Last game at "Nishigaoka"

On March 14, 1999, the venue for the historic debut match of FC Tokyo (J2) was here at "Nishigaoka Soccer Stadium". The opponent was Sagan Tosu, the same team as on this day. Under a clear blue sky, FC Tokyo overwhelmed Tosu with their new power in front of 3,685 fans who had gathered. Okamoto and Amaral, two players who should be noted, scored goals and in the end, it was a dominant 2-0 victory. A splendid start to the season with a win... It has been about 7 months since then, and the J2 League, which was said to be a long battle, is already approaching its final stages, with only 7 games left including this day's game. And this game at "Nishigaoka" is the last one. This season, we have played 18 home games, 10 of which were at "Nishigaoka", and the other 8 at three other stadiums such as "Edogawa Ward Athletics Stadium" and "Komazawa Athletics Stadium". In other words, "the ground where sweat and tears have soaked in the most". The dedicated stadium, where the distance between the stands and the pitch is extremely close and the voices of the coach and players can be heard, is one of the most "atmospheric stadiums in Japan where fans and players can become one". The bench seats, standing seats behind the goal, and dim night lights... There are many local images that are typical of the J2 league, and there are not a few fans and media personnel who support "FC Tokyo soccer at Nishigaoka". The players are the same. We couldn't help but hope for a last game victory at "Nishigaoka".

Impact of Amaral's Absence

In the first half, Tokyo took the first chance. Tokyo launched a thick attack from the left and right fullbacks and the attacking participation of the central midfielder, Shinjo, with Almir as the starting point of the attack. Shinjo aggressively took the ball and created chances. In the 14th minute, Shinjo took advantage of Almir's through pass and broke through on the left side of the penalty area, then made a perfect pass to Kagami who was running fiercely towards the center. Kagami faced the opponent's goalkeeper in a 1-1 situation and took a shot, but it narrowly missed the right goal post. However, the momentum gradually shifted to Tosu from this point on. Tokyo had a solid build-up from the right side with Uemura and Yukihiro, and the left side with Fujiyama and Okamoto, but when Kagami, who was leading the front line, couldn't keep the ball due to Tosu's tough marking, the passing options were limited and the rhythm became bad. On the other hand, Tosu's counterattacks were sharp, with their players running long distances into the deep spaces on the sides and creating a solid base with good ball control. Tokyo, who were often exposed from the sides, faced a decisive pinch in the 25th minute. When Tosu's forward ran into the space on the left side from a counterattack, Yamao and Sandro tried to sandwich him, but he broke through and even beat the rushing goalkeeper Suzuki, leaving the goal empty. However, Fujiyama made a sliding tackle just in time and prevented a goal. With no base in the front line, Tokyo's attack temporarily improved when Almir played as a post player in the forward position. With a base in the front line, the fullbacks were able to participate in the attack more, and Kagami was also able to face forward and compete with the ball dropped by Almir. However, on the other hand, when Almir played as a post player, there was no player in the midfield to build up the game, and the attack became monotonous. When Amaral was on the field, Almir could move around freely and create decisive plays with his combination play with Amaral and his versatile passes, but when Almir himself became a post player, there was no starting point for the attack. I was reminded of the importance of Amaral's presence. In the first half, the attack and defense continued to go back and forth, and it ended 0-0.

Tokyo's fierce attack began with Enomoto's entry, but...

Unable to establish a base on the front line, Tokyo lost its attacking focal point and brought in FW Enomoto, who excels in post-play, to the front line. This immediately changed the flow of the game. By changing the FW to a two-top of Kaburagi and Enomoto, and dropping Almir back to his original position as a defensive midfielder, Tokyo's attacking power increased. Enomoto demonstrated the expected stable post-play and actively entered the deep spaces on the left and right alternately with Kaburagi, greatly increasing Tokyo's passing options. Almir became the starting point of the attack, spreading passes to the left and right, and the "wings" of Fujiyama on the left and Umayama on the right took off! From there, they were able to penetrate the sides and make centering passes, as well as cut into the center for shots, bringing back Tokyo's original attacking rhythm. This is where Tokyo's "fierce attack show" begins. In the 13th minute, Enomoto made a spectacular left-footed shot from a great ball control, and immediately after, MF Shinjo, who had advanced, made a powerful left-footed middle shot. Next, a perfect through pass from Almir to Yukihiro waiting on the left side, who then made a powerful left-footed shot! Although all of these were saved by the Tosu GK or blocked by the goal post, for the first 15 minutes of the second half, Tokyo's fierce attack was a sight to behold.

Tokyo, who had started to feel anxious after failing to score in crucial moments that they had visited many times, even had their key defender Sandro joining the attack, and continued to fiercely attack. However, in the 25th minute of the second half, Tokyo was caught off guard for a moment. From a counterattack, Tosu's ace striker Tarek charged towards Tokyo's goal. Tarek received a perfect cross from the left, just barely avoiding the offside line, and shook Tokyo's goal net with a powerful left-footed shot, leaving Tokyo with only 20 minutes left to concede a goal. Tokyo then brought in striker Wada, known as the "Japanese Street Top", to launch an even more aggressive attack. In the 34th minute of the second half, Enomoto jumped in to meet a low cross from defender Yamao on the right side, but unfortunately it was cleared by the defender. In the following 37th minute, Yukihiro picked up a loose ball about 25 meters in front of the goal and took a perfect curved shot, but it was saved by a brilliant save from Tosu's goalkeeper. Early in the second half, Tosu's goalkeeper, who had made a series of fine saves, seemed to have completely taken control of the game. Despite Tokyo's continuous attacks until the end, Tosu's defense, led by their goalkeeper, held strong and the game ended with a 0-1 score. Tokyo, who had almost twice as many shots as Tosu with 17-9, suffered their second consecutive loss in the league following their previous match against Yamagata. It's a shame that they couldn't end their last game at "Nishigaoka" with a victory, but next week on the 17th (Sunday), they will face Sapporo, who they defeated in the previous match, and the following week on the 24th (Sunday), they will face the top team Kawasaki F, in a crucial match. I hope the players will focus on resting their bodies and switching their mindset. This is where the real battle begins.

<Director's Comment>

(Tosu Sowagawa Coach's Comment)

It was a tough game with many pinches, but the backline held up well. As a tactic, we paid attention to suppressing the dribbling and attacking of Fujiyama on the left side. The players understood well and responded, but not having Amaral was a big loss. With him keeping the ball, the attacking participation of the fullbacks increases and the defensive line breaks down. We had never won in Tokyo before, so we are just happy.

(Tokyo - Coach Ooguma's Comment)

I always thought that the opponent's one chance would come. It's painful that we couldn't take it where we could take it first. I think the result would have been different if we could keep the ball a little longer in the front line. The way we lost the ball was bad, and the side back couldn't go up. The good thing was that Enomoto showed us the potential as a striker. In the future, we have no choice but to fight with this team, and we want to consider various combinations such as two top and second row.