J1 Top Battle with Champion Iwata!?

　Sec. 5 match against last year's J-League champion, Júbilo Iwata. This season, they are challenging with a new 3-5-2 system, with new signings Ihara and Suzuki as center backs and Fukunishi as libero. Although they lost their opening match to Kashiwa, they have won 3 consecutive matches and are currently in first place. Their strong defense and ability to score from anywhere make them one of the toughest opponents in the J-League. Tokyo suffered a 0-3 defeat in last year's Emperor's Cup, but it has been 4 months since then... Today's match is a battle for first place. We want to limit the reigning champions to as few goals as possible, score as many goals as we can, and aim for victory!

Toughest battle of the season against the skilled opponent

It was a cautious start. Due to the influence of the rain that continued until just before the game, both teams struggled with slippery footing and were unable to connect passes. However, Iwata, seeing that passes were difficult to connect, had FW Takahara and MF Oku take powerful shots from the middle, and began to grasp the rhythm around the 10-minute mark. Occasionally, they mixed in long balls from DF Ihara to forward Nakayama, gradually dominating the midfield as well. In the 14th minute, Nakayama's movement to open up to the outside drew attention, allowing Takahara to take a powerful shot while free. Sandro barely escaped with a corner kick, but the game continued in Tokyo's territory. With the noticeable movements of FW Nakayama and Takahara opening up to the outside, and MF Oku and others jumping in from the middle, Tokyo's defense line had no choice but to defend deeply. Unable to create attacking opportunities in a withdrawn state, they were instead caught off guard by quick counterattacks when their fullbacks tried to push up. Still, in the 27th minute, a quick restart from Fujiyama led to a through pass to TUTO, but Iwata's GK Ozaki caught it. In the 34th minute, they tried to aim for a goal with direct passes from Amaral, TUTO, and Kobayashi, but Iwata's players were quick to react and the chance was missed. Iwara, along with the other defenders, actively joined in on Iwata's attacks. And in the 35th minute, when Suzuki made a strong run, Kobayashi couldn't help but foul him. DF Ihara, who cleverly avoided his mark, headed in the free kick taken by MF Fujita. Although they only conceded one goal from this set piece, Tokyo only managed two shots. The first half ended in a heavy and tense atmosphere, making one wonder, "Is there no way to turn this around!?"

Never give up, Yukihiko's Tokyo spirit!

　In the second half, Kona is replaced by Kina and the pace of Iwata remains unchanged. Iwata, who is quick to approach loose balls and excels in technical skills, is on the defensive against Tokyo. Their usual pattern of attacking from the sides, led by Amaral, cannot be created. And although the shot misses the goal, Takahara and Oku are able to take shots freely. In the 50th minute, Nakayama heads down Ihara's free kick and Takahara breaks through the defense and takes a shot! However, this missed opportunity ultimately leads to Hadzievski's frustration. In the 55th minute, Kina, who has been gradually fitting into the team through substitute appearances, finally starts to hold onto the ball. Yukihiro cuts off a sideways pass from Iwata's defense as if he had been aiming for it! TUTO quickly reacts and dribbles the ball, calmly scoring in the right corner of the goal while being chased by defenders! Yukihiro creates a chance and TUTO makes it count, aiming for the goal even if there is only a slight possibility!! This valuable equalizing goal is scored under pressure.

TUTO, Anima! National melted hot night

The game started to move from here. In the 61st minute, TUTO and Amaral quickly closed in on the ball when the Iwata GK and DF collided. In the 65th minute, there were three consecutive CKs. Naito, who met Yukihiro's low and fast ball, almost scored with a shot, but it was cleared by Ihara's left foot. Tokyo created chances, but Iwata also calmly passed and counterattacked. Tokyo, who was eager to attack, was often pushed back, and in the 69th minute, Iwata's breakthrough was stopped by a foul in front of the goal. Hattori's free kick with his left foot was sucked into the top left corner of the goal, and they conceded again. However, the determination of Tokyo's eleven never wavered. TUTO, ANIMAU! (Go for it!) With the encouragement of the voices, TUTO courageously attacked. Just two minutes after conceding, Fujiyama dribbled the ball from Kobayashi and passed it. TUTO, who skillfully avoided the DF with a perfect trap, dribbled and scored!!! Tokyo equalized once again! The National Stadium was in a frenzy. Iwata replaced the slowing down MF Nishi with the speedy FW Kawaguchi, and then replaced the left side Yamashi with CB Tanaka and moved Fukunishi up to the midfield. They continued to battle for one goal, but Hattori, who had been active in both attack and defense in the midfield, moved to the left side, and Tokyo's dominance increased. And finally, in the 83rd minute, Oku, who was trying not to be beaten by TUTO, unintentionally committed a handball against TUTO, who ran in on Asari's pass. Amaral confidently and neatly scored the PK and Tokyo took the lead. With about seven minutes left, Iwata naturally launched a fierce counterattack. However, Tokyo defended with all their might... And the pitch and the stands became one, and they heard the final whistle. As shown in the first half, there was a clear difference between Iwata and Tokyo. There are many things to reflect on, such as conceding from set pieces. However, it was a night when the National Stadium was heated up by the team's incredible perseverance and unwavering belief in winning no matter what.

"Comment from HADZIEVSKI coach"

"I think we played a game that deserved victory for Tokyo as a 90-minute fight. Although Iwata has more experienced players than Tokyo, they made mistakes and gave us two goals. Until then, we had many chances and the content was definitely good. It was painful to miss the chances in the second half, but at that time we still had plenty of chances to win. However, it was very difficult to catch up after conceding a penalty kick. We did our best to change something by bringing in Nakayama, Takahara, and Kawaguchi, and also moving Fukunishi to the midfield, but with only 7-8 minutes left, there was not enough time and we became nervous in the end. If the handball that led to the penalty kick was an accident and not intentional, then it's okay, but if we make mistakes like that, we won't be able to win. In any case, Tokyo ran a lot and was a good team."

"Coach Ooguma's comment"

"In the first half, we were unable to play our own soccer for the most part, and it was disappointing that we conceded a goal due to a lack of concentration during the restart. Along with that, there were unclear things that we should not do or what we should do when it was not our rhythm, and it became a soccer game where we could concede two goals in the first half. We need to reflect on what we should do as a team in times like this. However, the players must have had the confidence to come back if we conceded only one goal, and I thought we could manage if it was 0-1, so I tried to keep the first half with the minimum number of goals conceded. In the second half, Kina functioned well, and we were able to create a good rhythm with the composition of the midfield and the tempo in the front line."