A battle aiming for the league's first victory with an aggressive offense and defense

Sec. 3 of the league, which comes just three days after the Nabisco Cup. We will face Vissel Kobe away on Sunday. In the Nabisco Cup match against Niigata, we made seven changes to the starting lineup and secured our first victory of the season with aggressive play from Ishikawa and Hayashi. We want to use this victory and momentum as a springboard for the future. Coach Massimo also said, "It was a performance that leads to the league matches," but on the other hand, the preparation period for the game is short, so he asked the players to immediately focus on the next match and switch mentally and physically to challenge Kobe.

Kobe, on the other hand, finished 11th last season. In order to make a leap forward, they have welcomed NELSINHO as their new coach this season, and in addition to defenders Yasuda and Takahashi Shohei, and midfielder Fejzullahu, they have also acquired forward Watanabe from Tokyo. They have made precise adjustments to both their offense and defense. At the same time, they aim to make a strong push for the top using the attacking power of forward Pedro JUNIOR and midfielder Morioka. Although they have not yet won a game with 1 draw and 1 loss so far, in the previous league match, forward Watanabe and defender Takahashi Shohei marked their first goals after joining the team, indicating that the team's situation is improving. In particular, Kobe's midfielder Morioka is skilled in passing and making runs himself, and is also capable of taking shots from outside the box. By controlling players like him, midfielder Ogawa, and midfielder Chung Woo-yeon, who serve as the starting point in the midfield, they want to shut down the attacking power of Watanabe and Pedro JUNIOR.

Tokyo, Ota, Yonehara, and Kajiyama, who missed the Nabisco Niigata match, returned to the starting lineup. The in-form Higashi was selected for the front line. Muto and Higashi formed a two-top, with Kono playing as an attacking midfielder. Ishikawa made his first appearance on the bench in the league. Maeda also sat on the bench as a substitute. On the other hand, Kobe's FW Marquinhos was not included in the squad. DF Iwanami was absent due to the activities of the U-22 Japan national team. However, they are expected to come out attacking at home. In response, it will be a match aiming for victory with a tenacious and proactive approach in both offense and defense. The match started with FC Tokyo's kickoff at 17:04.

Mori Shige scores the opening goal from a set piece, leading by one point at halftime!

The game started in the 4th minute. Muto, who tried to make a move forward in the opponent's central area, had the ball stolen and Kobe countered. Pedro JUNIOR, a forward on the left side, was brought up in the center and passed the last pass to forward Watanabe, who ran freely into the right area. However, the Tokyo DF did not allow the shot to be blocked by sliding, and the shot went wide of the goal.

15 minutes have passed, and both teams have shown a proactive attitude, with chances for both sides. It was a situation where we wanted to keep the ball a little more in the front line and calmly create opportunities. In the 17th minute, the opponent quickly attacked from their own territory, and Tokyo's FW Watanabe dribbled up while taking a mid-range shot. It had momentum and the shot was on target, but it hit the right post. It was a close call.

The development of give and take continued in the 33rd minute. Ota's early cross hit the opponent and earned a left corner kick. From Ota's left corner kick, Morishige in the area dropped back and headed the ball into the net on the opposite side, GOAL!! Taking advantage of the chance from the corner kick, they took the lead!

The 41st minute arrived. The opponent connected from their own half and sent a ground cross from the left side into the area. Running in from the center to meet it, FW Watanabe trapped the ball, but Gonda came out and fouled him, resulting in a penalty. In the 43rd minute, the PK situation. The opponent's FW Pedro JUNIOR took the PK, but Gonda made a stop!!!! Gonda's fine save averted the crisis!

From the beginning, both teams attacked each other and the game continued with a back and forth flow. Both teams had chances, but in the 33rd minute, Morishige scored the opening goal by utilizing a set play! After that, there was a penalty kick awarded to Kobe, but Gonda made a sharp reaction and stopped it, preventing a goal!! The first half ended with a one-goal lead.

League's first victory with a focused defense by all and a goal by Muto!

