A crucial match where we want to secure points away in order to stay in the top contention

In the 26th round of the league, we will play against Nagoya Grampus away. In the previous round, Hirayama scored a goal in the final moments for the second consecutive game and achieved a 3-game winning streak in the official match by winning against Urawa for the first time in 9 years. As a result, there is a close battle between 4th place Kashima and 13th place Shimizu with a 6-point difference. The weight of a victory increases towards the end. The players said, "To be in the top, we need to win consecutively. Therefore, we will focus only on winning the next game in front of us and continue to build on that," and strive for victory in each game.

Nagoya, on the other hand, is currently in 10th place with 36 points. Although they lost to Shimizu in the last match, they have been in good form with 6 wins, 3 draws, and 1 loss in the last 10 matches. FW Kennedy, who was absent in the April home game, has fully recovered and become a key player in the attack, creating goals in combination with FW Tamada, MF Ogawa, Fujimoto, and others on the sides. MF Danilson is out of the lineup due to injury, but DF Tori-oh has returned as a substitute. It is important to be cautious of their height advantage, especially in set plays, as before.

Tokyo changed their members from the previous match. Ishikawa started in place of Higashi, who is not in perfect condition. Gonda said, "Nagoya tries to maximize individual strength. We will fight in our own way without conforming to that. Therefore, precision should be the key point." It will be a match where we challenge head-on with our usual style. The true value of the team's efforts so far will be tested in this game. The match started with Tokyo's kickoff at 19:04 at Nagoya Mizuho Athletics Stadium.

Take the lead and turn it around with Hasegawa's beautiful goal

Both teams are trying to take the initiative and establish a rhythm from the start of the match. In the 9th minute, Hasegawa passes to Watanabe in the center, who drops the ball for Lucas just outside the penalty area. Lucas takes a shot, but it is blocked. Hasegawa follows up with a shot from outside the box, but it goes wide to the right. In the 10th minute, Ishikawa breaks free from Watanabe's pass and dribbles quickly through the center, attempting a goal, but his ground shot lacks power and is saved by the goalkeeper. In the 12th minute, after entering the opponent's half, Takahashi attempts a shot from a direct play with Hasegawa, but it goes wide of the goal.

Nagoya also took the ball in the midfield in the 18th minute, and FW Kennedy passed it to FW Tamada while attacking. At this point, Morishige couldn't hold back and was dribbled past, allowing a decisive shot from the center of the area, but Kanda made a save. From here, Nagoya's midfield controlled the ball with skillful passing, but they pressed from the front line, took it back, and counterattacked. In the 30th minute, Yonemoto intercepted in Nagoya's territory. He tried to shoot with a loop, but the shot narrowly missed the target.

Then, in the 38th minute, Takahashi connected a header to Lucas after clearing Nagoya's ball. Lucas advanced while evading the opposing defender and passed it to Hasegawa, who was positioned towards the right side of the area. Hasegawa aimed carefully and scored a goal, taking the lead. Tokyo began to settle down with this one goal and did not forcefully attack, instead keeping possession of the ball with the defensive line and midfield, preventing Nagoya from counterattacking. They effectively managed the time and ultimately maintained their one-goal lead as they entered the second half.

Victory by holding off Nagoya's counterattack with persistent play without conceding a goal!

Nagoya substituted FW Nagai for MF Fujimoto in the second half. They collected the ball to FW Kennedy in the front line and launched a counterattack. However, Tokyo also stole the ball with tight defense and went for an additional goal. In the 52nd minute, they intercepted Nagoya's vertical pass at the DF line. Immediately, Yonemoto launched a counterattack. They expanded to the right side and Hasegawa directly received the pass sent by Ishikawa towards the center with a slight negative angle and took a shot, but it was saved by the GK in front. In the 57th minute, Watanabe aimed for a goal from outside the area, but it was also saved by the GK in front.

