A match where we want to continue winning by further improving the accuracy of our attacks

　Sec. 20 of the league, Oita Trinita played away. In the previous match against Tottori, they took control from start to finish and achieved a comfortable victory at home. They have won 5 consecutive matches, but Coach Okuma said, "I'm not really conscious of the winning streak, but the team's foundation is gradually being built. The direction is good, so I want to continue to make adjustments to the challenges and score goals from combinations in the attacking third."

　Oita, on the other hand, is currently in 16th place with 16 points. Although they have had their ups and downs, under the guidance of coach Kazuaki TASAKA, they have shown increased aggression and cohesion this season. Especially with a formation of 3-4-3, their attacking lineup consisting of tall FW Tsukasa MORISHIMA, speedy FW Sanpei, and technically skilled FW Maeda, with MF Miyazawa as the centerpiece, each have their own strengths. It is important to prevent them from playing freely.

　Tokyo will face the same lineup as the previous match. This is the fifth consecutive game without any changes in the starting lineup. As Kajiyama says, "the image of scoring is gradually coming together within everyone," the team's aim is clear. Therefore, in this match as well, they will press from the front, maintain defensive stability, and continue to improve the accuracy of their attacking moves to exploit the opponent's weaknesses. That is the highlight of this match.

　Furthermore, recently we have been able to score by taking advantage of set plays and the opponent's weaknesses. With the increasing variations, we want to score by exploiting the spaces between Oita's three backs, through the combination of the midfield and the side backs, and seize the victory. The match started at 19:05 in Tokyo with a kickoff at the humid Oita Bank Dome.

Tokyo Set Sights On Sixth Straight Win

FC Tokyo made the long journey south to Kyushu to take on Oita Trinita in the 20th game of the season. The side was aiming for a sixth consecutive win following the comfortable 3-0 victory over Tottori in the previous outing. Manager Okuma played down the streak, saying, "We're not thinking about it too much, to be honest, the team's building a solid base little by little and we're going in the right direction. We still have issues though and we're working on our combinations in the final third of the pitch to score more goals."
Opponents Oita lay in 16th place with 16 points at kickoff. The side was unpredictable but was showing more aggression under first-year manager Kazuaki Tasaka. The side played a 3-4-3 formation built around midfield pivot Miyazawa with forward Morishima supplying height, Mitsuhira speed, and Maeda the technique. Preventing them from playing would be the key to success for Tokyo.
Tokyo remained unchanged for the fifth straight game. Midfielder Kajiyama commented,
"We're slowly beginning to share a common image of how to score goals." Pressing hard from the front, defending solidly and exploiting any chinks in the Oita defensive armor would be the game plan, along with increasing the accuracy in attack and making the best of set plays. Exploiting space behind Oita's three-man backline by the midfielders and sidebacks would also be vital.
Tokyo kicked off shortly after 7pm on a humid evening.

Unable to take advantage of chances and return the first half with no goals

　From the beginning, Tokyo dominated the ball, and Oita continued to counterattack. In the 7th minute, Tanabe floated a pass to the front of the goal from the center. Although it was cleared by the defender, Nakamura quickly picked it up and passed it to Kajiyama in the area. He calmly guided it into the goal, but it was ruled offside. In the 13th minute, Nakamura on the left side dribbled inside and crossed. Nakamura reacted to the loose ball and took a shot, but it was blocked by the defender. In the 16th minute, Takahashi in the center carried the ball up to Yuzawa. He trapped it and took a shot, but it went straight to the goalkeeper.

　The attack continued, and in the 20th minute, Takahashi → Roberto CESAR dribbled past the opponent's defenders one after another and took a shot, but it went over the frame. In the 22nd minute, Kajiyama passed the ball to Morishige in the center of the goal. Morishige turned and passed it to CESAR. He quickly aimed for the bottom left corner of the goal with his right foot, but the opponent's goalkeeper made a great save and the goal was not scored. In the 26th minute, Morishige made a long pass in front of the goal. Kajiyama broke free and tried to float the ball with his left foot while colliding with the opponent's goalkeeper, but it did not go into the frame.

　Unable to shake the net despite the one-sided development. Tokyo continued to create chances from meticulous build-ups in front of the goal, but failed to deliver a decisive blow. On the other hand, Oita occasionally launched counters utilizing FW Morishima and right MF Nishi, but failed to score thanks to Shioda's defense. The first half ended with a scoreless draw.

