Get your revenge!

Tokyo, who easily defeated J2's Ventforet Kofu in the 1st round of the Nabisco Cup, has advanced to the 2nd round. Their opponent in the 2nd round is Sanfrecce Hiroshima, who defeated J2's Albirex Niigata in the 1st round. Tokyo faced Hiroshima in the 7th round of the J1 League on May 3rd this season, suffering a humiliating 0-3 defeat and falling to last place in the club's history. In the previous round (6th round, April 29th), they also suffered a 0-3 defeat to Ichihara. After the Hiroshima match, Tokyo changed their system from the usual 4 (DF) - 4 (MF) - 2 (FW) to a new 4-5-1 system, removing Lopes and placing Amaral as the lone striker. Just three days after the disastrous Hiroshima match, they faced Sapporo (8th round, May 6th) with a "back against the wall" mentality, showing signs of a return to their trademark solid defense and quick counterattacks, stopping their losing streak. In the following match against powerhouse Kashiwa (9th round, May 12th), they dominated with their best performance of the season, securing their first consecutive win and improving their team situation. For better or for worse, there is no doubt that the match against Hiroshima was a turning point for the team.

This day is not a league match but a cup match, but the goal is only one, to take revenge. And in the league match that will resume in 3 days, and also in the second match to be held in Tokyo next week (in the Nabisco Cup, the semifinal round is played in a home and away format, so the result is determined by the total goal difference of the first and second matches), a result with content was required to be achieved.

Rookie Miyazawa starts

Rookie sensation Miyazawa, who has been highly anticipated this season, made his second consecutive start in the first round against Kofu. He played on the left side, and his genius kicks from his left foot have been drawing attention.

Tokyo's 4-5-1 system remains the same, but with Kelly as the lone striker, Kagami making his first appearance since the Kofu match in the attacking midfield, Seigo Kobayashi on the right side, and Miyazawa on the left, the attacking lineup has been completely revamped. Before the match, Coach Okuma emphasized the importance of Miyazawa's accurate crosses from the left and the team's awareness of making big switches in play, even if mistakes are made. It is clear that Coach Okuma has high expectations for Miyazawa.

Overwhelming Hiroshima with a fierce attack, taking the lead

When the game started, Kelly showed his face in the left and right spaces with a good movement, and Kagami got involved in the ball dropped by Kelly and expanded to both sides. Due to the rain, the ball ran well on the ground, and Tokyo's passing work, which used a lot of direct passes, overwhelmed Hiroshima, which couldn't get its engine started. From the right, Seigo Kobayashi aggressively attacked with his favorite dribble, and although there were many mistakes, he pushed down Hiroshima's defense by trying many times. There, Naito, the right back, actively participated in the attack and developed a thick attack. On the other hand, Miyazawa cut into the middle with a sharp dribble on the left side, and Fujiyama, the left back, overlapped into the space on that side and launched a sharp attack. Miyazawa, who was expected to perform well, received the ball in a deep position on the left side of his own field from the opponent's pass mistake, and immediately passed a precise long pass of about 50m to the wide open space on the opposite side. In the following 17 minutes, he broke through vertically with a sharp dribble on the left side and made a low pinpoint cross in front of the goal to create a chance. He played confidently without being intimidated by the J1 team he was facing for the first time, proving his high level.

At the 23rd minute, after a careless pass mistake by Hiroshima, Miyazawa received the ball in the center and quickly judged the shallow defense line of the opponent. He immediately passed the ball behind the opponent's defense to Kobayashi, who broke through and dribbled past the oncoming goalkeeper, scoring the long-awaited opening goal. Kobayashi's sharp acceleration and top speed, along with his ability to easily evade the opponent's goalkeeper, led to the goal, but we must not forget Miyazawa's "pinpoint pass" to Kobayashi before that. It was a wonderful through pass that could become a new weapon for Tokyo, unlike anything they have had before.

Unable to score additional points, the game quickly shifted to Hiroshima's pace from conceding a goal...

Tokyo did not let up on their attack even after taking the lead. In the 29th minute, Kelly broke through with a brilliant pass play in the center and created a decisive chance in a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper. In the 30th minute, Kelly also took a powerful shot in front of the goal, completely controlling the pace of the game for Tokyo. On the other hand, Hiroshima's rhythm seemed to be affected by the gap between their ace, Kubo, and the national team. They continuously made passing mistakes and were unable to create a base in the front line. Even when playmaker Fujimoto occasionally made dangerous passes from dribbling, there was no one to react, and the entire team lacked concentration in the worst possible situation. Everyone imagined Tokyo scoring more goals or even a large number of goals, but their failure to score an additional goal against the "sleeping" Hiroshima would have a big impact later on. As was the case in the 10th round of the J1 League against Fukuoka (May 19th), no matter how much they showed a fierce attack, if they couldn't score an additional goal, it was only natural to give the opponent confidence.

