To remain in the championship race...

　For Tokyo, aiming for their first title, the match against Nagoya on this day became an important battle that would determine their future. Currently in 3rd place, Tokyo has 14 points, while 1st place Antlers has 19 and 2nd place Jubilo has 16. In this round, the top two teams are facing each other directly, so if Tokyo can secure points (by winning against Nagoya), the gap between them and the top two teams will significantly narrow. Conversely, if Tokyo loses to Nagoya (currently in 5th place with 12 points), they will not only drop in rank but also fall back significantly in the championship race. With a direct confrontation against Jubilo coming up next, this match is one that Tokyo absolutely cannot afford to lose, but Nagoya is also in a situation where they cannot afford a single loss, so a very tough battle is expected.

　Tokyo was without Miura, while Nagoya was also missing Weslley and Yamaguchi (due to accumulated warnings), resulting in both teams fielding lineups without key players. However, the game, which was a battle for survival in the championship race that neither could afford to lose, kicked off at 2:30 PM in the beautifully new "Toyota Stadium," reminiscent of Italy's San Siro Stadium, under clear autumn skies.

Tokyo's defense is fighting hard! In the early stages, Tokyo takes control.

　From the very start of the match, there was intense play and a fast-paced game with quick transitions between offense and defense. Both teams applied strict pressing at key moments. Tokyo tried to feed wedges to their top forward Amaral, but Nagoya's defender Koga tightly man-marked him, preventing him from becoming a focal point. Tokyo then attempted long balls behind Nagoya's defensive line to send Fukuda running, but these were also effectively shut down, and they failed to create any clear chances. On the other hand, Nagoya's Sakai acted as the starting point from deep midfield, and from there Urida, Okayama, and Nakamura tried to break down the defense with quick passing, but the final passes near the goal lacked accuracy, so they also could not create decisive chances. Tokyo's defense maintained high concentration, with Sandro perfectly containing Nagoya forward Marcelo, while Komine, Tetsuya ITO, and Fujiyama shut down the opponent's attacks with sharp reactions. Especially Tetsuya ITO, who was playing despite wearing a brace due to a left hand injury, showed perfect play both offensively and defensively; after regaining possession on the right side where he had not played for a while, he smoothly joined the attack at just the right timing. Additionally, captain Shimodaira, making his first appearance in a while, showed some initial hesitation but gradually regained his match rhythm and led the team with spirited play, using his body effectively in front of the defensive line.

　Tokyo, wanting to establish a rhythm, gathered the ball to Kelly and tried to move it quickly to find opportunities for Yuki and Fukuda's vertical runs. The first chance came in the 11th minute when Yuki passed from a throw-in on the right to the center, and Kelly, who ran in, took a powerful shot but unfortunately missed to the right of the goal. However, after this shot, Tokyo's attacking rhythm improved, and in front of the goal, Kelly, Amaral, Fukuda, and Yuki began to create chances with quick passes. In the 24th minute, from a pass by Fujiyama, Kelly broke through on the left side and delivered an exquisite through ball right in front of the goalkeeper, but Yuki, who ran in, had his sliding shot saved by the goalkeeper. Immediately after, Amaral attempted an overhead shot from a cross by Kelly from the left, but this went wide to the right of the goal.

Although they conceded the opening goal, Amaral equalized with his fourth consecutive goal!

　As the match progressed at Tokyo's pace, in the 29th minute, taking advantage of a momentary gap created by the overall forward pressure, Nagoya MF Nakamura broke through on the right side. Nakamura advanced all the way into the penalty area. He brought the ball close to the goal line and delivered a fast cross to the center, where Nagoya FW Marcelo headed it in front of GK Doi for a goal. Despite pushing forward, Tokyo was caught off guard for a moment and allowed the opening goal once again (for the fourth consecutive match).

　Tokyo, chasing one goal, connected Shimodaira and Yukihiko on the right side at the 33rd minute and delivered a cross. Amaral was free in the center and took a shot but did not make perfect contact. Conversely, at the 35th minute, they were attacked quickly on a counterattack, and Nagoya MF Okayama took a free shot from the left. The ball grazed Doihi's hand and hit the crossbar. Tokyo escaped the danger and immediately at the 36th minute, Shimodaira took a shot from the center of the goal after a pass from Kelly who broke through the right side, but the ball went over the bar. Tokyo, determined to equalize in the first half, continued to launch powerful attacks, but time ran out to stoppage time. Just when everyone thought the first half would end as is, Fujiyama sent a long pass to Fukuda up front. Despite persistent charges from the opposing defenders, Fukuda passed to Amaral who had moved to the left side. Receiving the pass from Fukuda, Amaral challenged the defender one-on-one, and after entering the penalty area, with a quick fake, he sharply swung his right foot. The shot was beyond the desperate save attempt by Nagoya GK Narazaki and shook the goal net.

　The first half ended just after this, and Tokyo equalized at the last moment with Amaral's fourth consecutive equalizing goal, bringing the match back to square one.

The intense battle that neither side could give in ended without a resolution after 90 minutes...

　The match entered the second half, showing even more intense offense and defense than the first half. Tokyo equalized with a dramatic goal from Amaral. In the 4th minute, Shimohira passed to Fukuda, and as Shimohira ran into the penalty area beyond Fukuda, a superb heel return came from Fukuda. Shimohira brought the ball close to the goal and took a shot. The ball just missed to the right of the goal, but Shimohira's aggressive play gave the team courage.