Tokyo Fail To Take Chances In Scoreless First Half

The game quickly settled into a pattern of Tokyo enjoying most of the possession while Oita tried to hit on the counter attack. In the 7th minute, Tanabe's lofted pass forward was cleared, Nakamura pounced on the loose ball and moved it along to Kajiyama inside the Oita area but he was given offside. In the 13th minute, Nakamura raced down the wing and crossed; ???? took the ball down neatly and shot but a defender blocked the effort away. Takahashi fed Yazawa with a through ball in the 16th minute but Yazawa's shot was straight at Shimizu.
Tokyo continued to press forward aggressively. In the 20th minute, Takahashi fed Roberto Cesar and the big Brazilian held off a defender before shooting narrowly over the bar. Two minutes later, Cesar drew a stunning save from Shimizu, the Oita keeper diving low and left to keep out a firm drive after good work by Morishige. In the 26th minute, Morishige hoisted a long ball forward, Kajiyama sprinted through the Oita defence and attempted to flick the ball over the onrushing Shimizu's head. Kajiyama made contact first but the ball sailed narrowly over the bar.
Tokyo continued to create chances as the game progressed without finding a decisive finish while at the other end, Shiota marshaled the Tokyo defence to see off threats by Morishima and Nishi on the counter attack. The first half ended 0-0.

Unable to break down Oita's solid defense until the end, ending in a scoreless draw

　In the 47th minute of the second half, Oita FW Maeda dribbled powerfully and shot from the right area to FW Sanpei, but it was saved by a mistake. In the 49th minute, they got a corner kick and kicker Tanizawa performed a trick play. He sent a ground pass to Takahashi who ran into the goal area. In the following 51st minute, Kajiyama headed the ball from a corner kick, but both attempts were blocked by the quick reaction of Oita GK.

　Tokyo, who continue to pass the ball in the second half, and Oita, who launch quick counterattacks, maintain the same flow. In the 66th minute, Kajiyama skillfully dribbled and took a shot, but he couldn't find the target. In the 61st minute, Otake was substituted for Tanabe. Immediately after that, Taniyama, who had moved inside from the side, passed to Otake in the center, who turned and aimed for the goal, but the Oita defender blocked it.

　In the 82nd minute, Kamisato entered as a defensive midfielder, and Kajiyama moved up one line to aim for a goal. However, in the 86th minute, Oita MF Nishi passed the offside line to FW Sanpei, creating a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper. But the shot was saved by Shioda's fine play! In injury time, Imano, who was left free in the far post, dropped the ball with his chest from Otake's right corner kick and took a volley shot, but it went wide of the goal...

　Despite shooting nearly three times as much as Oita, the "one goal" remained distant in front of Oita's solid defense that never lost focus until the end. They were unable to achieve a sixth consecutive victory and settled for just one point away from home.

　【Player Comment】《Kajiyama》"Oita played with a 5-back formation and their defensive midfielders dropped deep to create a solid block. We couldn't break through that, and in the future, we might face more teams using similar tactics. Defensively, we identified areas for improvement such as better care for counterattacks. We didn't lose today, and we want to build on what we gained for the next match. Today, we rushed too much vertically and seemed tired in our attacking efforts. To break the opponent's block, we needed to utilize the sides more. I think it was necessary to make side changes while circulating the ball to unsettle the opponent."

　I also felt the need to rest while connecting during the attack. We were able to advance to the attacking third and if there was an opening, we could go on the offensive, but if we thoroughly change the tempo of the side change and use the attacking full-backs, there may have been moments when the opponent's concentration was broken. I want to increase the number of such instances and improve the quality."

　"Shioda" "I think it was a game where we attacked quite a bit and lost 2 points. (There were also some pinch situations?) We received counterattacks from Oita many times, but I think it was good that we were able to prevent goals in those pinch situations. The opponent doesn't attack that often, so we are focused on maintaining defensive balance and concentration."

　(Although the winning streak has stopped?) We have kept a clean sheet in the last three matches, but that is the result of everyone's hard work. We haven't lost today, so I don't think we need to think negatively. (Will Lucas be able to play from the next match?) Competition within the team is a good thing, not just for the forwards. Everyone is in good condition, and I think it's not a problem whoever plays. Right now, we want the team to come together and value each match, accumulating points."

　[Summary of Coach Okuma's Press Conference] "In the first half, we created chances but I think we lacked a bit of boldness in our shots. In the second half, there was a scene where Takahashi took a shot, but we needed to create those kinds of opportunities from the first half to draw out the opponent's defense line. As for the second half, Oita came with a solid block of five when it comes to attacking, so I think we lacked decisive moments to aim for the back of that block. Finally, it's good to attack through the center, but we need precision in that area and in the accuracy of crosses aimed at the space between the goalkeeper."

　The opponent is also working very hard in the hot weather, but there were moments when the precision, combination, and accuracy of play when getting behind the DF line, as well as the accuracy of play in tight spaces, were lacking and did not lead to a shot. As for defense, Shibata defended well. I think that was a positional mistake on our part, so we must never do that in the future when fighting in J2. However, he really defended well. I think it is very important to approach it positively and make corrections while playing each game one by one."

