A crucial match where winning is more important than the content.

　The 5th round of the Emperor's Cup will be held at Okayama Prefecture Momotaro Stadium, facing Shimizu S-Pulse. This will be the last tournament of the season, but the players are determined to "win each game, advance as much as possible, and stand on the pitch of the National Stadium on New Year's Day." Manager Kuramata also believes that "winning is the most important thing, no matter what the content is," and considers this Shimizu match as a crucial point for future success.

　Shimizu, on the other hand, has lost their FW Marquinhos. However, in the final match of the league without their ace, they achieved a comfortable 3-0 victory against Hiroshima and the team seems to be in good shape as usual. Although not particularly noticeable, their defense has the second lowest number of goals conceded in the league, just behind Urawa, and is not easily broken. In attack, they rely on FW Cho Jae-jin, with wingers Fujimoto and Takagiwa, and defensive midfielder Edamura providing support and launching strong attacks. It is also important to pay close attention to Fujimoto's accurate free kicks.

　Tokyo, Jean returned to Brazil due to injury. Hirayama is also absent today to return to Japan. Baba is in a state of complete exhaustion, such as injuring his left knee, but he wants to fight as a team with Masushima and Kurisawa, who will start in his place. Coach Kuramata also said, "We have been able to show our tenacity in defense at this point. Our teamwork is going well, so even if Jean is absent, we do not intend to change our roles." Masushima added, "Of course, we want to firmly suppress FW Cho, but we also want to be careful not to be caught off guard by players who come out from around us."

　In the attack, it is crucial to see if we can launch an attack using both sides when the press is no longer effective by first competing behind the DF line against Shimizu's intense press. Also, Shimizu is an opponent that we definitely want to take revenge on, as we have lost both league matches this season without scoring a single point against them. The match started at 1:00pm with Shimizu's kickoff under a cloudy sky with light rain.

Take control of the first half and go into halftime with a one-point lead

　Tokyo has been carefully defending in their own half since the start of the match, while Shimizu has been passing the ball around their defensive line and creating opportunities for their FW with well-timed through balls. Then, in the 5th minute, Shimizu's FW Cho makes a through ball to right MF Fujimoto, who dribbles into the center and passes to left MF Takagi Jun, who boldly takes a shot in the box. The ball hits the far post and goes in, making it the first shot and goal for both teams. However, Tokyo also quickly responds in the 8th minute with a fast restart from Lucas to Konno to Toda, who breaks through the left side and earns a corner kick. Kurisawa's kick is met with a perfect header from Masushima near the goal, equalizing the score early on.

Rhythm comes out in Tokyo. 12 minutes, Shizuoka FW Yajima breaks through the area and enters the shooting position, but Mashima blocks it. Immediately, a counterattack is launched, Ishikawa → Tokunaga overlaps. Toda shoots with excellent timing on the right cross, but the opponent GK blocks it. Lucas also reacted to the rebound, but it was also blocked by the GK, missing a golden opportunity. In the 16th minute, the right CK is passed by Ishikawa → Tokunaga → Kajiyama, and finally shoots after cutting inside, but the GK catches it. In the 18th minute, Inokoshi heads in Kurizawa's right FK, but it goes straight to the GK.

　Shimizu slowly connects the ball and tries to attack, but Tokyo steals the ball with a sharp start and launches a counterattack. In the 28th minute, Lucas connects Shioda's kick with a header and Toda shoots in the left area, but it is saved by the GK and becomes a corner kick. On this right corner kick by Kurizawa, Mashima again connects but unfortunately it goes to the right. In the 33rd minute, from a quick attack, Kurizawa on the left side passes to Lucas in the center, who then passes to Ishikawa on the left, and takes a shot from the edge of the area. However, it lacks power and goes straight to the GK.

　Then, in the 38th minute, Lucas was fouled just outside the right area and earned a free kick. Kurisawa took a direct shot that hit the bar, but Kajiyama picked up the rebound inside the left area and calmly trapped it before taking a shot. This resulted in a goal and a reversal of the score. After that, the rain began to pour heavily and both teams struggled to connect passes on the slippery pitch. In the final minutes, Shizuoka MF Fujimoto created a chance from a set piece, but the defense, led by Shioda, remained focused and did not allow any goals. The first half ended with a one-point lead.

The battle has entered extra time, and ended in a 2-3 defeat.

　Shimizu started attacking vigorously from the start of the second half. In the 47th minute, FW Cho broke through on the right side and crossed the ball into the goal area, but MF Fujimoto's shot was blocked by Tokyo DF. In the 54th minute, Shimizu DF Yamanishi took a long shot. The ball flew towards the goal, but Shioda managed to deflect it for a corner kick. In the 58th minute, Shimizu was given a free kick in a perfect spot just outside the right area. MF Fujimoto took a precise and powerful shot towards the bottom right corner, but Shioda made a save. MF Takagi and FW Okazaki both tried to score on the rebound, but Tokyo's defense held strong and did not allow a goal.

　Tokyo takes the lead as they withstand Shizuoka's fierce attacks. In the 61st minute, Toda, who had broken through the left space from Inano's pass, passed through the defense and sent the ball to Kurizawa on the front line. He took a shot from a difficult angle, but it was blocked by the goalkeeper. In the 66th minute, Inano dribbled past the right side and crossed, but it was cleared for a corner kick. In the 69th minute, Toda caught up to Inano's long feed on the left front line and crossed. Lucas jumped in, but Ishikawa couldn't control the ball and couldn't take a shot. In the 73rd minute, Kurizawa passed to Kajiyama, who then passed to Tokunaga on the side. The cross reached Lucas at the far post, but his shot missed. They couldn't score the final goal to decide the match.