In the 58th minute, Nagoya also had a chance when FW Kennedy connected with MF Ogawa's left corner kick in the right area, but the shot went wide with a back header. Then, in the 71st minute, right SB Tanaka Hayato broke through the right front line with speed. He entered the right area and crossed the ball into the middle from a close distance, even though he was in a 1-on-1 situation with Ota. The cross hit Ota, but it was deflected by Gonda. The ball grazed past Hyun Soo JANG again and went over the line. It was a tense moment as the ball bounced back in front of the goal, but Nagoya escaped with a corner kick.

Tokyo, who wants to change the flow, substituted Hirayama for Ishikawa in the 71st minute. However, in the 72nd minute, Nagoya's right-to-left forward, Tamada, made a sharp left cross. Kennedy, the forward, jumped in near the goal and unleashed a decisive diving header, but it narrowly veered to the right and the danger was averted. After that, Tokyo created several chances from counters against Nagoya, who became more aggressive. In the 86th minute, Lucas from the left area took a decisive shot, but it was blocked by the defender in front of the goal.

Then, in the 88th minute, Hasegawa put pressure on the opponent's ball on the right side, Vucicevic, who came on as a substitute, picked up the loose ball and dribbled into the right area. He feinted past the opponent's defender and took a shot, and the ball neatly found the net on the opposite side, adding another goal. With this decisive goal, the game was sealed. They fought tenaciously until the end and achieved a third consecutive victory without conceding a goal.


[Player Comments]
"Today, I played as an attacking midfielder, so I was conscious of playing close to Kazuma WATANABE and trying to find space between the opponent's center-back and defensive midfielder to turn forward. The goal came from a good one-two with Euan SHOESMITH, and I was able to play forward. I could see the shooting lane, so I just focused on hitting the target. That shape is something we often practice. Nagoya Grampus had a lot of possession, but we all shouted and defended during that time, and we had a common understanding of defending and possessing the ball. As for the game plan, I think we were able to execute it as we intended."

"Nemanja VUCICEVIC"
"I think it was a great game. We are on a winning streak and I want to continue winning. Even though we have played well in the past, it didn't always result in a win. But now, I think the results are matching the performance. I was able to score and showcase my strengths as planned. I want to thank the coach for giving me the opportunity and my teammates for delivering the ball to me. Not only Ariya, but the whole team defended desperately and connected in the attack. I think the strong desire to win from everyone led to goals and results. The support from the fans also gave us courage and strength. I am grateful and happy that we could celebrate together."


[Coach Popovich's Press Conference Summary]
"After such a game, words cannot be found. I think that what we have been trying to do as an ideal has been shown on the pitch. Nagoya had chances in the first half, but Gonda defended well. And we took the lead by turning our chances into goals. I think the first half was a back-and-forth battle. However, even after taking the lead, we did not switch to a defensive mindset and did not break our attacking posture. And while attacking, we were able to carefully control the game. I think we were able to show growth."

Regarding the fact that we were able to have a match like today against a strong opponent like Nagoya Grampus, there is only one word to say, "Well done." It is very important for Tokyo football to continue playing matches like today and continue to show that this is what it is. Of course, it will take time, but I think it is important to continue showing it. I would like to express my gratitude to all the fans and supporters who came all the way to Nagoya and supported us until the end."


[Nagoya Stojkovic Coach's Press Conference Summary]
"We have not lost at home for a long time, but today it ended in a defeat. I am disappointed with the result. Throughout the 90 minutes, I don't think we played well enough to deserve a win. Tokyo played well. They have a good team with good players. I think they enjoy playing football. We didn't. The absence of DF Tatsuki Iwao and MF Danilson also had an impact. In the first half, there was a chance for FW Tamada, but he couldn't convert it."

Chance for FW Kennedy in the second half. About 2 meters, right? He couldn't convert that either. Maybe it wasn't enough in the 90 minutes. Our play was really poor."