The Yamazaki Nabisco Cup qualifying league has started!

Tokyo will participate in the Nabisco Cup qualifying league for the first time since 2010. In the first match, they will face Sagan Tosu at their home ground, Komazawa. In Group B, Kashima, Niigata, Nagoya, C Osaka, Tosu, and Oita are participating, and the matches will be held in a round-robin format until May 22nd (Tokyo until the 6th match on May 15th). The top two teams in each group will advance to the knockout tournament. Coach Popovic said, "Although cup matches have their own difficulties, our attitude and style of play will not change," and the battle to aim for the title will begin step by step.

This week, the Japanese national team's Takahashi and Gonda, and the South Korean national team's Hyun Soo JANG are absent from the team. Therefore, GK Shioda, DF Kaga, MF Tanabe, and FW Lee are starting. Rookie Mita is also in the starting lineup, playing on both sides with Tanabe, and the double pivot is formed by Yonemoto and Hasegawa.

Sagan Tosu, on the other hand, ended the league opening with 2 draws, but in the previous match against Kawasaki, they won after an intense battle. Under the guidance of Coach Son, the style that all members have built up until last season through hard work and unity is still strong. Furthermore, they are pushing forward with a fighting spirit and improving their quality.

In this match, Tosu also replaced their members, and FW Toyota, Ikeda, MF Fujita, who are symbols of the team, will be absent. Instead, they will use fresh players such as FW Kiyotake and launch a powerful attack starting from the front, while sticking to their own style and launching an aggressive attack from an organized defense.

It is the first match of a cup competition where the result is expected, and it is a battle to aim for victory by taking control of the offense and defense as usual. The game started at 14:04 in Tokyo with strong winds blowing under cloudy skies.

Both teams had fresh players who attracted attention, but they couldn't capitalize on their scoring opportunities.

In the early stages, Tosu, who had the wind at their back, launched an offensive. They threatened the Tokyo goal with a long throw from FW Kiyotake and a long pass to FW Roni, but Tokyo calmly responded. On the contrary, in the 14th minute, Li unleashed a powerful header from a right corner kick taken by Higashi. However, the shot missed to the left.

In the 19th minute, Ota overlapped on the outside from a skillful pass by Tanabe on the left side. He advanced to the sideline and sent a powerful cross. Lee was in the center, but the ball was deflected by the Tosu goalkeeper. Next, Mita on the right side pierced the left front line and delivered a sharp and low cross. Tanabe closed in near the goal, but couldn't hit it cleanly due to a collision with the Tosu defenders and the ball went wide.

Tokyo failed to capitalize on scoring opportunities against Tosu, who put their bodies on the line until the end. On the contrary, Tosu attacked mainly through set pieces, resulting in a back-and-forth battle. In the 34th minute, Mita obtained a corner kick on the right side after receiving a pass from Yonemoto. Yonemoto took a shot from the loose ball after Hasegawa's kick, but it was blocked. In the 40th minute, Mita's direct free kick from the right side was also blocked by the Tosu defenders.

Despite being affected by the wind and pitch conditions, Tokyo was able to create attacking opportunities by connecting passes, but they were unable to fully take control of the game. On the other hand, for Tosu, who showed a speedy counterattack from a solid defense, it should have been a game plan that went as intended. However, both teams lacked the finishing touch and the first half ended with no goals.

Although they couldn't fully capitalize on their chances, they maintained their focus and started with a draw

In the second half, Tokyo aggressively attacked from the beginning. In the 49th minute, they connected from the right to the left, and Hasegawa in the center passed to Mita in front, entering the area. They made a one-two pass and attacked close to the goal, but couldn't finish in front of Tosu's defenders. In the 51st minute, Higashi attempted a shot from mid-range but missed the target.

However, in the 58th minute, he failed to handle the second ball in the midfield and the ball floated towards the DF line. Tosu's right MF Mizunuma jumped out and shot from the right side. In the 60th minute, it was taken away from Tokyo's mistake and consecutively crossed from the counter. In the 61st minute, the midfield pass was intercepted and Tosu went directly to the goal. However, FW Roni's shot didn't hit well and was in front of Shioda.

