Final home game we want to finish with a victory

　Only 2 games left in the 2001 J1 League. Today marks the final home game. In the previous round, Tokyo was defeated by Kashima, who is currently in first place, but there were many bright signs for the team, such as the opening goal scored in a flash and the return of Kelly and Tetsuya ITO from injury. On the other hand, Kobe may have been in danger of relegation to J2 at the end of the previous round, but with the results of other day games, they secured their spot in J1 before the start of this match. Both teams cannot afford to let their guard down, and Tokyo will fight with all their might to avoid consecutive losses and aim for a higher position, without treating this game as a mere formality. And above all, it's a home game. They have to respond to the support they have received at Tokyo Stadium throughout the year with a victory. As the sun sets and the cold becomes more intense, at 7:04 PM, with even louder cheers from the stands, the kick-off began.

Unable to create decisive scenes, the first half was lackluster...

　Kobe has been playing in a 3-5-2 formation, with a compact defense from FW to DF and wide positioning on both sides. Tokyo, on the other hand, is trying to connect their attacks by actively intercepting the ball through pressing in the midfield, led by Fujiyama and Shimodaira. Tokyo's right side is energetic as always, with Sato trying to make a cross from the sideline in the 8th minute, but was blocked by the DF. In the 9th minute, Fujiyama intercepted the ball and passed it to Fukuda on the left side, who then cut into the penalty area and took a shot, but it was caught by the opponent's GK. After that, Tokyo gradually gained control of the ball in the midfield. In the 14th minute, Fukuda and Fujiyama tried to break through the final line with their combination play. In the 16th minute, Sato received a sharp cross from Ito. In the 17th minute, Kelly received a return pass from Miura, who had made a run up front, and entered a shooting motion from behind, but both attempts were cut off by Kobe's DF. In the 19th minute, Kobe also tried to connect a vertical pass from the DF line to FW Miura Kazu, who then crossed it back into the middle, but Tokyo was ready and waiting.

It didn't work out for Miura. The situation continued where neither of them could bring it to a finish. However, in the 22nd minute, Amaral headed a cross from Miura who ran up the left side. It seemed to be decisive, but unfortunately it missed above the goal. In the 25th minute, Miura broke through the DF line and made a last pass, but Sato's shot was blocked by the crowded goal area and ultimately defended by Kobe DF again.

　Kobe's DF has completely retreated from this area. The ball is not chased from the front line, and the wing backs and sometimes the defensive midfielder have returned to the final line to defend, with six players guarding the goal. Tokyo tried to find a breakthrough through Kelly and Sato, and in the 34th minute, Sato, who had escaped behind the DF line, sent a fast cross, but it was cut off by the DF. In the 41st minute, Kelly's cross did not reach Fukuda or Amaral in front of the goal. In the 43rd minute, Fujiyama made a powerful overlap in the midfield, passed Fukuda, and sent a final pass, but it was also cleared by the DF. Tokyo was unable to finish while being defended, and Kobe also only had one header from DF Shijikurei, and the overall impression was low as the first half ended.

Caught in Kobe's trap, Amaral scores the equalizer

　The halftime instructions from Coach Ookuma were "One of the fullbacks should actively participate in the attack. Miura is making good runs, so let's improve the accuracy of our final passes." In the second half, with renewed determination, Shimodaira took a proactive middle shot in the 48th minute to pull out the defenders. Kobe's coach Kawakatsu said, "In the first half, we maintained our balance as planned. In the second half, the wind direction changed, so it's okay to use long balls." In the 49th minute, he substituted MF Sugo for Santos in the defensive state, but it did not change.

　However, in the 53rd minute, there was a momentary gap in the concentration of Tokyo DF. The cross from the left side of Tokyo was initially cleared, but the clearance ball from Komine, who picked it up again in front of the goal, ended up with opponent MF Daniel. Daniel drew in the DF and passed to the right to Miura Kazu. Sandro was facing Kazu, but his well-aimed right-footed shot shook the goal net, giving Kobe the lead with their second shot of the day.

　Tokyo substituted Kobayashi Masamitsu for Fukuda in the 57th minute. Shortly after, Miura headed a cross from Sato but the goalkeeper caught it. In the 59th minute, Shimohira was substituted for Kina. In the 60th minute, Sandro headed a corner kick from the right but it went left of the goal. Although they dominated the ball, their passes and shots were not accurate enough to score. Kobe's attack was not particularly threatening, and Tokyo's defense pushed up with a 3-back formation, with Fujiyama and Sandro also joining the attack. In the 64th minute, Kelly's trap from Kina's cross was cut off by Kobe's defense. In the 65th minute, Sato quickly switched the ball to Kina, who had moved up on the right side. Miura made a free header from Kina's deep cross, but his volley shot went over the bar. Miura and Kina created some promising opportunities by pushing forward, but they were unable to score against Kobe's solid defense, led by Shijikurei.