　On the other hand, in the 7th minute, Nagoya's cross from the right side was cleared by Tokyo's defense, but it was a weak clearance. They aimed for a powerful goal from outside the penalty area, but it went over the bar. Furthermore, in the 9th minute, Urida took a fierce long-range shot from about 30 meters in front of the goal, but it went wide to the right of the goal.

　Tokyo was not silent either. In the 11th minute, Kelly's cross from the right flowed significantly to the far side, where Fukuda kept it on the left side and sent a perfectly timed heel pass to Asari, who delivered a beautiful cross, but it was unfortunately cleared. As the second half began, Shimohira and Asari consistently joined the attack, adding depth and launching fluid attacks. In the following 12th minute, a scramble in front of the goal led to the ball spilling to Kelly, who attempted to break through with a dribble but was unfortunately stopped.

　Tokyo's defense also showed high concentration. In the 23rd minute, from Nagoya's quick attack, Urita in the center passed to Marcelo on the left, and Marcelo broke through to the goal with a one-touch, but Komine barely caught up and cleared the ball. It was a decisive scene, but thanks to Komine's excellent defense, they escaped the crisis. In the 38th minute, from Nagoya's right corner kick, the ball cleared by Tokyo's defense was connected, and finally, a powerful diving header was shot from close range in front of the goal, but goalkeeper Doi made a "super save" to escape the danger. Although Tokyo had more chances, their strong attacking intent to score the winning goal sometimes led to counterattacks that created danger, but thanks to the efforts of the defense centered around goalkeeper Doi, they did not allow Nagoya to score additional points.

　Tokyo changed the rhythm by bringing in Kina in the 27th minute and further increased their attacking power by introducing the well-performing Kagami in the 39th minute. The previous four matches had all yielded good results with this pattern, and although there was little time left, it raised expectations significantly. In the 41st minute, a ball spilled in front of the free Amaral in a crowded area, but Amaral was blocked by the Nagoya defense as he tried to cut inside. After that, both teams launched 2-3 counterattacks, but the accuracy of the final pass was lacking, resulting in no decisive chances. However, in stoppage time, Kelly broke free from a counterattack and took a shot in a one-on-one situation against the Nagoya defense, but this too was blocked by the defense, resulting in no goal. In the end, the match remained undecided after 90 minutes and went into extra time.

A furious onslaught and numerous decisive blows went unrewarded, resulting in a frustrating draw...

As the game went into extra time, it completely became Tokyo's pace. With the addition of Kagami, Tokyo established a focal point in the front line besides Amaral. On the left side, Kagami created stability with ball control, allowing Kelly, Kina, and Amaral to effectively move the ball forward, and it became easier for the ball to be passed to Yukihiko on the right side as well.

　30 seconds into the first half of extra time, a perfect cross came in from YUKIHIKO on the right, and Amaral, waiting unmarked in the center, headed the ball, but it narrowly went over the bar. At 3 minutes, another cross from YUKIHIKO on the right was headed by Kelly, but this also went well over the bar. Then at 4 minutes, YUKIHIKO cut inside from the right to the center and took a left-footed shot, but it was caught by the Nagoya goalkeeper right in front. At 5 minutes, Kelly timed a header perfectly from a cross by YUKIHIKO on the right, but the shot was met with a superb save by the Nagoya goalkeeper, and no goal was scored. At 9 minutes, KAGAMI broke through the right side and crossed the ball, and once again Kelly, completely free in the center, struck a jumping volley perfectly, but the ball veered to the left of the goal. The climax came at 14 minutes, when YUKIHIKO made a deep breakthrough on the right side and passed to KAGAMI, who was waiting unmarked in the center. KAGAMI took a left-footed shot from very close range, but this too went well over the bar. The time had entered the first half stoppage time of extra time. How many perfect chances had been created by now? Just as this thought crossed their minds, Nagoya launched a counterattack, quickly breaking down the defense in front of the goal. From the penalty area directly in front of the goal, Nagoya defender NAKATANI took a powerful left-footed shot unmarked, but goalkeeper DOHI made a "miraculous" superb save to deflect it out. This was arguably DOHI's best save of the season, and the match proceeded into the second half of extra time.

　Even after entering the second half of extra time, Tokyo's fierce attack continued. In the 7th minute, Yoshina broke through on the left side and passed to Kagami in the center. From Kagami to Toda, then back to Kagami, and finally, Kagami unleashed a powerful volley, but it went wide to the right of the goal. In the 13th minute,

Amaral dribbled in alone from the right and took a shot from close range, but it went high over the bar. It made one wonder, "Is the goal at Toyota Stadium smaller than a standard one?" Every shot taken after entering extra time missed the target. In the end, the match concluded after 120 minutes without a resolution, resulting in a painful draw for Tokyo, which was equivalent to a win.

　Now, the next match is the direct confrontation with Jubilo, the "Tennozan." The balance of the game against Nagoya on this day was not bad at all, but I want to quickly switch my mindset regarding the "draw" result. It's a short time, but I will prepare the best I can and face Jubilo at the only National venue this season!

[Coach Okuma's Comments]

It is true that our finishing and precision were lacking, but we had chances. It ended up being a disappointing result of 'if only we had scored one.' There were moments when we shot instead of passing again, indicating a lack of judgment. We need to improve this decision-making. The good thing is that, as has been the case in the last few matches, the performance of the substitute players has been noticeable. I believe the team's strength is definitely improving. This does not mean that the possibility of winning is gone. Next is a direct confrontation. I want to switch our mindset and fight.