The match became a back-and-forth battle, with both sides not missing any opportunities. In the 64th minute, a great chance was created from the combination play between Hasegawa and Mita. Hasegawa in the midfield sent a lofted pass to the forward line, where Mita on the right side broke free from the opponent's defender. With skillful chest control, he took a shot with momentum, but... it hit the crossbar and crossed the goal line, unable to convert the scoring opportunity.

In the 71st minute, Otake, who returned from a long-term absence since last year, replaced Tanabe and played as an attacking midfielder. Higashi moved to the side. In the 75th minute, there was a scene where he ran into the clear of a vertical pass from Tosu forward Kiyotake and took a shot from just outside the central area, but it missed the target and Tokyo escaped the danger. In the 77th minute, Tokyo substituted Hirayama. Li changed positions to the side and aimed for a goal.

However, despite trying to create chances in a coordinated manner, there were also mistakes and they were hit by Tosu's counterattack. In the 87th minute, Watanabe was substituted. In the final stages, they increased their momentum and attacked, but in the added time, Hasegawa dropped the ball after a pass exchange on the right side, and Otake's shot from outside the right area went over the bar. They defended against Tosu's quick attacks without losing focus and attacked using player substitutions, but the match ended in a scoreless draw. They only managed to earn 1 point in the first Nabisco match.

[Player Comments]
《Tanabe》"As a team, we struggled to connect the passes and it became a difficult match with Tosu's aggressive play. We felt that if we could break their high press, we could have controlled the game better, but we faced many difficulties on the pitch. However, we had our chances... and we realize the importance of converting those chances into goals. It's disappointing not to win the first match of the Nabisco Cup, but at the same time, there were enjoyable moments and areas where we could feel the progress. We want to contribute to the team's success from here on."

"Mita" "I always watched everyone's plays and movements in practice regarding the coordination of attack and defense, so I thought there would be no problem. However, I had rarely played as a right-side player until I became a professional, so I was particularly conscious of positioning. In the first half, it was a play while thinking about where to position myself because it was downwind. As time passed, I was able to get used to it, and I think I was able to face forward and compete in the second half."

(About scoring opportunities) In the second half, we had the wind at our backs, so I thought that changing sides would be effective. I often stayed on the side, so that's why the middle was open. However, my trapping was good, but my shots were too forceful. I should have calmed down and taken the shots. I wanted to score goals and create more scenes where I could get involved in front of the goal."

[Coach's Press Conference Summary]
《Coach Popovic》"In a strong wind and not so good pitch environment, we were able to show what we needed to do. Tosu is a team that has strong discipline and can work aggressively and work hard in the J-League. I can't say that I'm not satisfied with the attitude shown by the Tokyo players in response to that. I appreciate that they showed the consciousness of connecting the ball even in such bad conditions."

There were decisive chances, but we couldn't convert them. That is a challenge, but it is necessary to improve accuracy. However, we didn't allow the opponent to create decisive chances either. We were able to fight with discipline. There may have been dangerous situations in the scramble from Tosu's long throw, but we didn't allow chances in the flow of the game. We would like to express our gratitude to all the fans and supporters who came to support us and helped us with their strength.

Also, it should be mentioned first that the Yamazaki Nabisco Cup has been certified by Guinness. It's amazing and I have great respect for the contribution it has made to the soccer world. As a token of gratitude, I want to play well and achieve good results. Today wasn't the best result, but I believe we expressed ourselves on the pitch with what we can do. The J-League is also celebrating its 20th anniversary, and the Nabisco Cup has reached adulthood. In Japan, adulthood is celebrated at the age of twenty, but it's still young. I hope it will continue to be a traditional cup competition in Japan."

"Manager Yoon of Sagan Tosu: "I would like to express my gratitude to our supporters and Tokyo supporters for coming to the game. Today, the weather was not good and the pitch condition was also bad, but I think it was a game where both teams fought hard. There was also a battle in terms of discovering new talents and players as the members changed."

In last season's Nabisco Cup, we made significant changes to the squad, but this season we have the intention of achieving better results than last year and instead of changing all the players, we want to assess new players within a certain extent and fight. The players fought until the end without losing focus. I want to express my gratitude for that. We couldn't win, but I think we should be satisfied with taking home 1 point from the away game. We have a match in just a few days. It will be a home game, so we want to prepare well and welcome it with a solid victory."