Match against Nagoya in good form

In the 4th round, we will face Nagoya Grampus, who is currently in 2nd place. The well-performing Nagoya has not lost in 3 matches, contrasting with Tokyo's 14th place record. Centered around ace STOJKOVIC, they leverage the scoring ability of Brazilian player Weslley, the balanced play of Dutch player Uryda, the newly transferred Sakai, and the solid performance of Yamaguchi in the holding midfield. They are steadily securing victories. Additionally, CB Koga has been selected as a candidate for the Japan national team ahead of the match against Spain, which should boost morale. However, this will be Tokyo's first home game since the league started. It is a crucial match to seize the opportunity to rise with a win.

Conceded the opening goal from STOJKOVIC's brilliant pass

Tokyo saw the speedy Toda making his first start. With Kelly on the left and Masuda on the right, they approached the match with this midfield formation. Nagoya, just one minute into the game, had Weslley trap a long ball from the defense and take a mid-range shot. Since the Nabisco Cup first round was seeded, it seemed that Nagoya had their sights firmly set on today's match, showing great determination. However, Tokyo also held their ground well, matching them evenly. In the 9th minute, Toda received a pass from Masuda at the front line and directed it to the side. Naito's cross led to a scramble in front of the goal, and although Kelly couldn't take a shot, it was a thoroughly executed play from the side attack.

However, in the 11th minute, STOJKOVIC received the ball on the left side of the midfield. Seeing that he was tightly marked up front, STOJKOVIC, who moved freely in the midfield, dribbled across the field towards the center and sent a delicate pass in front of the goal. This pass was precisely pinpoint! Sakai, who ran behind the defensive line, managed to score while competing with Miura, and Tokyo conceded the opening goal in the 12th minute. Before STOJKOVIC's "decisive play," there was nothing left to do but remain silent.

After that, Tokyo counterattacks. In the 19th minute, Ropius advances alone and takes a mid-range shot. In the 22nd minute, Naito's cross is shot by Sandro, who had moved up from a free kick situation, but both go wide of the goal. In the 24th and 32nd minutes, Tokyo does well to defend against a free kick close to Nagoya's goal, but even when they counterattack, they lose momentum in front of the goal. The rhythm is completely in Tokyo's favor, but they cannot break through for a goal. In the 33rd minute, Naito passes vertically to Toda, and Naito shoots again. In the 38th minute, a through pass from Fujiyama on the left to Miura, who runs into the goal area, is caught quickly by goalkeeper Narasaki. In the 43rd minute, Ropius touches a pass from the left side, and at just the right moment, Kelly breaks through behind the defensive line and shoots! However, the ball unfortunately hits the corner of the left goal post! ... The ball bounces back and cruelly passes by Toda, who was closing in. In the 44th minute, Masuda takes a shot from Ropius's hold-up play, but it goes over the goal. With numerous chances coming their way, they head into the second half with a sense of impending goals.

The feeling of a goal, but rejected by the post...

Tokyo was the one that found its rhythm in the second half. In the 50th minute, Ryohei shot from a pass by Kelly, and in the 51st minute, he shot again from a ball dropped by Toda. In the 52nd minute, Fujiyama dribbled into the center and took a shot, but missed the goal. Focusing on a big switch of play, in the 56th minute, Masuda connected directly with Miura on the right, and once again, Masuda, who got behind the defensive line, aimed for the goal, but the advancing goalkeeper caught it.

In the 59th minute, Tokyo tried to break through the situation by bringing in forward Toru KABURAGI to replace Toda. This is KABURAGI's first appearance of the season, and he is a faster player than Toda. The intention seems to be to exploit the gaps in Nagoya's resilient defense. After the 60th minute, the game became chaotic with counterattacks, but perhaps anticipating this, Nagoya also brought in Okayama to replace midfielder Takizawa in the 62nd minute to respond with speed.

Tokyo was breached on the right side, allowing Weslley to take shots in the 64th and 66th minutes, but they did not concede a goal. Having survived the crisis, Tokyo substituted Asari for Kina in the 66th minute and launched a fierce attack in Nagoya's territory. In the 68th minute, a ball from Naito on the right was touched by Lins into the penalty area. Kelly, who ran in, shot at full speed! The ball grazed the hands of GK Narazaki and hit the left post again, and Kaburaki could not reach it... Two minutes later, Lins shot after receiving a cross from Naito, becoming momentarily free in front of the goal, but the DF barely managed to cut it off. They missed a decisive chance. The Nagoya DF, which defended tightly, launched a counterattack in the 74th minute, breaking through the DF and allowing Okayama to shoot freely, but it went over the goal, escaping the crisis.

Tokyo attacks, Nagoya defends

In the 75th minute, Tokyo substitutes Sato for Masuda, but at this point, Nagoya brings in CB Umimoto for STOJKOVIC. They are going for a strategy to defend their one-goal lead. The confidence that they can "defend the one-goal lead" even by substituting STOJKOVIC is likely what supports Nagoya right now. The five-back defense becomes even more solid, and in the 84th minute, Kelly shoots freely from the right penalty area after a clearance by the defense, but the goalkeeper catches it. In the following 85th minute, Kelly heads the ball from Sato's right corner kick at the perfect timing, but it goes over the goal. After that, Sandro also moves up, repeatedly launching fierce attacks, but the time is ticking down to the end...

It was not a bad performance, dominating and attacking, but without luck, and the early goal conceded weighed heavily, resulting in a very frustrating outcome. This marks three consecutive losses without scoring.

Director Carlos's Comments

I thought the match would be difficult from the start. FC Tokyo is a strong team. However, we managed to do well by marking their key players tightly. In the second half, the match started with our rhythm, but we allowed them opportunities to counterattack and were eventually pressured. However, our players defended well.

Director Okuma's Comments

At the start of the first half, there were parts where I couldn't adjust the balance of the defense, and I think the conceded goal was my responsibility. I was marking, but at that time, there were areas where we were lacking in balance. That's something I need to reflect on. However, the mindset of "we need to score" and the overall desire to push forward in the attacking zone were evident after the conceded goal. The only thing left is to finish... I feel that without increasing accuracy, combinations, and variations, it will be difficult to reach the goal.