Facing last season's champion, Kashiwa, in a rematch since the Xerox Super Cup

　The postponed Sec. 9 of the league, which was postponed for the ACL, will be held. Moving the home to Japan National Stadium, they will face Kashiwa Reysol. In the previous match, they struggled against C Osaka's counterattacks but managed to keep a clean sheet and secured a victory with goals from Hasegawa and Lucas, rising to 5th place in the standings. It was a result that made them feel the weight of a single victory, but in order to keep up with the fierce battle for the top, they cannot afford to lose this match. They aim for consecutive victories and at the same time, they want to avenge their loss in the Fuji Xerox Super Cup on Mar 3.

　However, Kajiyama, who injured his right calf in the previous match, will be absent. On the other hand, Shiota, who had been nursing an ankle injury, will make a comeback. Hasegawa, who was substituted in the previous match, had some time off with a separate menu but did not suffer any major injury and will start the match. Yonemoto will be deployed as a starting midfielder, with Lucas as the forward, Hasegawa as the attacking midfielder, and Tanizawa and Tanabe on both sides. In addition, Yukino will be on the bench for the first time.

　Kashiwa, on the other hand, is currently in 11th place with 21 points. The reigning champions had some games that didn't click in the early stages of this season, and they were also eliminated from the ACL in the round of 16, just like Tokyo. However, as the condition of MF Leandro Domingues and Georgi Wagner improves, their performance also improves. In the recent league matches, they seem to be on an upward trend with no losses in the last 5 matches.

　In particular, concentration throughout the 90 minutes is required against Kashiwa's attacking power, especially their sharpness on the counter. Tokyo wants to counter this by controlling the ball and forcing Kashiwa to defend. The speed of the attack and the quick transition between offense and defense will be more important than ever, but we want to seize victory with an aggressive fight. The match started at 19:04 with Kashiwa's kickoff at the sunny National Stadium during a break in the rainy season.

Both teams create chances by utilizing their strengths, but a crucial goal is conceded just before the end of the first half.

　The early stages of the game were closely contested. Tokyo started off with possession of the ball, connecting passes and looking for opportunities, but Kashiwa also sent the ball to their forward, Kudo, from a composed defense and launched a counterattack. Both teams were able to showcase their strengths, but Tokyo gradually found their rhythm.

　In the 20th minute, Yonemoto launched a counterattack and Tanabe entered the left area. He sent a last pass in front of the goal. In the 22nd minute, Yawazawa took a shot. In the 26th minute, Morishige aimed directly for a free kick. In the 28th minute, Mokuhara took a shot from a speedy attack from their own half after Yawazawa changed sides. Then, Yawazawa attempted to break through the right front line, and the minus cross reached Tanabe's feet in front of the goal. However, he couldn't control it here. In the 30th minute, Lucas chased the opponent's defender and successfully stole the ball near the goal line, passing it to Hasegawa who was free in front. However, Hasegawa's decisive shot was blocked by the Kashiwa defender...

　Tokyo created chances with a bold development, but couldn't finish. Kashiwa also launched sharp counters, leading to a tense offensive and defensive battle. Still, Tokyo calmly defended with Morishige at the center and it seemed like the first half would end scoreless. However, in the first half injury time, Tokyo gave Kashiwa a free kick in a position inside the Tokyo team's left side. From the kick sent forward by MF Jorginho Wagner, DF Kondo shot with his right foot from the far side. Although Gonda made a save, the ball was picked up by Kashiwa DF Mashima... It was frustrating to concede a goal after such concentration, and Tokyo went into the second half trailing.

1 goal against weighs heavily and no counterattack bears fruit...

　After the counterattack in the second half, we launched a powerful attack at the beginning. In the 47th minute, Tanabe stole the loose ball from the melee near the area and dribbled into the area. He tried to dodge the Kashiwa DF and take a shot. However, he was tackled and couldn't regain his balance to finish the shot. In the 52nd minute, Kondo's header from Kashiwa's right corner kick shook the net, but there was a foul by Kashiwa just before that, so it was disallowed.

