Finish the season with a victory!

　The 2001 J1 League, which will be concluded with a match against Tokyo Verdy 1969 this week. It was the first face-to-face meeting since the opening match in March, but the situations of both teams had become contrasting during this season. Verdy, who was involved in a relegation battle that went down to the final match, will surely come to this game with all their might. On the other hand, Tokyo will have to focus on the game in front of them on a different stage, as they will be without Sandro and Kelly due to accumulated warnings, as well as Amaral and Tetsuya Ito due to injuries. Both teams, who share "Tokyo" as their hometown, and Verdy, who have "no more chances", will surely come out with fierce determination from the start, but Tokyo cannot afford to lose this match.

　The starting members are DF Minoru KOBAYASHI on the right, Yamao, Komine, and Fujiyama. In the midfield, there is a double pivot of Shimodaira and Miura, with Toru KABURAGI in the center, Sato on the right, and Masamitsu KOBAYASHI on the left. They kicked off with a formation of Fukuda as the lone striker.

Edimundo shows his presence

　Early in the game, Sato from Tokyo tightly checked Verdy MF Ogura on the right side. Verdy kicked a free kick into the goal area and MF Nagai, who received the return outside the penalty area, took a shot without hesitation. It was expected to be an intense game from the start. Tokyo, who actively attacked, was caught off guard in the 4th minute when DF Ogura on the left side chased after a long ball and passed it to Miura who had moved up to support. Miura dribbled into the penalty area, shaking off three opposing DFs, and aimed for the goal line, but his shot went wide. After missing this big chance, Tokyo was on the defensive for the rest of the game. Verdy's tough pressure in the midfield, quick transition from defense to attack, and attacks led by MF Nagai and FW Edimundo were difficult to handle. In the 5th minute, Nagai dribbled through the midfield and took a shot. In the 7th minute, Edimundo broke through in front of the goal on a through pass, but Komiya stopped him just in time. In the 10th minute, there was a free kick in front of the goal, followed by a powerful shot from Edimundo after a post-play in the 11th minute, and another free kick in front of the goal in the 13th minute. However, thanks to Doi's great save, they were able to keep the goal intact.

　However, it was difficult to stop Edmundo's dribble from the pulled position, and I couldn't relax for a moment with the shot and last pass from there. And just 13 minutes later, Edmundo dribbled into the penalty area as if threading between the DFs, and the last touch ball fell in front of Nagai who was waiting. When Nagai swung his right foot, it was a goal. We allowed the first goal from Edmundo's breakthrough.

Tokyo struggles to counterattack...

　Tokyo, who wants to counterattack, continues to struggle as their passes do not connect despite their intention to move forward. Even when they manage to steal the ball near their own penalty area and send a long ball to the front line, they are unable to control it due to trapping errors or being cut off by the opponent. In the 30th minute, Kaburagi Toru heads a cross from Sato on the right side, but it goes over the bar. In the 36th minute, Fujiyama makes a sharp interception and attacks on the right side, but Sato is heavily checked and knocked down. From the resulting free kick, Yamao's header also fails to find the target.

　After that, Verdy's MF Yamada made sharp reads and fierce tackles, and they were constantly attacked by Nagai->Edimundo in front of the goal, but the DFs were able to defend the goal without losing focus. They also managed to keep the number of shots in the first half to 13 and only conceded one goal. On the other hand, in the 44th minute, GK Doi connected the ball and brought it up to the front line, where Miura aggressively attacked and earned a corner kick. Fujiyama picked up the clear ball from this corner kick and passed it to Sato, who was left on the left side. Sato made a perfect cross, and Yamao, who had jumped in from the far side behind Kaburagi and Fukuda, took a shot. Although it was initially saved by Verdy GK Kikuchi, Yamao was able to push the ball into the goal with his body after it bounced off again!

　However, the ball seemed to shake the net, but unfortunately it was judged as a "handball". However, even while being attacked, they showed a play that took advantage of one chance and kept their hopes for a comeback in the second half.

