Welcoming and confronting bottom-ranked Sapporo in the first home game in about a month

　Sec. 30 of the league is held. Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo will be hosted at Ajinomoto Stadium. In the previous match against C Osaka, we conceded a goal at the start of the second half, allowing the opponent to take the lead for the 8th consecutive official match. However, we calmly fought back and managed to secure a draw. Coach Ranko POPOVIC reflects, "When we are in a chasing position, we inevitably become mentally and physically exhausted, leaving no room for relaxation."

　To resolve this issue, we must score the first goal in this match and take control of the game. In this match, while Morishige's suspension is lifted, Hasegawa will be suspended for two matches due to his red card in the previous match. As a result, Jang Hyun Soo will play as a center back, Tokunaga will play as a right fullback, Nakamura will play as a left fullback, and Takahashi and Yonemoto will form a double pivot in midfield.

　Sapporo, who will face them, has confirmed their relegation to 16th place or below in the 27th section of J2. However, in the two matches since then, they have used MF Kawai as DF and have had 1 win and 1 draw against the top teams Urawa and Kashima. In this section, DF Kushibiki is suspended, and DF Nara and FW Sakaki are absent due to the activities of the U-19 Japan national team, so the team composition will have to be changed. However, their "determination and determination" cannot be underestimated.

　In addition, since we struggled to grasp the rhythm against Sapporo in the away game of the first half, we want to take control of both offense and defense by not neglecting the risk management against organized counters and the shots of MF Furuta and FW Oshima. We want to seize victory without giving any opportunities throughout the 90 minutes, with a sense of determination! Although the sun has set and it feels chilly, the match started with Sapporo's kickoff at 17:04 under the clear autumn weather.

Take the lead with Hyun Soo JANG's first goal

　Tokyo took control of the rhythm from the start and threatened the Sapporo goal. In the 2nd minute, Lucas and Kajiyama exchanged passes in front of the Sapporo goal, and Kajiyama sent a final pass to Lucas who had moved into the area, creating a decisive opportunity. However, Lucas's shot was blocked by the right post. Tokyo continued to dominate the ball and advance the game in the Sapporo half, but in the 10th minute, Sapporo FW Oshima started the play, and DF Iwanuma entered the left area from MF Okamoto's pass. They created a shooting chance, but Yonemoto cut it off with a sliding tackle and escaped with a corner kick.

　Gradually, Sapporo also began to create opportunities for counterattacks. In the 16th minute, Tokunaga boldly made a move up the side and earned a corner kick on the right. In the 17th minute, Ishikawa's corner kick was cleared, but Kajiyama reacted to the loose ball and connected with Ishikawa on the right side with a heel pass. Hyun Soo JANG then jumped in and skillfully evaded the opposing defender from the far side, scoring a spectacular header! From the flow of the set piece, they scored the opening goal, the first since Sec. 26 in the league.

　In the 19th minute immediately after, Sapporo MF Okamoto aggressively attacked from the left side and took a dribble shot with speed. However, it was saved by Kanda and escaped to a corner kick, after which Tokyo took control. In the 27th minute, from the intricate passing play inside Sapporo's territory, Tanabe -> Kajiyama -> Lucas dropped the ball, and Tanabe in front of the goal took a decisive shot, but it hit the goalkeeper in the face.

　At 30 minutes, Yonemoto went up on the right and changed sides, from the left Kajiyama to the right Ishikawa, to Lucas in the center. They created a decisive chance in a coordinated manner, but Lucas' shot went slightly to the left... Despite crushing the sprouts of danger centered around Yonemoto against Sapporo's speedy counterattack, they were unable to score an additional goal and ended the first half with a one-point lead.

Tanabe, Ishikawa, Vucicevic... a furious goal rush secures victory for the first time since the 27th round

　In the second half, they continued to attack boldly, and in the 47th minute, Takahashi made a vertical pass into the area. Although the opponent's defender cleared it, Tanabe, who took the loose ball, dribbled and Takahashi followed up with the ball that fell into the area again. Tanabe, who received the ball, dribbled to the left area and took a left-footed shot from an angleless position. The ball passed through the opponent's defender's legs and grazed the post on the opposite side before going into the net! They successfully scored their second goal in the early stages of the second half.

　With this momentum, in the 59th minute, Tanabe from our own team stole the Sapporo ball and advanced. Lucas -> Ishikawa on the right side made a vertical pass. Although it was once taken by Sapporo, Ishikawa, who pressed the opponent's DF here, stole the ball back and scored the third goal from the center of the area with speed.