　Substitute Kawaguchi for Ishikawa in the 76th minute. Tokyo's counterattack continues to shine. In the 78th minute, a loose ball from the opponent's DF is passed to Kawaguchi on the right side, who dribbles into the goal area. The cross then flows to the far side, where Toda tries to finish it, but his timing is off and the shot goes wide to the right. In the 80th minute, Kawaguchi flies out to receive Kurizawa's pass and charges into the right area. He takes a free shot, but misses the target. With less than 10 minutes remaining, Shimizu starts to pick up the scraps from FW Che's early crosses. Tokyo's energy levels drop and they are forced to defend as the DF line drops back. In the 86th minute, Shimizu's FW Okazaki's shot hits the crossbar, causing a scare.

　However, in the 89th minute, they managed to withstand Shizuoka's attack and victory seemed within reach. But a FK was given in a deep position near the goal line on the right side. MF Heidou's kick was punched away by Shioda, but the ball fell to MF Fujimoto who scored with a direct shot, equalizing the score. In the remaining 4 minutes of stoppage time, Shizuoka continued their fierce attack, but the game ended in a draw. The match then went into a 15-minute extension.

　Even in extra time, Shizuoka continues to attack with the same momentum as they catch up to the tie. In the 95th minute of the first half of extra time, Shizuoka's right cross is saved by Shioda. The ball is picked up by MF Heidou in the left area, but his shot lacks power and Shioda catches it. In the 96th minute, Abe is substituted for Toda, but the flow of the game remains the same. In the 98th minute, MF Fujimoto is allowed to run freely in the center and takes a powerful shot, but it goes over the bar. In the 100th minute, Tokyo's right corner kick by Kurizawa is headed by Mashima, but it goes over the frame. In the end, this is the only shot and the first half ends without any good opportunities.

　However, as the second half of extra time began, Shimizu also began to tire and Tokyo gained the upper hand. In the beginning, Bamba was substituted for Kurisawa and a minute later, Bamba took a shot, signaling a counterattack. In the 107th minute, Kawaguchi -> Tokunaga made a sharp cross, but was blocked by the opposing DF. In the 108th minute, Abe made a move from the left and won a corner kick. The attack began to pick up momentum, but in the 111th minute, they conceded a goal. From a set piece, MF Hyodo crossed from the right. This clearance was powerfully scored by FW Che.

　Tokyo, who had no choice but to attack, had a chance in the 116th minute when Kaneko headed Kawaguchi's cross from the right, but Lucas couldn't convert it. In the 117th minute, Baba's free kick from outside the right area was headed away by the opposing team's corner kick. Kajiyama then sent in a cross, which was cleared by Kaneko and volleyed just wide to the right of the goal. In the 119th minute, Mashima also pushed forward to try and score, but the game ended without any changes to the score. Despite having multiple chances to score after taking the lead, they were unable to secure an additional goal, ultimately resulting in a comeback loss and elimination from the Emperor's Cup quarterfinals.

　【Player Comments】《Mashima》"We were able to play a focused game by pressing from the front. We were down a goal, but we didn't let the game slip away and I think we had a good flow. I was determined to score from the corner kick. I just had to tap it in after receiving a good ball from Kuriyama. Yota quickly scored another goal for us, making it a one-point game and adding tension. We had confidence in our ability to defend without losing focus, like we did in the Omiya game. But somewhere along the way, we became too passive and only focused on defending. In the end, we were scored on from a free kick, so all of our hard work was for nothing. It's really frustrating and disappointing. We wanted to win and play more games... This season had its ups and downs, but I was given the chance to play and gain experience. I want to make sure to use that experience next season."《Kajiyama》"Shimizu's second goal was crucial. It was in stoppage time in the second half, so we had to defend it. The opponent's shot was good... We had plenty of chances, but not being able to finish them resulted in this outcome. Improving the accuracy of our passes and shots is a challenge that both the team and I have been facing. Personally, I also need to work on maintaining a consistent level of play. I want to always be able to perform well. Towards the end, the team's momentum picked up, so I want to continue that into next season and do my best."

　[Summary of Manager Kuramata's Press Conference] "It's a very disappointing result. It's really unfortunate to end the season like this. I think it was a game where our challenges, such as conceding a lot of goals this year, were exposed, especially in the last set piece. How to reduce these goals will be a challenge for Tokyo next year, so I want the next manager to focus on this. As for the game itself, we conceded early on, but other than that, we were able to turn the game around with our own style of play and end the first half in a good position. We told the players that Shimizu would come at us more aggressively in the second half and if we could score one more goal, we would be closer to victory. However, we couldn't score despite having chances. In that situation, Shimizu scored and we couldn't recover, and we were pushed back by their momentum."

　【Post-match Interview with Manager Hasegawa of Shimizu】"It's great that we were able to win. In the first half, FC Tokyo completely controlled the pace. We weren't able to confirm our set plays as we usually do, and that led to us conceding a goal. We couldn't quite settle into the game. We scored the first goal and then maybe we sat back a bit too much. FC Tokyo had a very strong start and we were also overwhelmed mentally. I think it was good that we were able to come back with two goals. If we had conceded a third goal, the game would have been over, but Nishibe made a big save for us. In the second half, players like Hyodo and Hiramatsu who came on as substitutes helped us create a flow and control the midfield, which allowed us to get back to our own pace. The pitch was slippery and it was difficult for us to play our usual style of football, but they were able to control the game and create more time for our fullbacks to push up, which ultimately led to our goal. In order to advance in the Emperor's Cup, we have to be able to pick up games like this and also use them as motivation to become a stronger team. This year, we are determined to win the Emperor's Cup no matter what."