

　Tokyo, Fujiyama starts on the right side for the first time since the 23rd round against Kashiwa. Bruno QUADROS, Otake, and others have been plagued by injuries, and it is a difficult situation, but Coach Shirofuku says, "Injuries can happen to any team, in any situation. Despite being in a critical condition, the players have prepared themselves individually." Nagatomo and Hanyu are also preparing their condition and will be on the bench. They will approach the game with all their strength. In defense, it is crucial to suppress Oita's side attacks and seal off the height of FW Morishima. It is necessary to respond tenaciously to the flying out and crosses of the MF Takahashi and Suzuki on both sides and gain an advantage on the side.

　This season, the match against Oita will be the fourth time, including the Nabisco Cup, and the results so far are 1 win, 1 draw, and 1 loss. However, Coach Jofuku declared, "If we lose this match, we will fall behind Oita in the head-to-head record, Nabisco Cup, and league standings. We absolutely want to avoid being in a disadvantaged situation in every aspect. First, we want to equalize in terms of points." The match started at 14:05 with a kickoff in Tokyo at the Kyushu Oil Dome, where a refreshing autumn sky spreads.

Conceding the first goal from a set piece, trailing by one point at halftime

　In the early stages, Oita, who launched a powerful attack at home, was pushed back. However, they defended with concentration and gradually set the pace of the game. In the 4th minute, Imakano, who stole the ball in the midfield, passed it to Cabore in the front line. The ball was passed to Emerson near the goal line, who then passed it to Cabore, who was waiting in the center of the area, but it was offside. In the 11th minute, there was a scramble in front of the goal from Kajiyama's right corner kick. Imakano took a left-footed volley shot, but it was saved by the opponent's goalkeeper. In the 17th minute, Kajiyama passed to Imakano, who had escaped behind the defense after exchanging passes with Cabore on the left side. The cross hit the defender, and Kajiyama picked up the loose ball in the center. He took a direct shot from the middle, but it went slightly to the left of the goal.

　After that, they continued to attack widely and grasp the rhythm. However, in the 24th minute, Oita FW Weslley broke through on a counterattack and was fouled, resulting in a free kick. MF Suzuki scored directly from this FK from outside the right area, allowing the opponent to take the lead from a set piece. Nevertheless, Tokyo displayed an aggressive attitude and turned the tide to launch a counterattack. In the 31st minute, Inomata received a pass from Fujiyama, who had dribbled up, and crossed from the left. Unfortunately, it did not reach Akamine, who was waiting in front of the goal. In the 36th minute, Kajiyama passed to Emerson from a central free kick, but his shot was blocked by the Oita DF.

　Oita took the lead and solidified the center, especially with DF Fukaya man-marking Cabore. They were unable to fully utilize Cabore's speed. Attacks from Emerson and Konno from the sides, as well as attacks initiated by Tokunaga's crosses, created opportunities, but they were unable to break through Oita's defense. In the final stages, they created chances from set plays, but failed to convert them into goals. They went into the second half trailing by one point.

Unable to break down Oita's solid defense until the end, resulting in a goalless defeat

　In the second half, Hanyu was substituted for Asari and Hayabusa was brought in. Also, the positions of Fujiyama and Tokunaga were changed to start the counterattack. In the 48th minute, Cabore volleyed a floating cross from Emerson, but Oita GK Shimokawa caught it. In the 54th minute, Hayabusa stole the ball and ran up the left side, passing to Akamine on the left side of the area. He aimed for Cabore in front of the goal, but was blocked by the Oita DF. In the 56th minute, from Kajiyama's quick restart, Imano aimed for a powerful shot but missed above the frame. In the 57th minute, Cabore, who received a feed from Fujiyama in the center of the area, aimed for the goal but the opponent GK caught it.

　In the 68th minute, Iwakawa was substituted for Emerson. In the 69th minute, Kabore on the left side took advantage of his speed to make a vertical breakthrough, leaving the opponent's defender behind and making a negative cross. However, the opponent's defender cleared it. Despite dominating ball possession and showing an aggressive attacking attitude, they couldn't take a shot. In the 74th minute, they launched a counterattack from the opponent's free kick clearance, and Sekine passed to Iwakawa on the right side, who sent a cross with a shooting opportunity, but it was blocked by the Oita defender right in front of the goal. In the 80th minute, Kabore headed the ball from a loose ball after a throw-in, but it lacked power and was caught by the Oita goalkeeper.

