GAME RESULTMatch Results

Sec. 2 2018/3/14 (Wed)
観衆 7,439人 
Weather: Clear, Temperature: 15.0 degrees Celsius, Humidity: 64% 
Referee: Yuichi NISHIMURA Assistant Referee: Akihito KAWASAKI / Koji MORIKAWA Fourth Official: Takeshi ASADA

YLC Group Stage Group A Matchday 2

Ajinomoto

HOME

FC Tokyo

1-0

Match ended

First Half0-0

Second half1-0

AWAY

Albirex Niigata

FC Tokyo Albirex Niigata
76' Takefusa KUBO
Scorer
70' Kotaro OMORI → Takefusa KUBO
70' Cayman TOGASHI → Kensuke NAGAI
87' Diego OLIVEIRA → Takuya UCHIDA
Player substitution 46' Tatsuya TANAKA → Thales
63' Yuta ITO → Go HAYAMA
77' Arata WATANABE → Bruno MENEGHEL
15 Shoot 5
6 CK 3
5 FK 12
Warning
Expulsion
FC Tokyo Starting
GK 33 Akihiro HAYASHI
DF 29 Makoto OKAZAKI
DF 48 Hyun Soo JANG
DF 5 Yuichi MARUYAMA
DF 25 Ryoya OGAWA
MF 39 Kotaro OMORI
MF 18 Kento Hashimoto
MF 8 Yojiro TAKAHAGI
MF 38 Keigo HIGASHI
FW 17 Cayman TOGASHI
FW 9 Diego OLIVEIRA
FC Tokyo Substitute
GK 1 Takuo OKUBO
DF 2 Sei MUROYA
DF 4 Kazunori YOSHIMOTO
MF 7 Takuji YONEMOTO
MF 28 Takuya UCHIDA
FW 11 Kensuke NAGAI
FW 15 Takefusa KUBO
Albirex Niigata starting lineup
GK 21 Yasuhiro Watanabe
DF 24 Naoki KAWAGUCHI
DF 44 Shun OBU
DF 34 Haru Teruki
DF 29 Taiki WATANABE
MF 26 Sachiro TOSHIMA
MF 23 Yasutaka YANAGI
MF 17 Yuta Ito
MF 33 Yoshiaki TAKAGI
FW 16 Arata WATANABE
FW 14 Tatsuya TANAKA
Albirex Niigata substitute
GK 30 Junto TAGUCHI
DF 25 Takumi Hasegawa
MF 20 Gō Hashiyama
MF 36 Motohama Shion
MF 37 Arata IGARASHI
FW 11 Thales
FW 27 Bruno MENEGHEL

[Highlight Video]

[Player and Coach Comments]

"Keigo HIGASHI player"

"Winning is truly a joy, regardless of the tournament or opponent."
I couldn't take advantage of the chances and it was a frustrating development, but I enjoyed playing.

There might be another game like today.
I think it is important to continue towards what needs to be done without getting impatient even if the game develops in such a way.

In that situation, Take (Takefusa KUBO) really scored well.
However, Take may be highlighted, but for example, Diego OLIVEIRA player ran without sparing effort, chased the ball, and contributed.
I also think that players like Yuta Togashi and Ryo Nagai have shown dedication and contributed to the team, and this is the result of our collective efforts.
"We want to make good preparations together so that we can connect to the next step."

"Hyun Soo JANG player"

"I felt the weight of one point, the weight of one victory."
The game had been continuing with a series of missed opportunities.
There were many opportunities today. I think it was a game that we were able to take advantage of and will lead to future matches.

(Both fullbacks were young players?)
Because Ogawa and Okazaki are good players, I was only focused on communicating with them.

(About Okubo. Hyun Soo Jang was carrying him after the goal (lol)?)
I think he is a bold player.
He is also a player that you want to support as a senior in soccer.
After the goal, he came towards me so I lifted him up, but that should have been the same feeling for not only me but also other players.
It was great that the team fought together as one.

Not only the starting eleven, but also the players on the bench and those watching from the stands were all hungry for victory. We displayed our desire to win, remained committed to victory, and were able to calmly compete today. I think that was good.

(Also the first victory as captain. It must be a relief, right?)
Well... we still have a long way to go to reach our goals (wry smile)"

"Summary of Tokyo Hasegawa Kenta's Press Conference"

"I feel that it is really difficult to achieve a victory. I think the players also felt pressure in a situation where they couldn't win, but they fought aggressively until the end."
The score was only one point, but I think there was pressure until we scored that point, and various things were on the players. Today, not only the starting members but also the members who entered the bench were talking about scoring, and I think Kubo made a good decision in that situation.
"I want to prepare well for the next league match, even with only 3 days of rest, so that we can win again, taking this victory as a starting point."

《Q&A》
Q=What is the evaluation of player Kubo?
"I thought about where to use him, but today I used him as a side midfielder. I thought that position would be key in terms of development today. He added a nice accent and scored as planned. I feel that he is a great player who can come on and score in that situation. However, there are still many areas where he is lacking, so I want him to learn that through training and become a bigger player, one or two steps ahead."

"Summary of Niigata / Director Masakazu Suzuki's Press Conference"

"As you can see, a well-regulated first defense. Or in places where marking and other things were not done properly, we were almost in a pinch. I want the players to understand this again and be able to have a better defense, even if it's just a little."
In terms of attack, we talked about the need to calm down a little and move the ball in a triangle formation, but there were still many instances where players made a lot of passing mistakes. In the second half, there were some moments where we moved the ball at a good timing, but this time the triangle formation in the attacking zone didn't work well.
"I want to prepare thoroughly for the next game because clear challenges have arisen."

《Q&A》
Q=Although it was the first loss of the 2018 season, do you think today's defeat will become a source of power for the team to move forward?
"I think it is best to win in general. However, soccer is a sport where losing is inevitable. In such times, it is important to share something solid with the players."
'I am going to the ball firmly', 'The position of the mark is correct', etc., I have not been done at all in such cases.
We have to concentrate on that for 90 minutes. I think we can't win without doing that.

Q=What is the evaluation of the two CBs?
"In the first half, Shun OBU couldn't get to the ball and was often not marked. We talked to him at halftime and he improved at the start of the second half."
I think it would be great if he could continue that image and play with concentration for 90 minutes. His heading height is amazing, so I think he will become a valuable asset to the team by learning to defend properly. I think Hara made a situation where he was easily avoided by approaching from the wrong position when he let his guard down for a moment."