A crucial match that cannot be lost in order to advance to the final tournament

The 5th round of the Nabisco Cup qualifying league was played away against Oita Trinita. In the 4/20 league match against Nagoya Grampus, they achieved a come-from-behind victory, their first win since the 2nd round. Taking this as momentum, they aim to continue winning streaks from here, including cup matches. At the same time, Tokyo is currently in 4th place in the Nabisco Cup with 1 win, 2 draws, and 1 loss. If they don't win, their chances of advancing to the final tournament will be extremely low, so victory is expected even away from home.

Oita, on the other hand, is in 6th place with 2 points in the Nabisco Cup. In the league, they have 2 draws and 5 losses, and they have not yet won a match in this season's official games. However, it can be said that they have been focusing on improving the team's maturity by not fixing the members so far, including the league and Nabisco. Although they have been scoring goals with their height advantage, they have not been able to win close matches. However, since it is a home game, they should come to challenge with a strong determination to win.

Tokyo changed their lineup from the Nagoya match. Ota injured his ankle, so Tokunaga replaced him on the left and Kaga on the right. Ishikawa and Kawano, who started their first official match this season, played as side midfielders, while Hirayama played as a forward and Li dropped back slightly. Kawano said, "I don't want to lose in terms of tactics and running with the opponent." He aims to win by utilizing the minimum base of physicality and fighting spirit that he has built up. The match started at 19:00 with a kickoff in Oita at the Oita Bank Dome.

Despite taking the initiative and attacking, they go into halftime with no goals

Tokyo aggressively attacks from the start of the first half. In the 4th minute, Tokunaga receives a long ball sent into the area from the left side by Tokunaga, runs in, and shoots, but it goes over the bar. In the 11th minute, Oita's left corner kick is caught by Gonda, and Tokyo launches a counterattack from the throw-in. From Lee's dribble, Ishikawa enters the right area and attempts a shot, but it is blocked. In the 13th minute, from Ishikawa's right corner kick, Lee heads the ball but it goes wide of the goal.

Oita also creates a solid block with a high line and tightens their defense. In the 19th minute, Kono goes around the ball dropped by Hirayama and feints the opponent's DF, then shoots from a one-two with Ishikawa in the center, but the timing is late and the ball goes over the bar. In the 27th minute, Hirayama drops Mori's vertical pass, and Ishikawa shoots from just outside the area in the center, but it hits the GK's face. Tokyo has control and is attacking, but they haven't created any decisive opportunities yet.

Gradually, Oita also created chances from counters, but they did not take shots. Tokyo had a scoring opportunity towards the end. In the 39th minute, Li timed his header perfectly to strike the ball from Ishikawa's cross from the left, but the shot lacked power and grazed the post, ending up in the hands of the goalkeeper. In the 43rd minute, Yonemoto sent a pass to the front line, which Hirayama headed down, and Ishikawa ran into the area to take a left-footed shot, but it went wide. Despite dominating with a shot count of 7 to 1 in the first half, they went into halftime with a scoreless draw.

Unable to break through the opponent's solid defense until the end, the match ended in a scoreless draw

The second half also progresses within the Oita team. However, despite various challenges, the precision is not enough to break down Oita's defensive line. In the 48th minute, Kono advances to the right area following Kaga's pass. He sends a final pass to Lee in the center, but it is intercepted. In the 51st minute, Ishikawa persistently sends a header forward, and Kaga, who had timed his run well, sends a low cross to the central space. However, it narrowly misses Lee, who was running forward.

Unable to create chances against Oita's defensive play. In the 64th minute, Nemanja VUCICEVIC replaced Ishikawa. In the 68th minute, Watanabe was substituted for Hirayama to go for the goal. In the 72nd minute, VUCICEVIC cut back on the right side, escaped to the outside, and crossed. Lee jumped in near the goal and tried to slide it in, but couldn't find the target. On the contrary, Oita continued to attack from the restart, but defended well with Kanda at the center.

In the 78th minute, Higashi was substituted for Kono. In the 87th minute, Vucicevic broke through the left front line from Takahashi's long pass and calmly cut inside with a ground cross. However, it narrowly missed Li, who had run into the center. In injury time, Vucicevic was forced to leave the field due to an injury, leaving the team with 10 players. After that, both teams attacked each other, and Tokyo continued to attack persistently until the end, but they couldn't break through the opponent's solid defense, resulting in a scoreless draw at the final whistle. As a result, it became a difficult situation for Tokyo to advance to the knockout stage.


[Player Comments]
《Ishikawa》"Today's lineup consists of energetic players. I was talking to Chun Son Lee, and I thought it would be good if he could push forward his desire to play and score on the pitch. If we focus on transitioning to defense and passing, and do that properly, then we can take advantage of our momentum and make moves. There were also moments where we were able to move forward quickly and it worked well, so I think we were able to generate momentum."

A good challenge was made, but we couldn't score when we should have. Personally, there is still a challenge of not being calm enough in shooting scenes. Results are everything, and especially today, we were members who had to produce results. We have regrets and reflections for not being able to do that, but we are definitely not stepping back. I also think it's a step forward. I want to play the next game quickly and score goals. I want to keep up the good momentum."

"In the first half, we were able to create chances in a good shape. In the second half, the movement decreased and there was a feeling of struggling to attack. We needed a little more ingenuity there and wanted to create more chances and score... Gradually, the distance between us and the surrounding players widened, and the pass from the center back became distant. I wanted to get closer and carry the ball with one touch or two touches. There was a scene where Takahashi made a through pass to the front line, and we should have increased such attacks."

I think we couldn't get into a good position and lacked coordination. However, we wanted to score within the first half. It was a game where we had to show our desire to score and not let it be taken away. (Regarding the ranking in the Nabisco Cup) There's no point in thinking about it, so we just need to focus on winning the next match against Niigata. We want to play football that leads to success in the league."


[Coach's Press Conference Summary]
《Coach Popovich》"We were able to take the initiative and control the game well. The opponent's counterattacks were accurate, but we responded well and didn't allow them to create many scoring opportunities, which was good. However, just like in previous matches, our accuracy in creating clear chances was lacking. If we don't take advantage of the scoring opportunities that we create by dominating the game, we won't be able to win."

That is still a challenge for the team. I think it is a part that needs to be fixed. The bad part of today's game was not being able to earn 3 points. In a long season, it becomes necessary to fight against a tough schedule, so I think it was a gain to be able to use players who have had few opportunities to play and have been away from the game.

"I don't know what kind of impressions you all have, but for me, I think we had a very good game. Of course, we couldn't win, but each player gave their best performance and fought well as a team, while also understanding the tactics that we should do. From the reflection of the previous game, I think the team came together and brought out the performance."

(The team was able to be compact overall and focused, including the three players in the back and both wide players, and for the first time this season, they were able to keep a clean sheet. The midfield and forwards were also able to establish clear objectives as a team, which is why they were able to keep a clean sheet and can be evaluated.)