Nabisco Cup starts, aiming for the first official victory

The current season of the "J.League Yamazaki Nabisco Cup" has begun. Albirex Niigata will face them at home as the first match of the qualifying league. In the qualifying league of this tournament, Tokyo, along with Niigata, Matsumoto, Tosu, Kofu, Hiroshima, and Shonan, belongs to Group A and played 6 matches (until the 7th match). After that, the top 2 teams advanced to the quarterfinals. Note that the 4 teams participating in the ACL will join from the quarterfinals.

Manager Massimo says, "For us, the Nabisco Cup is a very important tournament. It is difficult to manage the team while also playing in the league, but we want to focus on each match and aim to advance through the qualifying league." However, Nara and Nakajima from the U-22 Japan national team are absent for this match. Also, due to the league match being held three days after the previous round, Ota, Yonemoto, and Kajiyama are replaced by Maruyama at left back and Yoshimoto at center back. Takahashi is used as a defensive midfielder, and Mita and Higashi are used as inside halves. Up front, Hayashi plays in the center, Ishikawa on the right, and Muto on the left in a 4-3-3 formation. Ishikawa starts for the first time since the Nabisco Sendai match (away) on April 5th of last season. Hayashi also makes his first start in Tokyo. Matsuda and Hashimoto are on the bench, taking a step towards the title with a fresh lineup.

Niigata, on the other hand, is led by coach Yanagishita in his fourth season, and they have been promoting an organized style based on their physicality. They have yet to secure a victory in the league with 1 draw and 1 loss, so they will surely come strongly seeking their first win. However, they have had to make changes to their lineup for the league matches due to the absence of key players such as U-22 Japan representative DF Matsubara and FW Suzuki. It is important to pay close attention to the playmaking ability of MF Leo Silva and the height and dribbling skills of FW Shibukusa and FW Yamazaki. However, we want to seize victory by playing aggressively in both offense and defense without being overwhelmed by their physicality.

During the day, it became the warmest day of the year, but under the weather that seemed like rain could start at any moment, the match started with Niigata's kickoff at 19:04.

Conceding a goal at the beginning, allowing Niigata to dominate...

The match started off with a lot of movement. Niigata connected the kickoff ball and broke through on the right side. They were able to put in a ground cross, but Tokyo escaped with a corner kick. However, in the following 2 minutes, Niigata's midfielder Leo Silva made a quick vertical pass. Right midfielder Kato, who had moved up to the front, continued to expand to the outside while carrying Maruyama on his back. He was able to put in another ground cross to the right side back Kawaguchi, who had timed his run well. Forward Yamazaki, who had crowded the goal, was unable to make the shot, but midfielder Yamamoto was free to follow up on the ball that had flowed to the far side and easily scored a goal... Niigata left both sides free and conceded a goal at the start of the match.

However, without being disturbed, aim for a counterattack calmly. In the 11th minute, Higashi on the left side played a through pass behind the opponent's defense. Ishikawa adjusted his position with the opponent's offside line and skillfully broke through to the left area. However, the shot from there narrowly missed the goal. In the 12th minute, Lin intercepted Niigata's pass, and Hayashi -> Ishikawa ran up the right side and took a shot at the middle.

After that, they allowed Niigata's quick passing and ball control, and received attacks starting from the sides, pushing Tokyo's defense back. However, they calmly defended and prepared for a counterattack. In the 38th minute, they launched a quick attack from their own half, with Mita on the right side passing to Tokunaga who crossed the ball. Niigata's goalkeeper came out and managed to punch the ball away, but Takahashi ran in to try a shot. In the 43rd minute, they cleared Niigata's right corner kick, and Muto and Ishikawa tried to counterattack, but Niigata quickly switched and couldn't bring the ball forward. In the 45th minute, Tokyo tenaciously turned a loose ball into their possession in the opponent's half, and charged towards the left area. Muto and Mita tried to connect with a short final pass in front of the goal, but it only resulted in a corner kick.

Changed the shape of the front line, with Muto and Hayashi as the two top players. In the latter part of the game, the team gained momentum and the counterattack mood increased by placing Ishikawa in the attacking midfield position. However, they were unable to score a goal and ended the first half with a one-point deficit.

