Emperor's Cup of this season, welcoming as the defending champion

The Emperor's Cup of this season has begun. J Team will face Musashino-En FC, the representative of Tokyo, in the 2nd round. Although they are the reigning champions, coach Ranko POPOVIC said, "In order to take a new step in this new tournament, we must play a good game. That is also the mission of a champion." He emphasized the need to focus on each game and aim for advancement.

　However, following the Nabisco Cup Shimizu match, Takahashi and Gonda from the Japan national team were absent. And considering the consecutive matches, the lineup was changed with Watanabe at the top, and Nemanja VUCICEVIC making his first start at the top. On both sides were Ishikawa and Tanabe. The defensive line was set up with Mukuhara on the right side back and Maruyama on the left, in a 4-2-3-1 formation.

　Yokogawa Musashino, who belongs to the JFL, is currently in 12th place. In the "Tokyo Soccer Tournament" held in August to determine the Tokyo representative for the Emperor's Cup, they showed great perseverance. In the final match against Tokyo 23, they brought the game to a tie in the end of the second half and extra time, and won in a penalty shootout, earning their ticket to the main tournament for the third time in 3 years. Then, in the first round held on September 2nd, they defeated Iwate Grulla Morioka, the representative of Iwate Prefecture, with a score of 2-0, advancing to the 2nd round.

　If Tokyo can get into a rhythm, they can hope for a decisive victory, but it is also the first match played under a unique atmosphere. Even if the situation becomes a stalemate, it is necessary to fight without rushing. Regardless of how the game unfolds, it is a match where it is required to steadily secure the win. We want to dominate the game ourselves, and grab the victory by advancing advantageously.

　There is a breeze and the sun has a softness of autumn, but the game started at 13:04 with a kick-off in Tokyo's Ajinomoto Stadium, where the lingering summer heat is still intense.

Despite taking control throughout, they lacked the finishing touch and went into halftime with a scoreless draw.

　We entered the game firmly, controlled the ball, and moved forward. However, we were unable to finish due to Musashino's concentrated defense. In the 15th minute, Hasegawa sent a floating ball forward and VUCICEVIC dropped it, Ishikawa advanced to a high position on the right area. He tried to head the ball from a cross on the right, but Musashino escaped with a corner kick.

　At 21 minutes, Musashino-En gets a right corner kick, and Mori Shige shoots a low header, but the shot is saved at the last minute. From here, Musashino-En tries to launch a speedy counterattack, but Tokyo quickly switches to defense and prevents Musashino-En from making any progress in their attack.

　In the 29th minute, Hasegawa advanced to the left side. There, Maruyama, who received the ball from Ishikawa, aimed for the goal, but the GK blocked it. In the 33rd minute, Ishikawa sent a free kick from the left side of the opponent's field to the front line, and Tanabe's header shot was blocked by the GK towards the bottom right of the goal.

　Despite taking the lead, they lacked the finishing touch against Musashino's persistent defense and struggled to attack towards the end. In the 40th minute, Ishikawa stole the ball from the opponent's defender and dribbled it out, but his shot from the left area was weak and easily saved by the GK. They also had a chance from a set piece, but in the 41st minute, Maruyama's long-range free kick went over the bar. In the 45th minute, Maruyama headed a free kick from the right side of the opponent's half, but it was ruled offside. They didn't allow Musashino any clear chances, but the first half ended scoreless.

Unable to take advantage of the opportunity, we conceded a goal in stoppage time and lost our first match...

　Tokyo brought in Kajiyama in the second half. He created opportunities in the front line and pushed Musashino-En even further. However, in the 51st minute, Musashino-En launched a counter attack. Left DF29 Ueda dribbled up and aimed for a middle shot from the left area. A powerful shot was taken towards the goal, but Shioda made a save. In the 54th minute, from Maruyama's interception, Yonemoto made a direct pass to the front line. It was briefly taken by the opponent, but Kajiyama quickly regained possession and made a through pass to the right area. Watanabe caught up, but couldn't get the right angle for a finish.

　Lucas came in at 56 minutes. However, Musashino-En's entire team continued to struggle to break through their defensive line. At 60 minutes, Maruyama → Kajiyama broke through the left area and made a last pass in front of the goal. However, they were unable to finish in the midst of a scramble. Hasegawa, who followed up on the loose ball, passed it to Lucas in front of the goal, but he was unable to shoot in the crowded area.

