Secure 3 points away and advance to the qualifiers!

　The final match of the Nabisco Cup qualifiers is against Cerezo Osaka away. In the previous match against Kyoto, they secured a victory with Kim Young Gwon's first goal and rose to second place in the group. Kyoto, who is in first place with 11 points, has already played all six qualifying matches. However, they are only one point ahead of Sendai, who is in third place, and if they draw this match, they will lose the possibility of advancing on their own. If they happen to lose, they will not be able to advance to the finals based on goal difference. Therefore, their main goal is to secure 3 points, just like in the previous match, and approach this match with a winning mindset. On the other hand, C Osaka is in 7th place in the Nabisco Cup qualifiers without a win. They have already lost the possibility of advancing to the final tournament, and FW Adriano and MF Martinez are absent due to injuries. MF Kagawa, who has decided to transfer to Dortmund, is currently absent due to his activities with the Japanese national team. However, the front line of FW Komatsu, the two shadow FWs Ienaga and MF Inui have high individual abilities, and their attacking style, which involves flexible position changes, has power and skill in exploiting the opponent's weaknesses. Therefore, Tokyo wants to first establish a solid defense, control the midfield, and build up their attacks. In this match, Matsushita is suspended due to accumulated yellow cards. Murohara will take his place as the right fullback, and the rest of the lineup will be the same as the Kyoto match. Ishikawa says, "The players have gotten closer in terms of distance between each other, and the balance of using the inside and outside has improved, so we have confidence that we can create chances from coordinated movements. We want everyone to have a strong desire to 'definitely win' and work together as one team." They want to create chances through a shared understanding among the players and communication, and score goals from the flow of the game. However, C Osaka is determined to "get revenge as a team," according to Coach Jofuku. Murohara also expresses caution, saying, "We will play our usual style of soccer and aim for victory, but on the other hand, C Osaka has nothing to lose. That's what scares us the most." It will undoubtedly be a difficult game, but they want to secure 3 points with a strong desire for victory and an aggressive attitude, and advance to the final tournament on their own. The match started exactly at 7:00 PM with Tokyo's kickoff at Osaka Nagai Stadium.

Trailing by one point in a difficult situation after conceding the first goal... heading into the second half

　In the first half, we were pushed back by C Osaka's aggressive attacks. They initiated their attacks through MF Inui and targeted our defense's blind spots, causing our defensive line to drop back. Additionally, their goal kicks reached deep into our territory, preventing us from maintaining a compact formation. Even when we managed to regain possession, we faced intense pressure from the opponent's pressing when trying to advance to the front line, making it difficult for us to launch coordinated attacks. However, in terms of defense, we focused on the final line and did not allow any clear-cut chances. On the other hand, we threatened C Osaka's goal from restarts. In the 4th minute, Nakamura's direct free kick hit the crossbar and bounced back, failing to score... Suzuki followed up on the rebound, but couldn't push it in due to the collision with the opponent's goalkeeper and defender. In the 17th minute, Kim Young Gwon's volley from Ishikawa's right corner kick found the back of the net, but it was ruled offside as Suzuki was involved. In the 25th minute, Mori Shige's header from a right free kick was right on target, but the opponent's goalkeeper made an excellent save to deny the goal. After the 30th minute, the momentum shifted in favor of C Osaka. They won the ball in midfield and spread it to both sides. From there, they repeatedly created dangerous situations by delivering crosses between Kanta and the defensive line with precise timing. Then, just before the end of the first half, in the 44th minute, we tried to build an attack from the defensive line, but C Osaka's defender Sakamoto pressed us in a low position and stole the ball. From there, Komatsu dribbled inside and scored a goal, putting us behind... We ended the first half trailing by one goal.

Akamine and Kajiyama secure a comeback victory with their first goal of the season! Advancing to the quarterfinals is confirmed.