　In the 63rd minute, Nemanja VUCICEVIC replaced Yonemoto on the left side. Tanabe moved to the defensive midfield position and further attacked. In the 64th minute, Morishige passed the ball in their own half and sent a lobbed pass into the penalty area. Ishikawa, who had perfectly timed his run behind the defense, managed to shoot with his left foot and beautifully scored his second goal, despite being challenged by the opponent's defender. With this goal, they took a commanding lead by scoring their fourth goal and putting Sapporo on the back foot.

　There were also moments when Sapporo's counterattacks, which did not stop their feet, met with retaliation, but in the 74th minute, Sapporo MF Yamamoto's decisive shot from the right area was saved by Kanda with one foot, and no goal was allowed. At the same time, without loosening their attacking hand, in the 81st minute, they connected passes with a number of players from their own territory, and Ishikawa → Tokunaga → Vucicevic, who was slightly to the right, advanced with a dribble. Skillfully avoiding the opponent's DF, he controlled the middle shot from just outside the area and pierced the ball above the opposite side.

　With VUCICEVIC's consecutive goals in the last 2 matches, we scored our 5th goal and at the same time, we kept a clean sheet in defense for a resounding victory! We achieved our first victory since the 27th round match against Iwata on September 29th.

　【Player Comment】《Hyun Soo JANG》"I think we achieved the result of 5 goals because everyone was moving well. Personally, there was a little gap before starting in the starting lineup, but I prepared my condition for today. I'm happy that we won because of that, and I want to continue playing this kind of game and improve my form even more."

　The goal was scored when Ishikawa crossed the ball, and it was an inspiration that can be said to be the first in his life. He ran in and hit it with all his might. I want to continue winning the next four games. I want to take the feeling of "if we don't win..." not as pressure for myself, but in a positive direction."

　"I was able to score 5 goals in the end, but I always thought 'this one point is crucial' and above all, I wanted to score the opening goal today. I tried to aim for that one point first. I think I was able to play the game simply and had a good image of being able to contribute to the team's connection and finish in different situations. It was something that we could share as a team."

　Goals are addictive (laughs). Scoring and winning is my job, and in that sense, I haven't been doing my job until now. There is little time left, but I want to do plays that directly contribute to scoring, such as shooting and assisting, and work hard so that the team can win. (250 games played, right?) I think both individuals and teams are built up through accumulation. It's not good to have a bad next game after a game like today... I want to continue with positive challenges so that we can continue to build up better performances and achieve results."

　[Summary of Coach Popovich's Press Conference] "I don't want to disrupt today's content and results by commenting. The players spoke eloquently, more than any beautiful words I could say. I think the players understand the kind of football they played on the pitch and the results they achieved. It's commendable that we kept a clean sheet and were able to score when we needed to. In the past, there have been games that would have turned out differently if we had scored when we should have, and today we were able to practice not allowing the opponent to score before we took the lead. It was a game that showed what kind of game it would be if we scored when we should have."

　Before the match, I told the players, "This may be the toughest opponent we face this season. It could be a tough match." The opponent has nothing to lose. We lost 0-2 in the final match of last season, and the lineup hasn't changed much since then. We can't underestimate them, and they don't have any unnecessary burden, so they are a formidable opponent. However, today we were able to demonstrate what we have been doing and what we should do on the pitch. Recently, we have been able to create chances but have not been able to convert them into goals, so we couldn't deliver a victory to the fans and supporters."

　And what I can't forget is the sight of everyone crying and their faces after losing to Shimizu in the second leg of the Nabisco Cup semifinals. It still remains vivid in my memory, and that defeat was painful and difficult for me as well. However, I believed that it was important to continue building and pursuing what we were aiming for without wavering. It was clear to me that it would become our strength, so I want to continue demonstrating attractive attacking football in the future."

　[Sapporo Ishizaki Coach's Press Conference Summary] "Because we have sent players who are suspended or from the under-23 national team, we didn't have any center-backs available today. So, in order to figure out how to fight, we moved a midfielder back. There were some difficult moments at the beginning, but we also had chances and couldn't convert them. The defensive balance was poor at times and we were under pressure, so we changed to a 4-back system and I think we settled down a bit in the first half."

　However, we conceded a goal early in the second half and we were forced to play aggressively. It ended up being the usual bad situation of conceding goals. Nevertheless, the players never gave up and fought well until the end. In order to carry this mentality into next year, we want to fight hard in the remaining four matches. (Not only in terms of mentality, but also in terms of play, we fought aggressively until the end, right?) Yes, that's right. Since we have many young players, it's important for them to gain valuable experience here. We want them to feel what is lacking against Tokyo and have a good experience in terms of mentality, technique, and tactics, and carry it forward to the next season."