The bad feeling was immediately confirmed. As the first half approached the 40-minute mark, a careless pass from Fujiyama was exploited on the side, and a cross from the left was easily thrown into the Tokyo goal by Hiroshima's ace, Kubo, with a powerful header, equalizing the score. Just one mistake woke Hiroshima up from their slumber.

Unable to withstand Hiroshima's fierce attack, 2 points were lost.

The second half started completely in Hiroshima's pace. In the second half, Hiroshima brought in Japan national team DF Uemura, who had been conserved due to national team fatigue. Waking up from their slumber, Hiroshima relentlessly attacked, almost as if to return the favor from the first half. In the 5th minute, Fujimoto broke through the left side from a counter and took a powerful shot from close range, but Tsuchi was able to save it with all his might and deflect it. In the following 6th minute, Kubo broke through from the center and took a looping shot, but Sandro, who had desperately returned, cleared it just before the goal line. In the 11th minute, Fujimoto took a powerful shot from the center, and in the 14th minute, Kubo broke through from Fujimoto's through pass, creating a decisive opportunity, but Tsuchi quickly cleared it with a swift jump.

In the second half, Tokyo's energy levels dropped significantly with the absence of Miyazawa and Seigo Kobayashi, causing their aggressive attacks from the wings and pressing from the front line during defense to become ineffective. As a result, they were unable to contain the opponent's attacks and ended up giving them more freedom to attack. In the midst of this, Tokyo brought in Amaral, who had been rested, in the 12th minute to try and turn things around. With the addition of Japan national team defender Kamimura, Hiroshima's defense became stronger and Tokyo struggled to create clear chances. However, Amaral's presence up front was significant and he provided a stable target for post-play, gradually giving Tokyo a chance to counterattack.

However, in the 17th minute, Tokyo was easily broken through on the left side and a cross was lifted, and once again Kubo shook the goal net with a header, finally allowing a reversal. They conceded a goal in the same way as the first one, and Tokyo, lacking concentration, was easily split in the center and a ball that went out to the left side was crossed back, and Kubo ran in and scored a spectacular goal with his left foot, making it the third goal. Kubo's speed and power were truly worthy of a "representative", but there was no time to be impressed, and Tokyo was quickly put in a difficult situation with a two-goal difference.

Kelly's determined goal bounces back a 2-point difference, Seigo KOBAYASHI

Tokyo, who was pushed into a situation where they could not afford to concede any more goals, immediately began their counterattack. Just 2 minutes into the second half, Seigo Kobayashi intercepted a careless back pass from Hiroshima's defender and charged towards the goal, evading the goalkeeper and taking a shot. Following his opening goal, Masamitsu Kobayashi once again calmly shook the Hiroshima net.

Tokyo, who closed in on a one-point difference, sent in Tetsuya ITO and Yoshina. Amaral and Kelly led the attack, repeatedly approaching Hiroshima's goal, but Hiroshima also launched sharp attacks from the counter with Fujimoto and Kubo at the center. The intense back-and-forth battle continued, and with less than 10 minutes remaining, Tokyo's defensive key player Sandro joined the attack, repeatedly launching desperate attacks. In the 44th minute, Fujimoto broke through on a counter and took a decisive shot that beat Doi, but Tetsuya ITO barely cleared it in front of the goal. They overcame the biggest crisis. And in the added time (30 seconds remaining!), Yoshina took a free kick on the right side, and Kelly jumped in to score a life-saving header, equalizing at the last minute.

Tokyo, filled with joy, saw Kelly, Amaral, Sandro and others diving one after another on the field, exploding with happiness. In contrast, the players of Hiroshima, who had almost secured victory at home (or so they thought), collapsed on the field. The game ultimately ended just after this. For Tokyo, it was a dramatic finale that was almost equivalent to an away victory.

In terms of content, there were still challenges such as the amount of movement on both sides in the second half, the lack of ability to score additional points, and the lack of focus towards the end. However, there were also many positive aspects such as the "Tokyo-like" soccer shown in the first half and the concentration towards the end of the second half. And above all, the dramatic draw that is almost equivalent to a victory will have a good influence for the upcoming J1 resumption match in three days and the second match against Hiroshima at home next week. It is without a doubt a game that will lead to the next one.

[Coach Okuma's Comment]

In our first official match in a while, both our strengths and weaknesses were clearly shown. Our team relies heavily on the movement of our side players, so it was painful to see a decrease in the movement of Miyazawa and Seigo Kobayashi in the second half. We will analyze today's result and use it to prepare for our next match.

I think Miyazawa did a good job with specific tasks in the first half. In the second half, I considered substituting him due to fatigue, but I wanted him to break through the "wall" so I kept him in. In the future, he may not be an immediate force, but he has proven to be a new option we can expect from.

In addition, regarding Kaga, it was his first official match after recovering from an injury, but he did well in the first half. It could be considered as an option for the future.