　Carrying a one-goal deficit, the situation became difficult, but from the start of the second half, they substituted Suzuki for Hirayama, and in the 58th minute, they brought in Ohtake for Hanyu, trying to regain their rhythm. In the 60th minute, Ohtake advanced with a dribble, and after a series of passes in the front line from Makuhara to Kajiyama, the shot hit the DF, resulting in a left corner kick. Ohtake took this kick, and Hirayama shot the rebound from the opposing GK. Blocked by the DF, the ball spilled again, and Akamine reacted. He struck the ball into the net with his left foot, equalizing the score! Regaining momentum, in the 62nd minute, Kajiyama's switch to the side allowed Ishikawa on the left to dribble up, cut inside, and take a precise shot from the edge of the area, but it was saved well by the opposing GK. In the 67th minute, Shigematsu came in for Akamine. They continued to bring in attacking players, aiming to take the lead. However, C Osaka also launched speedy counters, and the tense back-and-forth continued. Yet, time passed with no clear advantage for either side. Nevertheless, without giving up, around the 85th minute, they pushed Morishige forward, with Tokunaga as the right side back, and Kim Yong-gun and Makuhara as center backs, aiming for a total offensive for 'one more goal.' Then, as the 4 minutes of stoppage time approached its end, Kajiyama cut the opponent's ball on the left side, fiercely dribbled in, aimed between the opposing DF just before the area, and shot towards the far side goal. The powerful grounder found the bottom left of the goal, achieving a dramatic lead! Akamine and Kajiyama marked their first goals of the season, securing 3 points. As a result, they secured their place in the final tournament as the top of Group A. They will face Shimizu S-Pulse in the quarter-finals, with the first match on September 1, held as a home game. 【Player Comments】《Kajiyama》"At halftime, I was told 'we have to win,' and I absolutely wanted to win. There was an atmosphere among everyone that we could win, and I think we managed to score in a good way at the end. (Regarding the goal scene) The opposing DF's feet had stopped, so I thought I could bring it in well and shoot... However, there were many players in front of the goal, so I aimed for the far side. I thought it would be better for the GK to deflect it and for someone to follow up on the rebound than to kick it near and miss the target. Everyone didn't give up, and I believe that led to the result. (Also performing well in defense) In the final stages, Morige was playing as a volante and moved forward. Morige can carry the ball up to the goal and was going to win it at a high position. So I tried to maintain balance from the back. There were times when we had the same number as the opponent at the back, so I thought we had to return to defense properly. At the back, I consciously receive the ball in a position one step ahead and then move into the goal area. I am happy that this led to a result." 《Akamine》"We had many chances from CK and FK from the first half. Although we fell behind and found ourselves in a tough situation, the coach instructed us at halftime to 'not rush.' The players also discussed and created an atmosphere to turn it around in the next 45 minutes. Everyone believed there was a chance to come back, and with attacking players coming in one after another, the message of 'we must score!' was conveyed. I think our strong will not to give up led to victory. (Regarding the goal scene) It came from a rebound from CK. Since it was close to the goal, I shot without hesitation. (Looking back on this) As a team, we have increased the number of chances compared to the beginning of the season, and everyone's awareness of shooting has also risen. I think everyone is starting to understand the soccer we aim for, and it is gradually taking shape. (Did scoring the first goal before the break relieve you mentally?) I think it was good in the end, but my desire to score in every match remains unchanged, and even when I can't score, I switch and keep going. There are some differences in roles and feelings between starting and coming on as a substitute, but I am thinking of showing my characteristics within that. Continuing that is important, and I want to work hard to participate in the league again and score goals." 【Coach Jofuku's Press Conference Summary】"I think C Osaka played with a wonderful fighting spirit and high-quality soccer, even though they had no chance. I am truly happy that we were able to win against C Osaka in that way at the end. The players and supporters showed a spirit of not giving up until the end. Once again, I want to achieve something this year with this team and these supporters. Regarding the content, we need to reflect a bit more on our ball circulation. We need to speed up and then slow down again to redo certain things. Also, as you can see, many shots in the area did not hit the target. I think that is a continuing issue for us. However, when it comes to such developments, the back tends to take too many risks and concede additional goals, or it becomes one-sided by just throwing all the balls in, but we managed to maintain our attack and defense until the end, and I think the gods saw that. (What was the biggest reason for the victory?) I told the players that we are taking risks to score, so I think there were several dangerous scenes. If we had conceded an additional goal there, it would have been game over. No one slacked off in the last 50cm of body closeness, and we were able to return to a distance where we could slide for the last rebound. I think that patience led to the comeback. (What did you gain from the Nabisco Cup and what will you work on during the break?) I think it was really good that we showed a posture of not giving up as a team in the last few matches, including the league. However, to make a comeback in the second half of the league and to stand on that National stage again in the Nabisco, we cannot say we have solved the attacking third. With our current skills, we should be able to create many more shooting scenes, and there are still some situations that make us scratch our heads regarding the shots, so I want to train hard with them and level up to welcome the restart." 【C Osaka Coach Levy Krupi's Press Conference Summary】"The match was evenly matched, and I think it was a game we could have won. However, it is truly painful to feel very frustrated, as we have conceded goals in stoppage time and lost in the last two matches. Considering that this is not the first time, when we face experienced teams, the youth, naivety, and immaturity of the team come out. I think we are still immature, especially in the mental aspect. (What is the theme during the break?) I think we could only leave the worst result as a result, but in that, we were able to evaluate the performance of many players, including young ones, while using them. In particular, today's MF Maruhashi showed a very good performance. When the league resumes, the three players FW Adriano, FW Martinez, and MF Kiyotake will join today's members, so I think the quality will increase further based on the play shown today. The chances of leading to victory will be higher."