　In the 73rd minute, Minoru KOBAYASHI was substituted for Komine. Tokyo, with Miura taking care of the final line, also had Sandro move forward to aim for a chance. On the other hand, Kobe gradually began to stop with fouls that did not hesitate to receive yellow cards. And in the 83rd minute, Miura stuck to the right side, received a foul while trying to break through the middle with a dribble, and got a free kick. Kelly sent a neat ball in front of the goal from this FK outside the penalty area on the right, and Amaral headed it in for the equalizer! With Amaral's 17th goal of the season, they caught up to the same score!!

　Tokyo, who wants to take advantage of this momentum and break away, had a combination play between Kelly and Sato in the 88th minute, but Miura, who had come up from behind, missed the goal with his shot to the left. In stoppage time, they tried to break through with Amaral and Kelly from the left, but were unable to take a shot. Miura also attempted a middle shot from the open space in the midfield, but ultimately could not score a goal, leading to extra time.

The sixth extended game of the season also lacked a decisive factor...

　Tokyo, who was supposed to catch up with momentum, but it was Kobe who connected passes and grabbed the rhythm. In the beginning, Seigo Kobayashi stuck to the left side and continuously sent crosses, but the Kobe defenders responded without losing focus. In the 93rd minute, MF Daniel dribbled through Tokyo's midfield and took a shot. Immediately after, Tokyo's Futoyama sent a final pass into the penalty area from Kina, but it was cut off before reaching Kelly. In extra time, Kobe's defense became more and more intense, ultimately diminishing Tokyo's momentum.

　Kobe made a substitution, replacing Okano with FW Wada in the 96th minute. In the 97th minute, Wada broke through the center of the DF line alone. Sandro stopped him from behind with a foul, but was shown a yellow card for the play. Daniel's FK in front of Kobe's goal was saved perfectly by Doi, but with Wada's substitution, Tokyo had to pay even more attention to defense. In the 101st minute, Kobe's attacking line pushed forward and Fujiyama's clearance was weak, right in front of DF Matsuo who had moved up. The shot missed the goal and the danger was avoided, but it was a tense moment. In stoppage time of the first half of extra time, Wada took a powerful shot from a cross from Kobe's left side → Kazu's post-play. This shot also narrowly missed the goal, but it was a dangerous situation.

　As the second half of extra time began, the atmosphere in the stadium reached its peak and the intensity of the game on the pitch increased. In the 107th minute,

The ball was passed to Kina, who had come out from behind the DF line from Fujiyama, and Kina crossed it in front of the goal as he flowed to the side. Seigo Kobayashi took a shot from the DF's clear ball, but the goal was not captured. They showed a good attacking form, but this ultimately became Tokyo's only shot in extra time.

　On the contrary, in the 111th and 113th minutes, they gave away consecutive CKs and were hit by a heading shot from Shijikurei, but this was right in front of Tsuchi. Tokyo was unable to pick up the loose ball and was in a difficult situation. In the 118th minute, they substituted Sato for FW Toru KABURAGI, but both teams lacked the finishing touch and the game ended in a tie. Tokyo dominated throughout the game, but fell into Kobe's trap and ended up with a bitter draw. The last home game of the season was unable to satisfy the fans who continued to support us passionately, and ended in a disappointing draw. There is only one more league game left. Although it is technically an away game, we will face Verdy on November 24th (Saturday) at our home, Ajinomoto Stadium. It will surely be an intense match against a team in danger of relegation to J2, but Tokyo will end the season with a resounding victory!

[Coach Okuma's Comment]

"Today, I think it was a game that symbolized the fact that Tokyo has improved throughout the season but cannot win. We showed perseverance to equalize in that time zone, but since entering the 2nd stage, there have been many extensions and we still lack the ability to win. In order to always compete for the championship or win in J1 in the future, I felt that we need to overcome the wall symbolized by today's game. However, the team is making progress, so we need to maintain this balance and add more variety and strength to our attack. There is one more game left, but I want to connect it to the Emperor's Cup by playing a game that can be said to have overcome those challenges."