　65 minutes, Maruyama's header from the right CK is blocked. Lucas in the right area connects with persistence and heads to the center to Watanabe. However, Watanabe's decisive header shot is saved by the goalkeeper. In the 67th minute, Maruyama moves up to a high position and crosses from the left. Lucas in the right area drops it and Kajiyama in the center area takes a direct shot, but it goes wide.

　In the 78th minute, Hayashi was substituted. They completely pushed Musashino-En back, but in the 85th minute, from the flow of a left corner kick, Hayashi sent a left cross and Watanabe in the right area aimed for a shot, but was blocked by the opponent's body... On the other hand, in the 86th minute, a left cross from Musashino-En's counter attack went through to the far side. It didn't reach FW Sekino and they avoided danger, but even towards the end, Musashino-En's concentration never wavered and their game plan only gained momentum.

　90 minutes, Mokuhara pushes forward and passes to Kajiyama on the right side, who then passes to Watanabe on the left. Watanabe in the center of the area takes a direct shot, but the ball grazes the bar and goes out... Unable to break through the thick Musashino wall, it seemed like the game would go into extra time.

　But in the 3 minutes of added time, Musashino-En received a counter from Tokyo and managed to hold them off on the right side, resulting in a free kick. As Musashino-En entered Tokyo's territory, they were awarded a free kick from the left side. Although there was some distance, MF Iwata's quick kick was caught by the wind and sucked into the far net... Tokyo dominated the attack, but were unable to convert their chances. On the other hand, Musashino-En took advantage of their one chance and sealed their victory, leading to Tokyo's elimination in the first match of the tournament...

[Player Comments]《Ishikawa》"With the level difference between categories disappearing and no difference in soccer itself, we don't have the luxury of showing any gaps or carelessness, and I don't think that was the reason for our defeat. There must be a different cause. When we couldn't break through, I think we needed more individual plays and tactical ingenuity."

　"Kajiyama" "We tried to move the ball around and create openings, but... The opponent had a lot of players in front of the goal, but I think Musashino-En gained momentum by thoroughly defending towards the end of the first half. Even so, we were able to receive the ball when we got in between, and they couldn't catch up to us. If we had spread out more to the sides and made the center thinner, and repeated vertical passes, I think we could have created more chances..."

　[Summary of Coach Popovic's Press Conference]"These kinds of things happen in cup matches all over the world, but today we experienced a huge upset. No matter what we say after the game, it will just sound like excuses, so I am at a loss for words... I want to sincerely congratulate Yokogawa Musashino for their victory. Looking back at the game, we played in the opponent's half for the entire 90 minutes, but our finishing lacked accuracy, physical sharpness, and concentration. The opponent's shot was like a free kick from far away, just like in Hokkaido, but it ended up in the goal. This is just how soccer can be sometimes. It's a really painful loss, but we have to use this as motivation and move forward. We will give our all in the league and Nabisco Cup and aim for good results. I want to thank all the fans and supporters who came to the game, and we will show a strong performance in the next match."

　(Have you ever experienced a goal scene like today?) In a match where Serbia fought for the Euro, they scored a similar goal and couldn't qualify for the Euro. The GK saved us from many dangerous situations, and of course, we cannot blame the GK for that goal. It's not about winning or losing because of someone's fault or thanks, but for me, it's about the "team" whether we win or lose. Even if you look at the content, the only shot that went into the goal was the one that was shot into the goal. The problem is that we couldn't score despite dominating the opponent.

[Yokogawa Musashino・Yoda Coach Press Conference Summary]"Since the individual abilities of Tokyo players are very high, we first tried to focus on defense. After surviving the first half, we told the players to continue to eliminate the opponent's strengths and try to score a goal if there was a chance... That was the game plan and the result was almost too perfect. We were prepared for extra time, but when we scored at that moment, I wondered if it was really okay to continue like this. But I think maybe God was watching our players as they fought for the ball."

　(Defensive points?) It was the first time we switched to a 5-back formation from the start of the game, but we tried to eliminate spaces and create a shape where we could focus on marking. There were two points, one was to prevent Tokyo's wingers and fullbacks from gaining speed. The other was to not let the midfielders and defenders face forward. We tried to eliminate those two points. I think FC Tokyo's lack of physicality in this heat prevented them from creating good attacks... That's my honest opinion. In the first half, there weren't many long movements and our defensive line wasn't moved back and forth much. In the second half, the players changed and there were more dribbles and forward movements, making it harder to mark them."