Welcoming CE Sabadell to AJINOMOTO FIELD NISHIGAOKA

Due to the activities of the Japan national team for the East Asian Cup, the J1 League is temporarily suspended. During this time, Tokyo will host a friendly match. It will be held at AJINOMOTO FIELD NISHIGAOKA, marking the first home game since the 1999 season in J2 (held in the Emperor's Cup in 2000), welcoming CE Sabadell from the Spanish second division with whom they have a business partnership. As you may know, Sotan TANABE has joined on a loan transfer and has been with the team for less than half a month, but attention is focused on his play. Additionally, the high level of individual skills typical of Spanish teams and the intensity of ball contests can also be considered highlights of the match.

In response, Coach Ranko POPOVIC stated, "We will compete in Tokyo's style as always," while providing many members with opportunities to play, aiming for a serious battle that connects both individual players and the team to the league matches.

In Tokyo, Japan national team players Tokunaga, Morishige, Takahashi, and Gonda, as well as South Korean national team player Hyun Soo JANG, are absent. Therefore, GK Shiota, center backs Kaga and Maruyama, and right side back Nakamura, who is making his first appearance this season, will be used. Yonemoto and Masaru HASEGAWA will form a double pivot in the lineup. Additionally, Kajiyama, who was on loan to Greek club Panathinaikos until June, has made the squad for the first time this season. JFA/J-League special designated player Matsuda will also be on the bench.

The heavy rain that struck during the day began to subside, but under a humid climate with no wind, the match started at 19:20 with a kickoff in Tokyo.

VUCICEVIC scores first, both teams engage in an attacking battle

Tokyo dominated possession from the start. They connected passes and launched an attack. In the 7th minute, from a back pass by Maruyama, goalkeeper Shiota sent the ball to the left flank. Watanabe contested for it and dropped it, allowing Nemanja VUCICEVIC to take possession and advance into the middle with a dribble. A well-aimed shot from distance found the net, scoring the opening goal!

In the 15th minute, Yonemoto, who drifted to the right side, made a diagonal pass to the center in front of the goal. Mita dropped it, and Watanabe took a grounded shot from the middle, but the GK made a save. In the 17th minute, a free kick was awarded in the center of the opponent's half. Although there was some distance, Nakamura aimed directly with a powerful curving kick. However, it was narrowly saved by the GK.

On the other hand, Sabadell, who cautiously stood up while observing the situation, gradually began to create attacking patterns. After 25 minutes, they allowed Sabadell to attack after losing possession to Tokyo. The tall forward, Suld, continued to create opportunities from the post, and in the 27th minute, left-back Yagoubi followed up to the right midfield and delivered a through pass to the left area. Tanabe, who received the pass, turned and slipped through the Tokyo defense with a trap, but his shot went wide of the goal.

Sabadell continued to try to build from the DF line, but in the 34th minute, left back Yagoubi skillfully dribbled past Tokyo's DF and surged into the left area. Tanabe in the center connected with a negative cross to score a goal. After being equalized, just before the end of the first half, Tokyo quickly launched an attack, creating chances centered around VUCICEVIC, but they could not score an additional goal. The match went into halftime at 1-1.

Kono scores the go-ahead goal, but the good game ends in a draw

In the second half, Tokyo made four substitutions. Hirayama was positioned at the top, with Mita playing just behind, Ishikawa on the right midfield, Kono on the left midfield, and the defensive midfielders were Kajiyama and Masaru HASEGAWA. In the 50th minute, Sabadell FW Surdo's shot hit the left post, and in the 52nd minute, Hirayama broke through the offside line to shoot after receiving a through pass from Ishikawa in the right area.

In the 54th minute, Kaga cut the ball in the DF line → Kajiyama in the center → Hayama connected directly to Ishikawa, who advanced on the left. The cross went past the far post, but Kono followed up and returned it to the center, where Hasegawa made a vertical pass. Mita in the center of the area was held down by the opposing DF, but they showed a dynamic attack.

Both teams aggressively attacked each other, and in the 57th minute, from a side change by Sabadell's Tanabe flowing to the right, the left back initiated an attack, and central midfielder Juan Jose timed his run to evade Tokyo DF and took a shot. Tokyo DF was broken down by the skillful attack, but the ball hit the post. In the 64th minute, Sabadell also broke through the left area. It seemed like a sliding effort connected with the cross from there and shook the net, but it was offside.

