Only victory!

　The opponent for the 5th round of the Emperor's Cup is Omiya Ardija, who secured promotion to J1 for next season. They also defeated Shimizu 1-0 in the 4th round, extending their winning streak in the J2 league to 13 games. It seems they will bring this momentum into the match. By the way, the last time they faced each other was on November 8, 1999 during their time in J2, so most of the players have changed and there is no past data to refer to.

　Omiya's three Brazilian players, who were the core of both offense and defense, have already returned to their home country, and it cannot be denied that their strength has decreased. In particular, it will be painful to lose TUTO, who has scored more than 2/3 of the team's total goals, and the powerful two top players of Varese. In their place, Morita, who is second in team scoring, and Takahashi, who has often been successful in the past with Hiroshima, have been named as starters, but it is unknown how well they will perform.

　On the other hand, Tokyo is also struggling with injuries from Nitta, Toda, and Kajiyama, and their lineup is not coming together easily. Jean, Fujiyama, and Inamoto are in the center line of defense, with Ishikawa on the right and Suzuki on the left in the midfield. In the end, they finished 8th in the league, and were unable to meet the expectations of their fans. Therefore, in the final tournament of the season, the Emperor's Cup, they are aiming for victory and are more focused on the result rather than the performance. This is also important for giving them an advantage in next year's J1 league against Omiya. They want to end the season with a clear win.

Tokyo dominates from kick-off, but

　Under the cloudy sky, the game started with Tokyo's kickoff. Following the instructions from coach Hara during the pre-game meeting to "be careful with how we start the game," Tokyo aggressively attacked from both sides and scored the opening goal in just 1 minute.

　When the ball was kept by Suzuki and Kanazawa on the left side and passed to Baba in the center, he saw that the opposing DF was not closing in and took a bold right-footed shot from outside the penalty area. The low trajectory pierced the left side of the goal, giving Omiya a sudden lead punch against the opponent.

　Tokyo continues to dominate Omiya. In particular, they create chances from both sides and repeatedly attack the flanks. In the 15th minute, Lucas from the right side and Lins from the left side put in centering crosses, keeping the opposing defenders pinned in front of the goal. They completely prevent Omiya from playing their own soccer and then score another goal at the ideal time of 22 minutes.

　On the right side, Imakano keeps the ball and draws a foul from the opponent, earning a free kick. Miyazawa then puts the ball towards the far side of the opponent's goal, where Jean is left open for a header and scores an additional point. It was a near-perfect way to play the game.

　However, after scoring the second goal, when Tokyo's pressure on the ball from the front line weakened due to a slight relaxation, Omiya was able to pick up the ball and increase their time in possession. As a result, they gave away chances for FK and CK restarts, and in the 40th minute, MF Ando Masashi put the ball in with his right foot from a left CK, allowing DF Tomita to score with a header. Tokyo was unable to regain their good rhythm after that, and the first half ended with a score of 2-1. It seemed like they could decide the game in the first half, but it turned into a match where it was still unclear what would happen.

Further extend the lead with an own goal from the opponent...

　In the second half, Doi said in the pre-game huddle, "We can't lose for the supporters who came all the way to Kagoshima and those who believe in us in Tokyo." As a result, Tokyo aggressively went after the ball from the front line and launched quick attacks. In the 48th minute, Miyazawa and in the 53rd minute, Konno took shots, and in the 55th minute, Suzuki went for an overhead shot to score an additional point. As a result, Omiya was able to push back with that momentum.

　58 minutes, Fujiyama intercepted the opponent's pass in the midfield and passed it to Suzuki on the left side. He then dribbled into the penalty area and placed a shot between the opponent's DF and GK, causing the DF to desperately try to clear it, but the ball was sucked into the goal, resulting in an own goal. This successfully extended the lead to two points.

　However, Tokyo allowed Omiya to counterattack. From a counter, Masashi Ando on the right side put in a centering pass at an early timing, and in the 64th minute, a header shot by FW Takahashi was taken freely on the far side, followed by another header shot in the 69th minute on the near side, resulting in 2 goals conceded in just 5 minutes. Tokyo was brought back to square one. Before each goal, Tokyo made player substitutions (Baba → Kelly, Miyazawa → Miura) in an attempt to regain control of the pace, but it was not enough to change the flow of the game.

