Entering the second half of the league season, aiming to accumulate points even away from home and further advance to the top

　Sec. 18 of the league will be a match against Sagan Tosu away. In the previous match, we showed Tokyo-style soccer from the beginning and scored 3 goals in the first half, winning against Gamba Osaka. Although there were points to reflect on, such as allowing a comeback in the second half, we have accumulated 28 points and will enter the second half of the league. Coach Ranko POPOVIC said, "It will be our second match, but what we need to do remains the same. We will always give our all to win the upcoming match and show our growth, and it is important to achieve results there," and vowed to approach the victory with even stronger determination.

　Tokyo, who currently sits in 10th place with 24 points, faced off against Tosu. In the first half of the match, they achieved a great comeback with Watanabe's hat-trick, but they struggled against Tosu's organized offense and defense and their powerful counterattacks. In the previous match against Urawa, despite conceding 4 goals early on, they showed their never-give-up attitude by scoring 3 goals in the second half. Especially at home, they have displayed unmatched strength, with their only defeat at the Best Amenity Stadium this season being against Kawasaki. Tokyo also challenged without losing their challenger spirit.

　Tokyo, Tokunaga, Yonemoto, and Gonda participated in the farewell match for the Tokyo Olympics Japanese national team. Despite playing in the match only two days after, Yonemoto said, "Based on the challenges in the Gamba Osaka match, I want to make sure to connect firmly after winning the ball. I also want to be conscious of finishing with a shot and not allowing Tosu to counterattack." Each player switched their mindset both mentally and physically and focused on preparing for the Tosu match. Additionally, Ishikawa, who had injured his right calf, gradually improved his condition and made it into the lineup.

　Recently, we have been creating attacking opportunities by starting from the sides and exploiting the space behind Tanabe. We want to continue this pattern and create chances to score by being persistent and taking the ball all the way to the finish. Even if there are periods where Tosu controls the pace of the game, we want to defend aggressively and quickly transition to the attack, aiming to win the match through a collective effort. The game started at 19:04 in Tokyo with a kickoff at Best Amenity Stadium.

Despite dominating the ball with a composed style of play, the score remained goalless until the second half.

　Early on, without connecting passes, Tosu was pushed back and had their rhythm disrupted by the speedy attacks. In the 4th minute, MF Mizunuma skillfully trapped a long ball towards the right front line and crossed it. The ball reached left MF Kan, who was free in front of the goal. He was about to head the ball perfectly, but Tokunaga quickly closed in and blocked it with his body, escaping with a corner kick. In the 6th minute, Tosu's right MF Mizunuma positioned himself for a shot in the right area. However, Morishige and Yonemoto consecutively blocked the shot with their bodies.

　Tokyo calmly waits here and looks for opportunities. In the 16th minute, they create an opportunity on the right side and switch to the left. Nakamura tries to take a shot inside, but it is blocked by the opponent's defender. In the 20th minute, they connect from the right side, and Yonemoto -> Hasegawa make precise passes near the right area. Tanabe takes a direct shot, but it goes over the bar. In the 29th minute, there is a pass cut on the left side. Tanabe takes the ball and shoots, but it goes wide of the goal.

　Furthermore, the time to hold the ball increases, creating opportunities. In the 36th minute, Tanabe dribbles from the midfield and persistently carries the ball to the front of the right area, aiming for a goal but gets blocked and earns a corner kick. From this right corner kick, Takahashi heads the ball but it goes wide. In the 43rd minute, Tanabe passes to Yazuwa in the center, who exchanges passes with Hasegawa and attempts a looping shot, but it goes straight to the goalkeeper. Despite actively continuing to attack, they were unable to change the flow of the game and ultimately end the first half with a scoreless draw.

In the second half, we attacked but couldn't capitalize on our chances. We conceded a goal from a set piece and lost the game.

　Tokyo shows a powerful attack and creates chances, including free kicks. In the 47th minute, Tanabe receives a foul in the opponent's territory and earns a free kick. Nakamura aims from a distance but misses the target. In the 52nd minute, Tanabe brings the ball to the front line from a counterattack and earns a free kick from just outside the left area. MoriShige aims for it, but the shot hits the crossbar. In the 59th minute, connecting from a free kick on the right side, Tokunaga brings the ball inside and takes a powerful shot, but it narrowly goes over the crossbar.

　In the 61st minute, Nakamura dribbled through the opponent's defense from the left front and passed to Hasegawa in the center. Hasegawa returned the ball, but his shot from the left area was saved by the goalkeeper. While being cautious of Tosu's counterattack, Tokyo balanced offense and defense, took control of the game, and created chances, but failed to score. In the 68th minute, Tokyo substituted Ishikawa for Yawata. In the 73rd minute, they passed the ball around, looking for an opening, and passed vertically to Lucas in the center, but he couldn't finish in front of Tosu's defense.

　Tokyo often struggled to stop the flow against Tosu's tough defense and couldn't break through their defensive block. On the other hand, Tosu continuously created chances from set plays, but Tokyo defended well with concentration. However, in the 87th minute, Tokyo conceded a goal as a result of a mistake, allowing Tosu's forward, Jang Hyun Soo, to score with a header from a free kick. Tokyo launched a counterattack in the 89th minute, with Ishikawa cutting inside from the right and taking a shot, but it was saved by the goalkeeper and resulted in a corner kick. In stoppage time, Mori Shige headed wide from Ishikawa's free kick. In the end, the game ended without any changes to the scoreline. It was a disappointing defeat.

　【Player Comment】《Ishikawa》"The injury period was honestly long, so I wanted to repay everyone with my play. As a team, we thought it was important to accumulate wins here and we wanted to win by playing the soccer we aim for. However, personally, I think I couldn't change the rhythm or create effective opportunities. I had the image of scoring a goal, but I need to bring the ball out a little more... I want to work hard to connect that image to a goal."

　"Today, how many times did we manage to steal the throw-in in the opponent's half...? I think it's necessary to not just pass the ball around, but also to kick it behind the defense. (In the second half, there was a scene where Insoo YU crossed the ball, right?) If we can get a corner kick or create a chance from a throw-in, and if the forwards can face forward, that would be great. By someone getting behind the opponent and pulling them, even if the pass doesn't go through, we can disrupt them and then Tabei can receive the ball... That was the feeling. However, both individually and as a team, we lacked accuracy and didn't feel like we gave it our all..."

　[Coach Popovich's press conference summary] "Of course, I can't say I'm satisfied with this result. However, I believe that we were the ones who played more soccer, and I feel that we always had the upper hand. It was clear that the opponent was just defending and aiming for counterattacks. Tosu's tactic of defending well at home and using counterattacks is a sign of respect for our team. It's because they acknowledge our attack that they use this tactic."

　It's not just the part where we conceded, but there have been repeated careless mistakes. We need to improve on that part. Also, we need to fix the fact that the same player is making the same mistakes. Except for the first 10 minutes of the first half, I think we were able to dominate the game well, and if we had scored properly in the places we should have, the result would have been different. I need to watch it again to be sure, but there were also situations where we were fouled inside the opponent's area. If that had been a penalty kick, the result might have been different."

　[Sagan Tosu・Coach YOON Jong Hwan Press Conference Summary] "First of all, I am very happy that we were able to win. The players have prepared really well this week. We didn't know what the result would be, but I think it was very good that we were able to achieve a good result. Regarding the match, the players fought firmly for 90 minutes, doing what we should do. And today, I particularly emphasized the importance of concentration and mental strength to the players. I think the players understood it well and carried it out. I think we were able to firmly press the first button of the second half and I want to continue preparing well from now on."