The opening goal was scored by Kobayashi!

Tokyo, which defended against Kobe's fierce attacks with fine saves from goalkeeper Horiike and clearances from defender Sandro, gradually began to find their pace. From their strong counterattacks, Sato and Kaburaki broke through to create chances. In the 37th minute, Almir delivered a cross from a free kick earned on the right side, and Kobayashi pushed in the ball that Sato won in the air to take the lead. After that, Kobayashi showcased his agile dribbling skills, bewildering J1 players. With Tokyo gaining momentum and Kobe feeling the pressure, the flow shifted in favor of Tokyo. A truly evenly matched battle unfolded. After entering the second half, the back-and-forth battle continued. Kobe shifted from their early crosses from the sides shown in the first half to a strategy of strengthening the midfield by dropping back. Meanwhile, Tokyo's Almir began to maintain possession in midfield, distributing good passes to Fujiyama on the left and Sato on the right. Chances started to emerge from the sides.

J1's Fierce Attack

The opponent in the first participation of the Yamazaki Nabisco Cup is J1's Vissel Kobe. Kobe is an attacking team with three representatives from South Korea, but they have yet to secure a victory in this season's J1 league, continuing to face a tough situation. Therefore, today's match against a lower-ranked J2 team is one they desperately want to win. The match began with Kobe's fierce attack. Tokyo was bewildered by the speed and power of the J1 team, while Kobe dominated the ball with sharp starts and aggressive charges. Hasebe in the midfield organized the game, and Choi on the right created chances with precise crosses. The ace striker Kim is a talented player with speed, power, and technique, and although Sandro marked him closely, there were dangerous moments where he got behind. For about the first 15 minutes, the match was one-sided. It clearly showed the level difference between J2 teams, making it evident that winning would not be easy.

Valuable Draw

At the 20th minute of the second half, with the game evenly matched, Kan, who had dropped back to the midfield to focus on game-making, broke through the left side and crossed the ball to the center. The contested ball became chaotic, and it was headed in by Kobe DF Tsuchiya, who had advanced forward.After equalizing, Tokyo immediately brought on their ace Amaral and Okamoto. With Amaral joining, they established a strong presence up front, and the rhythm improved with stable hold-up play. At the 36th minute of the second half, Sato broke through the right side with speed and delivered a perfect cross to the free Amaral in front of the goal. However, Amaral mishandled the ball and it was caught by the goalkeeper. Then, at the 40th minute of the second half, Amaral broke free from a long pass by Sato, but the goalkeeper cleared it just a moment earlier, preventing a goal. In stoppage time, Amaral won the aerial duel from a corner kick from the left and headed the ball, but it was unfortunately cleared by the defenders. Defensively, the goalkeeper and defensive line maintained concentration throughout the match, showing stable defense.Following the J2 Round 4 match against Kawasaki Frontale, although there remains the regret of conceding an equalizer in the second half after taking the lead, the fact that they fought on equal or better terms against a J1 team should have boosted their confidence. In addition to the solid defense from last year, they confirmed that their attacking power has definitely improved. Next week, away (Wednesday the 14th, 19:00 at Kobe Univ Stadium), they want to prove their strength.