Emperor's Cup, I want to win the first match with good content.

　The league season takes a break, and now it's time for this season's Emperor's Cup. The first round has already been played, and each J1 team will join in from the 2nd round. Tokyo will face Kagawa prefecture representative Kamatamare Sanuki at Ajinomoto Stadium. The first match of the Emperor's Cup won't be an easy one, but currently the team has won two consecutive games in the league. In order to maintain this good momentum, it is necessary to win with a good performance.

　Kamatamare Sanuki, representing Kagawa Prefecture, belongs to the Shikoku League. Under the second year of coach Masashi Hanakata, they advanced to the 2nd round by defeating SC Tottori Dreams in the 1st round of the Emperor's Cup. On the other hand, they finished 2nd in the Shikoku League final match on October 8th, but will aim for promotion to the JFL by participating in the All Japan Senior Soccer Championship. Despite facing a tough schedule, coach Hanakata will implement his favored 4-3-3 formation in the Barcelona style, aiming for an aggressive attacking style of play by connecting passes.

Manager Eifuku also expressed caution, saying, "They have a good connection and can attack from behind. They have a lot of variations in their attack." In response, Tokyo wants to shut them down with their usual coordinated defense. In attack, if they can exploit the space between Kamatamare's three midfielders and their defenders and wings, they should be able to create chances. During this period, four players - Nagatomo, Konno, Ishikawa, and Tokunaga - will be absent due to their national team duties. Additionally, Mochizuki, who was injured in the Nagoya game, Koyama, who is currently injured, and Kondo, who is on a separate training program, will also be missing. However, they will approach this match by bringing together the strength of all players.

　Tokyo's GK Shioda starts. DF is composed of Bruno QUADROS and Suhara as CB, with Mukuhara on the right and Hiramatsu on the left. Suzuki enters as the right MF, with Hirayama and Akamine as the 2 top players. On the bench are Otake and Tanabe, who have recovered from injuries, as well as GK Konda and Abe. Without rushing, they calmly defeat Kamatamare and take one step at a time towards New Year's Day! The autumn sun shines on Ajinomoto Stadium, and the match started at exactly 3:00 PM with Tokyo's kickoff.

Kajiyama's opening goal sparked a goal rush of 4 points

　Took control from the start. In the 0th minute, Akamine broke through on the right side after receiving a feed from Kajiyama. He sent a cross with a shot towards the center, but no one was able to connect at the far post and the ball went across the goal. In the 3rd minute, Kajiyama → Mokuhara on the right side crossed. Hirayama connected in the center of the area, but his shot was off and lacked power. In the 6th minute, Hayashi on the left side cut back against the opposing defender and entered the area. He aimed for the goal, but was stopped by the right post... Still, Kamatamare did not allow free play and Kajiyama was involved in a variety of attacks from a focused defense.

　At 10 minutes, Kajiyama intercepted in the midfield and passed it to Hirayama who was running on the right. Hirayama then made a run towards the right area. He received a return pass, cut inside the opponent's defense in the area, and scored a precise goal with his left foot, giving the team the lead! In the 16th minute, Kajiyama intercepted again and passed it to Suzuki who was running on the left. Despite being closed down by the opponent, Suzuki dribbled towards the center and scored a goal from just outside the area, adding another point to the team's score.

　In a calm game, Bruno QUADROS scored two points, but Kamatamare gradually gained rhythm and looked for chances by connecting passes in the midfield. However, they were not allowed to move freely due to coordinated defense. In the 34th minute, Mokuhara ran up the right side with speed and crossed. In the center, Hirayama took a direct shot from a chest trap, but it was saved by the goalkeeper and resulted in a corner kick. In the 35th minute, Suzuki took the right corner kick and Bruno QUADROS headed it in for an additional point in the center.

　In the 42nd minute, Yonemoto went up the right side via Hayabusa and crossed. Akamine jumped in and scored a "typical" powerful header. Kamatamare also tried to create chances by moving the ball wide, but they couldn't break through Tokyo's defense. Tokyo created many chances and scored a massive 4 goals, ending the first half.

Despite no goals in the second half, each player utilized their strengths to secure a victory. On to the 3rd Round!

　From the start of the second half, Otake, who returned from injury to replace Kajiyama, was on the right side. Suzuki was on the left, and Hanyu played as a defensive midfielder. In the 55th minute, Otake's quick dribble led to a one-touch combination between Hanyu, Suzuki, and Akamine, showing a fast-paced attack, but ultimately it was stopped by the defense.