　[Summary of Oita-Tasaka's press conference] "First of all, I would like to express my gratitude for the support and efforts of the company, staff, media, and supporters who have been working together since one month ago for this supporter mobilization towards July 9th. Finally, I conveyed to the players that I want to win against FC Tokyo in order to conclude this. Only you players can make that happen." We approached today's match with that in mind.

　Of course, the level is much higher and the sense of speed is different from the opponents we have faced so far. In the first half, the players were confused and hesitant on the pitch, but I told them not to lose to that and said it at halftime. In the second half, we managed to challenge FC Tokyo while moving the ball and created chances. We couldn't score the goal just one step away, but I think the players did their best and barely took one point.

Oita Frustrate Tokyo As Game Ends Scoreless

In the 47th minute, Oita forward Maeda dribbled his way through the Tokyo defense and set up Mitsuhira, whose glaring miss from a good position earned Tokyo a reprieve from making a poor start to the second period. In the 49th minute, Tokyo won a corner and Yazawa attempted to surprise the Oita defense by playing the ball along the ground into the area where Takahashi met it on the run. Another corner in the 51st minute saw Shimizu deny Tokyo again with a superb save from Kajiyama's header.
The second half developed the same pattern as the first; Tokyo stroking the ball around, probing for openings and Oita attempting to hit on the break. In the 66th minute, Kajiyama showed his technique as he retained possession, dribbled forward and shot. Unfortunately, the effort was wide of the target again. Tokyo replaced Tanabe with Otake in the 61st minute. Shortly after his introduction, Otake nearly broke the deadlock following good work from Yazawa, but a solid block by an Oita defender cleared the danger.
Tokyo introduced Uesato in a defensive midfield position in the 82nd minute, moving Kajiyama one rank further forward. Oita had a golden opportunity to win the game in the 86th minute as forward Nishi slipped the ball through to Mitsuhira, and the Oita striker was in the clear with only Shiota to beat. Mitsuhira shot, but Shiota pulled off a superb save to keep Tokyo in the game. In additional time, Otake floated a corner beyond the far post to Konno, who had time to chest the ball down and shoot, but again his volley sailed over the bar.
Tokyo had managed three times as many attempts on goal as their hosts, but the tight Oita defense held firm to the end. The final whistle blew on a 0-0 draw that ended Tokyo's winning streak at five and earned a single point for their exertions.


Players comments
Kajiyama
"Oita played with a block of five defenders at the back and we couldn't break them down. I think we're going to see a lot of teams play this way against us from now on. It was a game that showed us the issues we face. We didn't lose though and we now have to make use of what we learned today in the next game. We played the ball straight up the field too much and I think that showed we're suffering from some fatigue. We should have used the sides more and played more crossfield balls to pull them apart. We also need to find some way of taking a break when we have the ball and are passing it around in attack. We also need to increase the tempo and bring the side backs into the game more. Basically we have to increase all those things and improve the quality of our game".


Shiota
"We attacked a lot but we dropped two points in the game. Oita had several counter attacks and it was very pleasing that we stopped them from scoring. They didn't really commit too many players into attack but we focused on our defensive balance and keeping our concentration.
What about the winning run ending? Well, that's our third straight clean sheet and it's the result of everyone's hard work. We didn't lose today so there's no point in being negative.
What about the prospect of Lucas playing in the next game? It's great that there's competition for positions throughout the side, not just in attack. We're all in good condition so there's no problem with whoever plays. The team is united right now and we just want to take each game as it comes and carry on racking up the points".


FC Tokyo manager Kiyoshi Okuma
"Although we created a lot of openings in the first half we didn't really take many shots on goal. We need a way of drawing the opposition out when they are defending deeply, as they did in the first half. We didn't really get behind their defensive block enough. Then in the second half when we were attacking through the middle we needed more crosses from wide positions into the danger area between the defence and goalkeeper.
Shiota played very well today. That late chance came from a mistake in our positioning but he made a great save to keep us in the game. From now we have carry on with what we're doing, fixing what needs fixing and taking each game as it comes".

Oita Trinita manager Kazuaki Tasaka
"First of all I'd like to thank the supporters and everyone who has worked so hard over the last month, the company staff and the media, to bring this great crowd here today.
I told the players that the culmination of all this work would be in them beating FC Tokyo and that they were the only ones who could achieve that. We haven't been faced with an opponent like Tokyo so far, a top level team with great speed and some of the players were perplexed and we lost our way a little in the first half. I told them to overcome this at half time and in the second half we put pressure on Tokyo and made some chances. We nearly had the winner but it wasn't to be. Still, the players fought very well and really dug in to earn us the point".