Gradually, Sabadell began to find their rhythm, but in the 67th minute, Riki MATSUDA came on. He entered as a right back, with Nakamura moving to the left. Next, Ohtake was brought in as a defensive midfielder. Just after that, in the 71st minute, Kono broke into the central area following a vertical pass from Maruyama, who had pushed the line up. Kono assessed the advancing goalkeeper and skillfully executed a shot with ease, successfully scoring to take the lead.

However, in the 78th minute, from a left cross by Sabadell, Sabadell FW Surdo scored with a chest trap shot after competing with Tokyo DF in front of the goal, bringing the score level again. Nevertheless, maintaining their spirit, in the 40th minute, from a play by Kajiwara, Matsuda sent a sharp right cross. Ishikawa dove perfectly between the opposing DF in front of the goal and attempted a header, but... In the closing stages, Mita utilized his breakthrough ability to create chances, but due to a great save by the opposing GK, the goal was not scored. The good match, where both sides attacked until the end, ended in a draw.
 

[Player Comments]
Kono: "When I participated in practice with Sabadell, I felt that everyone was skilled with the ball at their feet. On the other hand, I thought they weren't really covering the space behind the defense, so I aimed to make runs behind them today as well. In that sense, it was a goal that went according to plan. I fought with a focus on scoring. Today is a friendly match, but I thought, 'It's precisely because of times like this that we need to deliver results!' I want to carry today's goal into the league matches, and I believe it won't mean anything if I don't score in the league as well."

《Kajiyama》
"It was really a long-awaited match, and being able to play for 45 minutes was a personal achievement. After returning from Greece, I worked on my condition from the start of the off period and finished up quickly, but I was also happy to show the Tokyo fans and supporters my performance in the game. (Is this your first game in Tokyo this season?) I felt everyone's high level of skill. However, I think we still lack in areas like finishing off games, controlling the game, and reading the flow. I want to improve on that, and personally, I want to work hard to control the game better."

【Summary of Coach Ranko POPOVIC's Press Conference】
Playing against a team from Spain, which has a different country and culture, is a valuable experience and time. In terms of the match, we were superior, but we needed to secure a solid win to achieve results. It is precisely matches like today that make it important to finish strong, and we should have shown more of the fighting spirit that is often considered lacking in Japan.

Spanish or European teams will definitely capitalize on any gaps or lapses in concentration. We want to be more focused than ever, not showing any weaknesses or letting our guard down. We also identified issues regarding one-on-one situations. The opponent only allows either the ball or the player to pass in one-on-one situations. The opponent had skill and experience in these situations. However, we were able to break down the opponent with our combinations and pushed them back at certain times. We created many chances.

It was good that the starting players and the six field players were able to experience a match against an overseas team. Unfortunately, we couldn't have all the team members participate, but I hope they will make a strong appeal for the upcoming league matches.

[Summary of the Press Conference by CE Sabadell Manager Salameiro]
"For us, it was not a practice match, but a special match in partnership with Tokyo. That's why we wanted to make it a spectacular game. Regarding the match, in the first 15 minutes there were some passing mistakes, and it was a bit chaotic, but as time went on, we improved on both offense and defense. I think we created more scoring opportunities than the other side."

Both teams played a high-quality game in the first half. However, in the second half, I felt that Sabadell had the higher quality. There were two shots that hit the post, and there were chances where it was unclear if they were offside. Nevertheless, the reason they couldn't score was due to Tokyo's incredible resilience. Tokyo's attacking combinations were wonderful. They connected passes in the center and had a lot of trouble breaking through from the sides. The individual abilities were also very high, and I particularly felt that player Mita was a good player.

If I were to point out areas for improvement, it would be the strength and intensity of set plays and defense. However, under the guidance of Coach Ranko POPOVIC, the team has performed very well, and I respect the coach's team-building efforts. Today, both teams scored many goals, had numerous shooting opportunities, and I think it was a good game. My concern is that a player got injured early on, which forced us to change the flow of the game. I hope the injury is minor.

I want to thank Tokyo, with whom we have formed a partnership, once again, and I want to work hard so that we can create even better things together from now on.