We want to initiate soccer in Tokyo with fresh members

　A preseason match will be held against FC Bayern Munich from the German Bundesliga. Doi, Moniwa, Konno, and Kaji are absent due to activities with the Japan national team. Injuries will keep Jean, Lucas, Toda, and Kanazawa out, but Coach Hara stated, "The members who fought in the six consecutive matches in July are still fatigued. First, we want to have a fresh battle with fresh members, bring it to a war of attrition, and then introduce players who are accustomed to the game at critical moments."

　FC Bayern Munich is one of the top clubs in the world. They boast the most championships in Bundesliga history and dominated the league in the 2004/2005 season, winning it in May. They also won the German FA Cup, achieving a double victory. The lineup, featuring players like goalkeeper Kahn, midfielder Ballack (both representing Germany), and forward Makaay (Netherlands), is truly a world selection. They arrived in Japan shortly after competing in the German League Cup Semifinal Round held on July 26 (Tuesday), raising concerns about their condition. However, Coach Hara expressed confidence, stating, "Bundesliga players do not hold back even in slightly poor condition. Additionally, with the league opening on August 5, there will be individual appeals and position battles among the players," indicating his expectations for their seriousness.

　Today, the registered members will be within 22, with a maximum of 6 substitutions. Tokyo's new addition, Sasa SALCEDO, makes his starting lineup debut. Endo has his first official start. Bayern is set up in a 4-5-1 formation with FW Makaay as the lone striker. The match started at Ajinomoto Stadium with Tokyo's kickoff at 19:34.

Allowed Bayern to take a 2-goal lead in the first half, unaffected by fatigue

　In the 2nd minute, from Miyazawa's switch, Ishikawa boldly challenged a 1-on-1 on the right side and won a corner kick. Norio SUZUKI entered from the short corner and won another corner kick. In the 3rd minute, it was Miyazawa's corner kick this time. Asahiri picked up the loose ball and aimed for a shot from distance, but it went wide to the left. Tokyo started off boldly, but gradually Bayern found their rhythm. Despite fatigue, they moved well, connected their passes, and advanced towards the goal. The match progressed mostly with Bayern dominating possession in Tokyo's half.

　In the 11th minute, Bayern's center-back DF Lucio took a shot from the left area. Endo made the save. In the 12th minute, from a free kick, DF Ismael headed the ball. In the 18th minute, again from a free kick, FW Makaay took a shot, but Tokyo's DF did well to step up and close down, preventing a decisive crisis. However, in the 19th minute, Fujiyama received a ball from the GK and attempted to pass to Fujita on the right side, but was intercepted by Bayern's right MF Karimi, allowing an attack into the area. After drawing in the DF, a negative cross was sent to the center of the goal, which FW Makaay easily converted, taking the lead.

　In the 23rd minute, Noriyuki SUZUKI sprinted down the left side, sending a strong ground cross from a tight angle, but no one could get to it in front of the goal. In the 28th minute, Bayern's right MF Deisler passed to the right, where the holding MF Jeremies launched a quick attack. The return pass was finally deflected by Asari for a corner kick. In the 29th minute, from this left corner kick, DF Lucio jumped in at the far post and scored with a high header. They fell behind by 2 goals.

　At 32 minutes, the opponent's DF cleared Miyazawa's free kick. Baba picked up the loose ball just outside the area and made a soft floating pass to the front line. Sasa, with his back to the goal, chest-trapped the ball and volleyed as he turned around, but it went over the bar. At 34 minutes, Ishikawa jumped forward to meet another free kick but missed the ball. At 40 minutes, from a free kick near the opponent's left sideline, Baba passed a ground ball centrally, slightly backward. Asari ran in and took a brave shot, but the opponent's DF blocked it. At 43 minutes, Ishikawa persisted on the right side and earned a throw-in. From Fujita's throw, Sasa kept possession inside the right area. The pass hit the opponent's DF and spilled loose, but they could not convert it into a finish. Tokyo also tried to counterattack persistently, but despite applying pressure, they could not advance against Bayer's precise play that did not lose the ball. In the first half, shots were limited to two by Asari and one by Sasa.

Kajiyama got into the rhythm with his introduction, but...

　From the second half, Tokyo substituted Asari for Kajiyama. Bayern also made four substitutions including the goalkeeper. In the first half, Tokyo showed no support for the player holding the ball out of fear of the opponent, resulting in either passing the ball back or losing it halfway, showing no good moments. However, from the start of the second half, everyone actively sought to receive the ball, and Kajiyama began to create a good rhythm in midfield with his strong ball retention skills. In the 49th minute, Baba, drifting to the right, boldly took a shot from outside the area. The ball hit a defender, but Baba picked up the rebound and crossed. Sasa rushed to the near post and aimed a header, but it missed the target. In the 54th minute, Sasa intercepted the opponent's ball. Kajiyama connected the play and passed to Ishikawa on the right side, who took a daring shot that went across the goal. In the 57th minute, from Norio SUZUKI's free kick, it became a right corner kick. Miyazawa tried to meet the rebound from Baba's kick but missed the connection.

　Finally, they were able to create attacking shapes and take shots. In the 60th minute, Miyao and Omata were replaced by Miura and Kurizawa. Kurizawa moved to left MF, and Noriyuki SUZUKI entered as left SB to launch a counterattack. Defensively, in the 64th minute, a sharp cross from Ottl, who moved to right back after a switch from Bayern's left to right, was cleared by Masushima with a sliding tackle. In the 66th minute, a shot from left MF Salihamidzic during a quick counterattack was saved by Endo. In the 71st minute, Yusuke KONDO was brought in to replace Sasa. However, just as they were trying to gain momentum with the substitutions, in the 73rd minute, the entire DF line stopped in response to a through pass sent from Bayern's left to the goal area, and when Noriyuki SUZUKI struggled with the clearance, FW Guerrero seized the opportunity and allowed a goal.