　On the contrary, Kamatamare also showed their boldness and in the 59th minute, FW Sasaki advanced from the left and took a shot. He hit the crossbar perfectly but Shioda saved it with one hand! It went out for a corner kick. Then, MF Asahina took the corner kick from the right and DF Kamizaki had a perfect header in the center. However, Shioda made a solid save! This gave Kamatamare the momentum during this time. In response, Tokyo substituted Ashikari for Hayashi in the 62nd minute. Shortly after, Hirayama was fouled and they got a free kick from just outside the right area. Otake took the shot directly but it grazed the right post... The rebound was shot by Hiramatsu from the far side but it missed the target.

　Substituted Bruno QUADROS for Fujiyama in the 68th minute. Settled the game with a formation of Fujiyama at left back and Hiramatsu at center while aiming for chances. In the 75th minute, Hirayama scored from a cross from Asari -> Fujiyama overlap, but the shot did not hit... In the 79th minute, Hirayama connected a pass from Akamine and Suzuki slid in to score, but it was offside. In the 83rd minute, Akamine jumped out to the offside line and created a 1-on-1 situation with the GK, but the shot was blocked...

　In the end, there was also a strong defense from Kamatamare in the second half, resulting in no goals. However, they calmly responded to Kamatamare's counterattacks and shut them out. In the second half, they brought in fresh players who were able to showcase their strengths and safely reached the end of the game, advancing to the 3rd round.

　【Player Comments】《Shioda》"Since it's a tournament, the most important thing is to advance. I think the biggest achievement was being able to move on to the next round. It's been about 10 months since we played at Ajinomoto Stadium, but instead of focusing on personal matters, I approached the game with the theme of contributing to the team and playing our own style of soccer that the team is promoting. As the coach also mentioned, the first theme for today was to respect our opponents. We showed respect to the players who continue to play soccer with passion and were able to concentrate on the game. Until the end, we showed respect to the opposing team and were able to play with focus."

　The representative players may not be present, and it may not be the usual members, but we usually practice together in Kobehira, so here too, everyone respects each other and plays with trust, and I think we were able to make up for the cooperation part. Kamatamare was playing good soccer. I think we were able to keep it at 0 points because we were prepared for a few pinches.

　《Kajiyama》"(About the opening goal) In the past few games, our team's theme has been to assess the situation and still go on the attack even if our balance is disrupted. So today, we aimed for that again. When I passed to the side, the opponent's fullback was marking me, leaving space behind. In that situation, I passed to Hirayama and moved forward. I received the pass and managed to cut back past the opponent, but I was already very close to the goal, so I decided to shoot near post."

　[Summary of Manager Jofuku's Press Conference] "Kamatamare Sanuki left a very good impression as a team. We were encouraged by their fearless approach to connecting passes and heading towards the finish, and our philosophies are similar. That's why we didn't want to lose and it was a fight we couldn't afford to lose. Still, we were able to see their positive attitude and determination until the end, and there were things we could learn from this match. This week, instead of focusing on the 2nd round of the Emperor's Cup, it was a crucial week for us to create a miracle in the final round of the J-League. Today's match was the culmination of our efforts over the past week. We trained harder than usual and even with key players missing, we continued to work towards becoming the team we want to be for the end of the J-League and Nabisco Cup. That's why we didn't want to spoil this one week."

　I have been preparing with that kind of feeling, so it was absolutely impossible to let my guard down. I was able to enter the game in that way, and I think the first half also became that kind of game. In the second half, the players who wanted to score more and more came out as they missed, and they missed even more. That is where we are facing the challenges and we have to feel it deeply. Of course, we are not missing on purpose, but there are technical aspects and final decisions that are challenges. In terms of attitude, I want to evaluate the players who were able to win firmly in today's difficult game. The technical aspect of finishing is something we have been working on this season, and we have to continue to do so. Each individual must also accept it. It was a game where I felt that once again."

　[Kamatamare Sanuki・Hananaka Manager's Press Conference Summary] "First of all, I want to say 'frustrating'. However, I want to thank the players who played their soccer until the end. I felt that FC Tokyo is still a great team in J1. However, we conceded four goals, and it may sound strange to say this, but it's also true that we felt that we can fight, and we can have confidence. We want to use this experience to move on to the next step. We want to continue to work hard to achieve our goal of promotion to the J-League."