Decide the game with a goal rush at the end!

　After being tied 3-3, we calmly continued our attack, seeking only victory. Just 2 minutes after the tie, we were able to score the winning goal. Suzuki passed a vertical through pass to Lucas on the left side, who then dribbled into the center, drawing the attention of the opposing defender and goalkeeper. He then passed to Ishikawa, who was running up from the opposite side, and he calmly scored with his right foot inside the goal. This was Ishikawa's first official goal of the season and it became the winning goal.

　Tokyo made a substitution, bringing in Abe for Suzuki who showed signs of fatigue in the 76th minute, but their aggressive attacking stance remained unchanged. Omiya also did not give up and attempted to counter, but Tokyo scored their fifth goal in the 80th minute to seal the game. Fujiyama sent a high pass to Abe with a lob, who then passed it to Kanazawa who had made a run up the center with a heel pass. As the opposing defender approached, Kanazawa sent it to Lucas who had made a run from behind, and calmly took a right-footed shot that found the back of the net on the right side. It was a beautiful goal from a flowing passing play, completely securing the game.

　The final goal rush came in the 88th minute, when Abe received a pass from Miura, dribbled through the right side, and sent a quick centering pass from the end line. Kelly, who was free in the center, scored the 6th goal with a skillful right heel shot. The game ended with a final score of 6-3, making it an exciting match. They advanced to the Emperor's Cup quarterfinals and will face the winner of Urawa and Shonan at Saitama Stadium on December 19 (Sunday) for the semifinal round.

　【Player Comments】《Fujiyama》"I went for the one goal, but it didn't work out. However, our main goal today was to keep a clean sheet as defenders. I'm really happy to be able to play in my hometown. I want to continue contributing to Kagoshima's soccer in some way. (Regarding the goal we conceded) I'm reflecting on it. I want to make adjustments by watching the video before the quarterfinals."《Ishikawa》"It was my first goal of the season, but it was a lucky one. However, it made me realize that I can score if I'm in that position in those situations. We were aggressive in our attack today, but there were also moments where we lost focus. Overall, I think we did well. We need to improve our shooting accuracy in the future... We want to take each game seriously and fight for it."

　【Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference】"We finally won against Sendai in the 4th round of the Emperor's Cup. We also received information that Omiya will only have Japanese players, which I think will actually bring them together. We won the Nabisco Cup, but our performance in the league was not great, so I thought we had good preparation for the Emperor's Cup. I think we started the game well. Omiya will defend with a zone, so we used the sides and were able to score from a distance, with Baba scoring and Jean scoring from a set piece as we practiced. However, after we conceded a goal, they started to pass the ball around with their two forwards, and I thought we could hold on in the first half, but we conceded again and it became chaotic. In the second half, we thought we could win after scoring our third goal, but we conceded easily again, and to be honest, it was a rough game for us. We don't usually score six goals, but we also don't usually concede three, so I think it was a typical Emperor's Cup game. As for Kelly, who came on as a substitute, I think he gradually showed his quality. We want to use players like Abe and Kelly, who are super subs, and win one game at a time. We are happy to play at Saitama Stadium. I'm glad it didn't become a Saitama Derby, and I thought that could wait until next year. We don't know who our next opponent will be, but I wanted to play against Urawa at Saitama Stadium again. It won't be an easy game no matter who we face, but we want to prepare well for a week and advance to the next round. Omiya has a strong team with three Brazilian players joining their Japanese players today, and they are a team with a lot of potential as a J1 team. To be honest, they gave us a tough time."

　[Summary of Omiya Miura's press conference] "Tokyo had a better start to the game and we conceded two goals. After that, it became a back-and-forth battle, but when the game goes in that direction, having foreign players with strong finishing abilities gives an advantage. It didn't turn out to be the game we had envisioned, and that was the reason for our defeat. The way we started the game was a major factor. In the end, we couldn't keep the game in a stalemate. (We were attacked from the sides) It was clear that Tokyo's strength lies in their wings, and we allowed them to break through in the first half. In the second half, we couldn't stop their momentum. Tokyo's speed in transitioning from defense to attack, at a level completely different from J2, was too much for us to handle."