Nao scores his first goal since 2013! Seizing the come-from-behind victory together

Continuing their momentum in the second half, in the 48th minute, Igo Gabriel initiated a counterattack and dribbled through the center. Higashi, who had moved up on the left, entered the penalty area. Then, in the 52nd minute, Duke Carlos made a vertical run and delivered a low cross from the left side of the field. The ball spilled to Higashi in the left area, who had made a run from the opposite side. Although the shot went over the bar, they smoothly carried the ball up to the front line and created a scoring opportunity.

In the 63rd minute, Hayabusa replaced Mita in the center. Ishikawa moved to the right side, forming a formation similar to 4-4-2. This immediately proved successful, and in the 65th minute, Ishikawa received the ball from Tokunaga in their own half and dribbled towards the opponent's right side. He skillfully bypassed the opponent's defenders one by one and charged towards the left side of the penalty area, unleashing a powerful left-footed shot that soared into the upper right corner! This goal, scored by Ishikawa, equalized the score, marking his first goal since the 33rd round match against Kashiwa on November 30, 2013.

As Niigata's quick switching gradually declined, Tokyo increased their momentum and launched more attacking plays, further intensifying the comeback mood. In the 73rd minute, Takahashi, who had moved up vertically from the left area to the inside, made a one-touch pass to Hayashi on the right front line. Hayashi sent the ball to Ishikawa, who was free in the right area, and from there he took a decisive shot, but the goalkeeper's save prevented an additional goal. However, in the 76th minute, Hayashi on the right area tried to receive a right cross with his back to the goal, but was fouled from behind and won a penalty kick. In the 78th minute, Hayashi himself calmly converted the penalty kick, sliding it into the goal! In the 83rd minute, Hayashi, who had to be substituted due to injury, contributed to the comeback by sacrificing himself and fulfilling his role on the front line. Despite allowing Niigata to bring multiple shots to the goal in the final stages, Gonda's reliable play held firm, and the match ended with a score of 2-1. With a victory in the Nabisco Cup and the first official win of the season secured.

[Player Comment]
《Ishikawa》
"I felt the support from the fans before the game, and I could sense the high expectations. It was a big pressure to live up to those expectations (laughs), but I wanted to respond somehow. I was able to score a goal with the feeling of being in a good condition. It's not only about converting few chances, but more importantly, I wanted to show our attacking momentum today."
I think we were able to score a goal as a result of not forgetting to be proactive from the first half. Being able to express it as one form gives us confidence."

《East》
"Niigata is a team characterized by their high work rate and hard work. It was a very difficult game after conceding a goal early on. However, even in that situation, it was good that we were able to discuss on the pitch, with Morishige as the center, and say 'Let's not collapse here.' We had plenty of time and were able to create an atmosphere within the team that said, 'If we can keep it to one goal, we have a chance to score and turn the game around.' We want to use this victory as a springboard and continue to prepare for consecutive wins."

[Summary of Massimo FICCADENTI's press conference]
"The situation improved as time went on from the beginning. It was a game with a high intensity, and we were able to come from behind and show a fantastic mentality. In the final stages, we gave the opponents some chances, but as a team, we were able to control the game. I am satisfied with today's performance. We believed in a comeback in the first half, but the second half was even more impressive. Above all, Ishikawa had a tough time last season due to a back injury, so today was an important day for him. He came back in top condition after going through a really difficult period and scored a fantastic goal. This victory will boost the team's morale and have a positive impact on the league. As for Hayashi, he injured his foot, but we are still not sure about the details. We will continue to assess his condition in the future."
（We faced the match by replacing 7 players from the league game?)
Regarding Ota, Yonemoto, and Kajiyama, they were not in 100% condition, so we had no choice but to replace them. The players who played in their place today made some mistakes, but they showed great plays in terms of their mentality and ball control. This season, we have 30 players, and our goal is to improve the skills of the players who joined this season in addition to what we built last year and raise the team's level. Even in a situation where we were behind, we continued to play calmly and believe in victory, showing a real mentality of not giving up and a determination to win."