　At the 74th minute, just after conceding the third goal, Bayern launched a counterattack. Left midfielder Salihamidzic, who had surged forward from near the halfway line, connected with a lofted pass from midfielder Ballack and took a shot. This went into the lower right corner of the goal, and Tokyo conceded their fourth goal. Still trying to score at least one goal, at the 78th minute Ishikawa passed to Fujita running down the right flank. Fujita advanced and crossed parallel to the goal from a deep position, but the opposing goalkeeper caught it. At the 89th minute, Kajiyama, Baba, and Kurisawa linked direct passes, and Kajiyama, who moved to the center, aimed a shot but it veered to the right. At the 80th minute, Kobayashi was brought on to replace Ishikawa. At the 81st minute, Kajiyama picked up a loose ball from Baba’s right corner kick, but was surrounded and dispossessed by the opponents. The quick attack at the 83rd minute went from Baba to Fujita on the right, then to Kobayashi, and Fujita, who had advanced, tried to return the ball, but was blocked by the opposing defenders, resulting in a throw-in.

　Even when trying to launch a fast attack against Bayern, who did not lose their momentum, the ball was taken away midway, making it difficult to carry it to the goal. In the 42nd minute, Noriyuki SUZUKI picked up a loose ball from the opponent and actively aimed for the goal from outside the area, but it went over the bar. Overall, despite showing signs of fatigue, Bayern made few mistakes, connected the ball well, and demonstrated their ability to transition. In the end, they controlled the pace throughout the 90 minutes, and Tokyo could not showcase their strengths. They suffered four goals, which could be attributed to their own mistakes, resulting in a complete defeat.

　【Player Comments】 "Sasa": "My condition was basically not bad. Of course, I was focused on winning, but I fought mainly with young players, and it was my first official match. Honestly, I felt the opponent's level was high, but I think it was meaningful to gain experience. Above all, I am happy to have played in an official match for the first time. My goal remains the league restart in August, so I want to keep training hard." "Masushima": "I think we were able to suppress the opponent in the first half. The challenge came in the second half when we got tired and went into a man-to-man situation. For the 4th goal conceded, the defensive line stopped, and we were beaten freely. I was impressed by FW McCarthy's breakaway and MF Ballack's momentary movement. Especially McCarthy created a wedge space, and when we aimed there, DF Lucio passed the ball behind. That combination was amazing." "Endo": "We conceded 4 goals, but they were due to our mistakes. Personally, if we were going to be scored on, I wanted it to be spectacular... However, Fujisan and Tatsuya cleared plays at dangerous moments. I think we fought with concentration for 90 minutes without hesitation, but looking back now, I regret not encouraging more from the back and intimidating the opponent more."

　[Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference] "We intended to fight with all our might, but the individual abilities of Bayern Munich players, as well as the intense ball contests known in German as 'Zweikampf,' stood out. In the J.League, we can usually win the ball, but they took it almost every time. Including their longer legs, when playing with the J.League mindset, their feet would come out and take the ball. The crowd shouted 'Shoot!' from the stands, but when we tried to shoot, they closed the distance. They had that kind of strength in ball contests. Also, the timing of center forward Makaay's runs was excellent. In the second half, when FW Pizarro and FW Guerrero used their bodies against us, no matter how hard we tried to close them down, we couldn't reach them. I was reminded again of the strength and range of play of world-class top players. Even though they arrived in Japan only yesterday, they were impressive, to be honest. We fought with all our might, but it was a valuable learning experience. Since we have many young players, I hope they will use what they learned from actually playing today as motivation going forward. We learned that there are still many strong players in the world, and we want to use that knowledge to strengthen ourselves moving forward."

　[Summary of Bayern Coach Magath's Press Conference] "I am very satisfied. Everyone was able to capitalize on goal opportunities, and we scored two goals in both the first and second halves, which pleased the fans. I am very happy with this result in our first match in Japan. (What is the significance of this tour?) We are very conscious that the season will start soon, so we are focusing on building the team for that. Of course, the quality of football is important, but this Japan tour also serves as a way for people in Japan to get to know the team, functioning as a kind of commercial. I accept that. (You changed players and tactics between the first and second halves?) Both halves were tough. I think FC Tokyo fought well and applied pressure from quite early on. So, I can't say one half was better than the other. Both were good, and both were equally challenging. I can't say I know FC Tokyo very well, but they had good players and, in any case, many young players. They need experience. I hope they gain more experience as the season progresses and improve."

　"Bayern FW Makai" "I am satisfied that we were able to play a good match. I can't say that I wasn't tired after a long journey, but we were able to get close to scoring many goals and we did score. The league will start in a week, and I think this was good preparation for that. (Was the audience too quiet?) Not at all. They supported us well and watched over us warmly. (What is your impression of FC Tokyo?) I felt the difference in level between European and Japanese teams from the first half. But they also worked hard." "Bayern MF Ballack" "I am satisfied with the result. It is only the second day since we arrived here. I think there were some tired players, but we fought well under such adverse conditions. Many players had gone through a long preparation period before departure, and since only one day has passed since we arrived, we might actually be more energetic now. The match next Saturday might be more dangerous (laughs). FC Tokyo had some good players. They have speed and players who come forward."