　Both teams quickly launched attacks and the game became an intense back-and-forth battle. However, Tokyo started to suffer from counterattacks due to their own mistakes. In the 56th minute, there was a counterattack from an interception by Kashiwa's right-back Sakai. Tokyo's defender Mori Shige cleared the cross, but Kashiwa's midfielder Leandro Domingues took a shot from the loose ball. However, it missed the target and Tokyo escaped the danger. In the 60th minute, Hasegawa and Mukuhara advanced to the left area. They sent a final pass into the goal area, but Lucas in the center got tangled up with the opponent's defender and couldn't finish the play.

　In the 72nd minute, Tanabe and Yamasawa were replaced by Watanabe and Kono. Watanabe played as a forward, Lucas played as an attacking midfielder, Kono played on the right side, and Hasegawa played on the left side, giving their all to launch a counterattack. In the 74th minute, Hasegawa dribbled the ball and passed it to the right side, where Tokunaga, Hasegawa, and Yonemoto attacked the right area, but the final cross went across the goalmouth. In the 80th minute, Watanabe broke through the defense line with a long pass and turned towards the goal to take a shot, but... it went over the bar...

　In the 88th minute, Kono created an opportunity with a dribble and expanded to the right. Tokunaga crossed the ball, but it did not reach Watanabe, Lucas, or Hasegawa near the goal and flowed to the far side. Although they defended against Kashiwa's powerful set plays and counters, they lacked the final precision in their attacks and failed to score. As a result, the one goal conceded weighed heavily, and they suffered a frustrating defeat.

　【Player Comment】《Yonemoto》"I have regrets about conceding a goal from a set piece, and it was a very frustrating defeat. Personally, it was my first 90-minute appearance in a while, and I think I was able to run more than I expected and contribute to the defense to some extent. However, Tokyo's lifeline is 'passing'. I think we needed to be more involved in that aspect, and because we couldn't do that, we ended up with today's result. We want to stick to our style of play, score goals, and win."

　"To be at the top, it's not just about winning one game, but it's necessary to have a winning streak. It's unfortunate that we couldn't achieve that. Overall, I don't think it was as one-sided as the Yokohama FM match, so I don't think we should be too pessimistic. However, there must be reasons why teams like Kashiwa become champions, and today they played smartly, focusing on restarts from fouls."

　[Summary of Coach Popovich's Press Conference] "I think we played better soccer, but Kashiwa won. I can't say I'm satisfied with this result, but I want to congratulate Kashiwa. There were moments where I think the refereeing standards were not the same for us and the opposing players. Of course, the refereeing did not have any impact on the result of the game, but I think it may have affected the rhythm of the match."

　However, we recognize that the scenes in which we conceded were due to our own carelessness. Nevertheless, considering the number of injured players in our team, everyone who stepped onto the pitch today gave their all. Watching today's match, I didn't feel like our key players were missing that much. Even with players missing, I believe we were able to show what we should do. That's why we couldn't produce results, but I want to say "well done" for being able to compete evenly with last season's champions.

　(Yonehara and Takahashi were able to control the game by frequently stealing the ball, but they couldn't connect with Hasegawa and Lucas. We made some mistakes ourselves, and of course, Kashiwa also applied good pressure. However, even while making mistakes, we recognized that our team didn't hesitate or back down and showed a willingness to move forward and take control. Many teams tend to lose their mental strength after conceding a goal in the first half stoppage time, but we didn't show such a demeanor until the very end and continued to take risks and move forward with courage in an attempt to turn the game around. The only disappointing thing in today's match was that we couldn't produce results. We want to continue believing in what we should do and focus on building up our quality."

　[Summary of Kashiwa NELSINHO's press conference] "We approached the game with the awareness that it was an important game, and the players continued to execute the team's tactics from start to finish. The strong desire to win was reflected in their play, and although the score was 1-0, I think we were able to maintain a calm game for the full 90 minutes. Today's game was extremely important as it allowed us to approach the top by winning, so I am satisfied with the good result obtained."

　I think the first half was a closely contested game, but I think there was an impact in the decision-making process from the middle. The play was interrupted, there were many scenes where it stopped, and there Reysol had a disadvantage, and rather than that, Tokyo was able to effectively shift the momentum. I think we were able to play a good game in both the first half and the second half without disrupting our formation or balance, and I think we were in control of the game."