2nd Stage Opening! Will it be a summer night of excitement with samba and fireworks!?

　The opening match of the 2nd stage will be held at home against Kashiwa Reysol. This is a crucial opener that will set the tone for the future, and in the 1st stage, they were the opponent we defeated convincingly with skillful play. After the interval, we are eager to see what kind of performance Tokyo will show. On the other hand, under new coach PERRYMAN, Kashiwa is expected to be highly motivated for this match. Coinciding with the "Fireworks Samba Night" (also known as Brazil Day) on this evening, anticipation for a great match was high. Tokyo will use their usual 4-5-1 formation. Kashiwa will line up in a 3-5-2 formation, with Yanagi and Huang as the two forwards, and Hong and Myojin forming a double defensive midfield pair. Before kickoff, there was a victory celebration for FC Tokyo U-18, who won the Japan Club Youth Soccer Championship (U-18) on the 5th of this month. Additionally, about 30 dancers (60 performers including the band!) who are active in the Asakusa Samba Carnival performed a spectacular samba parade, raising the stadium's excitement to its peak! The match kicked off at 6:30 PM in the pouring rain.

Despite being dominated, Yukiho breathes life into the game with a long-awaited opening goal!

　Right from the start, Sato sent a cross from the right side, and in the first minute, Kashiwa FW Yanagi broke through the left side and took a shot. However, after that, Kashiwa tried to dominate the game by maintaining a compact defense and quickly pushing forward in attack. Tokyo struggled to advance even after winning the ball in a low position. Several times, Sato sent crosses from the right and attempted to break behind the DF line, but Kashiwa's central DF was solid, preventing any shots. From the center, Miura actively moved forward, and in the 23rd minute, he made a run behind Kashiwa's DF line, but the pass was cut off. On the other hand, Kashiwa also gathered the ball to Hong and Myojin to develop the play → MF Ohno tried to distribute the passes, but the wing-backs did not force their participation in the attack, and occasionally sent long balls from deep in midfield to the front line, but FW Huang was tightly marked by Tokyo's DF, making it difficult to create chances.

　In the 27th minute, Kelly received a pass from Amaral to Miura, who ran into the right side of the penalty area. Miura evaded the defender and cut into the center to shoot, but it went over the goal. However, even while Kashiwa was dominating, they launched a counterattack targeting the space behind the shallow defensive line. In the 34th minute, Kelly intercepted a pass in his own half and entrusted the ball to Amaral as he moved forward. After passing Amaral, Kelly received the ball again and passed it to the right side. Sato, who timed his run perfectly, took a touch and kicked it into the goal! Tokyo took the lead with a wonderful combination of Amaral → Kelly → Sato.

　After that, Tokyo often gives away free kicks in front of the goal to Kashiwa, but their defense is solid and they do not allow any goals. Conversely, in the 42nd minute, Kelly's free kick from a tight angle on the left is headed by Sandro but is blocked by the post. Although they are being dominated, they are creating chances on the sides and have the upper hand in terms of game management as they head into the second half.

Yukihiko shines, Kelly pulls away... but

　With the confidence of taking the lead, many Tokyo supporters must have been enchanted by the fireworks launched outside the stands at halftime. However, in the second half, Kashiwa made a substitution, replacing DF Nebiki with FW Kitajima. Hong was moved down to defense, Myojin took the single defensive midfield role, and Yanagi and Ohno were set as a double playmaker in a more attacking formation. Tokyo also replaced Masamitsu KOBAYASHI, who was not quite involved in chances on the left side, with Masuda. In the 52nd minute, in a crowded area in front of the goal, Kelly held the ball, Miura broke out on the left side and crossed back to Kelly, but the shot that evaded the defenders was weak and caught by GK Minami. Both teams showed fighting spirit as offense and defense quickly switched, and at the 55th minute, Kashiwa’s left wing-back Hirayama, who had not been very active offensively in the first half, delivered a sharp cross. GK Doi initially punched it away, but the rebound was picked up by MF Watanabe Koki, and Ohno, running in, unleashed a powerful long-range shot. This goal, a quick equalizer thanks to Ohno’s decision and bold play, leveled the score in an instant.

　After that, the game saw rapid changes in offense and defense. In the 62nd minute, Kashiwa's counterattack saw Kō break free and take a looping shot, but it went wide. In the 64th minute, on the contrary, Tokyo's Miura broke through behind the DF and found himself one-on-one with the GK, but was saved by Minami. Gradually, both teams committed more fouls, leading to a situation where chances were allowed as space opened up. In the 71st minute, Tokyo substituted Asari for Kinami. With Kinami holding the ball and getting involved in the attack, Tokyo found their rhythm. In the 75th minute, Kinami intercepted a pass in midfield. Kelly quickly passed to the right side, where Satō dribbled into open space, feinted past the approaching DF, and crossed the ball back. Kelly, who was in position, scored easily! Tokyo pulled ahead of Kashiwa with a flowing attack.

　However, Kashiwa, not giving up, immediately countered with Ko attacking, and Kitajima headed a sharp cross from MF Watanabe. It was a close call, but it went wide to the left of the goal. In the 79th minute, it seemed that Kelly's shot, which broke through the defense, had scored, but it was ruled offside. Both teams continued to hold their ground as they entered stoppage time. Tokyo's victory was imminent...

　During the 3 minutes of stoppage time, Komine's clearance led to a corner kick. Although Dohi saved it comfortably, most of the Kashiwa players had moved up near the goal for this play. When Dohi's big kick reached the opposing goalkeeper, Myojin passed to Ohno, who connected with a long ball to the front line. Watanabe, the center-back who ran into the penalty area, stretched out with all his might to touch the well-placed ball, and Yanagi scored. As the Tokyo players let the ball go, Kashiwa's last play brought the match back to square one.

Ends in a regrettable draw...

　The rain that had temporarily stopped began to fall again as the extra time started, turning the match into a battle of attrition on a pitch with over 85 percent humidity. However, we couldn't give up here. In the 94th minute, Sato's cross found Kelly, who headed the ball, but unfortunately hit the post... In the 97th minute, Kashiwa substituted DF Irie for Ohno, positioning him on the left side in a near four-back formation to mark Sato. They thoroughly managed the attacks from Tokyo's right side. Just before the end of the first half of extra time, Dohi made a nice save from Kitajima's header! As both teams missed big chances, the second half of extra time turned into a frantic flow of 'who will be lucky?' In the 115th minute, Kō headed a cross from Kitajima on the left, and it seemed like it could be a golden goal, but it narrowly missed to the left of the goal, leading to the final whistle. Tokyo, supported by the strong rhythm of samba for 120 minutes, finished the game in a 2-2 draw.

　After the match, coach PERRYMAN said, "We had a good start to the 2nd stage." It was indeed a frustrating game for Tokyo, as they were so close to securing 3 points but ended up losing. However, on the contrary, they continued to attack without losing heart even when it went into extra time, and they managed to withstand the momentum of Kashiwa's counterattack. They want to approach the next match with confidence, without dragging the damage from this battle, and to dispel any negative images.

[Coach Okuma's Comments]

"After introducing Kinama midway through the second half, thanks to his efforts, the game progressed as I imagined. However, in the end, we dropped our line too much, lost focus, and couldn't put our bodies on the line, which was unfortunate. Although it was expected that both teams would engage in a fast-paced counterattack during extra time, we managed to create chances without losing our balance. The match ended in a draw, but I want to switch my mindset and focus on fighting in the next match."