　In the 84th minute, Akamine, who broke through in the area, was fouled but no foul was given. In the 85th minute, Nagatomo was substituted for Fujiyama. Cabore and Akamine in the front line tried to collect the ball and aim for an equalizer. In injury time, a cross from Nagatomo on the left side to Cabore. It was cleared by the Oita DF but resulted in a corner kick. From this right corner kick, Tokunaga picked up the loose ball and took a daring shot from outside the box, but it went over the goal. They desperately chased after a goal to catch up by one point, but as time passed, their impatience became apparent and they were unable to shake the net until the end. Oita successfully defended their one-point lead and the game ended as it was. They suffered a disappointing defeat.

　【Player Comments】《Shioda》"The condition of the pitch was bad, so we had to make a change in direction. I think Oita was able to handle it well. (The scene of the goal) The opponent's free kick was good. I had the thought that they might kick it towards the wall, but I also had the thought that they might put it in the far side... I couldn't react to the straight shot with my left foot. We have to switch gears after this defeat. Honestly, it's going to be tough to win the championship, but there's still a chance to qualify for the ACL depending on our ranking. I want to prepare for the next Kashima game with that as our goal."《Moino》"Today's result is really disappointing. (The scene where you gave away the free kick that led to the goal?) It was a dangerous situation on the counter. I thought it might be best to just foul them if necessary, but before that, the referee called a foul. But I can't make excuses because that was the referee's decision. As for that free kick, all I can do is praise the kicker. We've had a problem with scoring goals, so we need to take a closer look and solve it. We can't win if we don't score. (It seemed like Morishima was fired up?) I think that's his playing style. But he didn't take that many shots, so I tried not to let it bother me. If I get provoked and get caught up in it, it's a waste of time. We want to show our determination in the next Kashima game. We can't end like this. If we can move up even one spot, I think it will change the way Tokyo is next year. We want to switch gears and do our best."

　[Summary of Manager Jofuku's Press Conference] "First of all, I am very sorry that we couldn't meet the expectations of the fans who came all the way from Tokyo to Oita and those who supported us in Tokyo. We were taking care of restarts such as counters and set plays, and we were not in a state of being broken down, but we gave away a free kick in a place where we shouldn't have, and as a result, we conceded a goal. We approached the game aggressively because we couldn't settle for a draw, but it is disappointing that we conceded a goal in a situation where the start was not bad, and we tried to attack while preventing the opponent from scoring additional goals, but we couldn't score in a situation where the opponent had no choice but to defend. (What kind of accent did you put in by bringing in Hayami in the second half?) Kajiyama dropped back to the defensive midfield position and received the ball, so it was to fill the space in the second row. We wanted to attack by expanding the opponent while connecting, so we made the midfield configuration even more connected. (Next, we will face the top-ranked Kashima Antlers, but?) I think it's a matter of how well we can connect while entering the opponent's penalty area and how many variations we can have in terms of dribbling and playing behind the defense. We created many chances in today's match, but we need to analyze why we couldn't score."

　[Summary of Oita Shamusuka's press conference] "Entering the final stage, it was a very important win for us as it was a direct confrontation between top teams. As expected before the match, it was a tough game. The speed, physicality, and intense marking, I think we returned to the state where we had a record of 17 games unbeaten. The two-week break this time was very valuable in returning to this state. In terms of tactics, the opponent came with a three-top formation at first, so we absorbed Takahashi and Suzuki into the final line to make it 4 vs 3. It was important to communicate well and prevent it from becoming a 3 vs 3 situation. The result was that communication, such as always having someone cover, worked well. After taking the lead, Tokunaga kept pushing forward, and moreover, Emerson came inside and created space for Tokunaga to enter. Furthermore, towards the end of the first half, the situation was such that both full-backs joined the attack, requiring even more communication, but I think the team functioned smoothly. Regarding MF Kanazaki's position, we asked him to drop back to the defensive midfield line in defense and move up to the top line in attack as one of the three tops. Today, I think it was a very tough game for him, so I substituted him in the end. As the ball couldn't be held up front and we were under continuous attacks from the opponent, we brought in FW Takamatsu to keep the ball. In the last 5 minutes, Nagatomo came in, so we brought in Nishiyama to form a 3-6-1 system and took care of it."