Opponent's attack in the second half at the 52nd minute. The Tokyo defense was unable to keep up with the fast-paced passing in the front line. From the drop by Kobe FW Watanabe just in front of the area, MF Ogawa broke free on the left rear and took a decisive shot, but once again, Gonda made a save!

Kobe, who connects passes smoothly and attacks with momentum, is being pushed back as 60 minutes have passed. Although the defense line is holding up well, they are unable to connect the ball to the front line even after winning it back. Muto is positioned in the center, with Higashi and Kono taking care of the sides, but they are unable to contain the opponent's midfielders' attacks.

68 minutes, Yuhara on the right → Kajiyama in the center sends it forward, Muto receives it in the middle of the opponent's territory, skillfully evades the opposing defender on his back after trapping the ball, reverses and advances to the front line with a sharp dribble! He shoots quickly from the right area, holds it down and sinks it into the net on the opposite side, GOAL!! GOAL!!

In the 69th minute immediately after, Takahashi was substituted for Hayu. Double volante with Kajiyama. On both sides, Yonemoto and Higashi. The front line is formed in a shape close to 4-4-2 with Muto and Kawano serving. Furthermore, in the 73rd minute, Ishikawa was substituted for Kawano and entered the forward position along with Muto.

80 minutes have passed. In the second half, there was a long period of time when Kobe was pushed back by Tokyo's momentum, but Muto used his technique and speed to score an additional goal! Even after extending the lead to two goals, the opponent launched a counterattack, but Tokyo used player substitutions and aimed for counterattacks while enduring. In the 82nd minute, Kobe's substitute MF Ishizu used his speed to break through from the right side. He entered the area and was sent a decisive negative cross, but Morishige made a sharp cover. He escaped the pinch with a sliding tackle!

In the first half, Morishige scored the opening goal from Ota's corner kick. Gonda stopped the penalty kick and prevented any goals. In the second half, there was a long period of time for Kobe's counterattack, but we concentrated together and defended well. Muto scored an additional goal! The players who were selected for the Japanese national team also achieved good results, and we secured our first victory in the league.

[Player Comments]
"Muto"
"I felt that it would be a tough game from the start. Lately, we have been playing with two forwards, but I haven't been able to make dribbles. Even when I tried to drop back and receive the ball, the opponent's pressure was tough, and the coach asked me to make simple movements towards the back. Today, things didn't go well in situations other than scoring. However, my teammates told me to make sure to seize the one chance, and I was able to do that in the end."

"Mori Shige"
"We were able to play a game where we moved the ball and pressed on the sides from the first half. There was fear in Kobe's short counterattacks. Also, we were able to calmly respond to attacks from the opposite side after a side change, and we were able to score from a set piece. We had two draws in the league, but we also had a sense of accomplishment. Of course, there were challenges, but we fought patiently and believed in what we had to do. I think today's result was possible because everyone focused on what they had to do."
　"First of all, I had to acknowledge the quality of Kobe. Within that, I think the players played a fantastic game. In the first half, we had some chances and scenes where we came close to scoring. In the second half, the opponent became a little more aggressive, but within that, we were able to score a second goal. After that, we were able to close the game in our own style. I want to praise the players for playing a fantastic game. I am truly satisfied that we were able to play the football we wanted to play from various aspects such as physical and tactical."

[Kobe NELSINHO coach's press conference summary]
"As we had prepared, I think the team was able to play organized football from the first half. We were able to effectively neutralize the opponent's strengths and didn't allow any dangerous scenes to occur within the flow. However, there was one mistake in a set play, which allowed the opponent to score due to a positional error. After that, the team regained its rhythm, created chances, and approached the goal, even obtaining a chance for a penalty kick, but we missed it suddenly. Anyway, I talked to the players at halftime, and the only thing that was lacking in this match was the finishing touch in the final part. I told the players that there was no need to change anything and sent them back out. In the second half, there was a injury to DF BUENO, which affected the team. Nevertheless, we were able to continue connecting the ball and creating our own rhythm, just like in the first half, but the second goal we conceded due to a mistake was decisive."