Intense back and forth attacks

　Tokyo, who substituted Shimohira for Kina in the second half, made a change by inserting Kina. In the 46th minute, just after the start, Fukuda received a pass from Kobayashi Sei after connecting the ball from Kina's keep and shot from outside the left penalty area. Kina's dribble kept the rhythm going and actively aimed for a shot, as the midfield was struggling to connect passes. In the 47th minute, Sato's breakthrough on the right side earned a CK, but the header shot from Yamao from that CK was caught by the GK.

　As always, Verdy's attack led by Edmundo was not to be taken lightly, but in the 53rd minute, Kaburagi Toru tried to break through the DF's defense after receiving a pass from Kina, and shortly after, Kaburagi received a pass from Kobayashi Seigo and tried to cross from the left side. Although the cross was inaccurate and could not result in a shot, the chance was being created. In the 57th minute, after Sato's cross from the right side was cleared by the DF, Kobayashi Seigo took a bold shot from the middle. It was blocked by the DF and resulted in a corner kick, but in the following 61st minute, Toda, known for his speed, was substituted in for Fukuda, and the mood for a counterattack began to rise.

　However, in the 64th minute, MF Atsuhiro MIURA, who had replaced Ogura, broke through the right side and sent a pass to Nagai who ran in and took a free shot in front of the goal. The ball was caught by Tsuchi who was facing his body, but the intense back and forth battle continued.

Despite showing a fierce attack, they lacked the finishing touch.

　Afterwards, Tokyo began to show signs of fatigue against Verdy's press, as they dominated the midfield. Sato attacked from the right, while Kaburagi Toru and Kina attacked from the left, creating chances in front of goal. In the 69th minute, Kaga replaced Kobayashi. In the 71st minute, Miura stole the ball in the midfield and Sato sent a quick pass behind the defense to utilize Toda's speed. The defense was able to clear the ball and the GK caught it, but in the 73rd minute, Kaburagi Toru received a pass from Kaga on the left side and made a big switch to the right. Sato dropped the ball in the center and Kina aggressively attacked the goal. In the 74th minute, Kaga aimed for a lofted pass behind the defense and Toda broke through, but Verdy's GK Kikuchi quickly came out and caught it. In the 7th minute, they were caught off guard and Edmundo was able to head a shot in the penalty area, but GK Doi made a solid save as well.

　Verdy's ball control is gradually getting worse, and Tokyo is taking control of the pace more and more. However, they are unable to finish. In the 83rd minute, Fujiyama intercepted the ball on the defensive line and sent a final pass to Toru KABURAGI, but it was offside. After the 85th minute, Tokyo attacked by sticking to Verdy's goal. In the 88th minute, Verdy counterattacked and Miura ran up the right side and took a shot, but it missed to the left of the goal. Tokyo also pushed forward with Yamao in the front line, aiming for a chance to score.

　However, they continued to attack, including 3 minutes of stoppage time, but ultimately the game ended without being able to take a shot. They showed a persistent attacking attitude until the end, but were left with the challenge of not being able to "win it all", resulting in a frustrating defeat with the weight of one point. As a result, they finished 8th with a record of 5 wins, 5 losses, and 5 draws in the 2nd stage. They also finished 8th overall in the J1 league for the entire season.

　With only the Emperor's Cup remaining this season, our goal is, of course, to win. We have been fighting for a year with the goal of "winning at least one title" since the start of the season, but we were unable to achieve our goals in both the league and cup competitions. In order to make the Emperor's Cup the culmination of this season, the team and the front office will come together and bet on our "last chance"!

[Comment from Manager Komimi] "We had to change our tactics while considering the progress of other matches, and it was quite difficult to maintain a 1-0 lead for a long time. With a bit of luck, we were able to hold on and I think that was a good thing. We were unable to push back against the opponent who came back to equalize, which symbolized our battles this season. We had the desire to score a second goal, but I think the difference between a team that can play relaxed and a team that carries pressure was shown."

[Coach Okuma's comment] "In today's game, despite the situation of having accumulated warnings and injured players, I think the players and the team did their best to do what they wanted to do. Looking back on the season, our defense had a good balance as a team, but I felt a lack of strength in the attacking part. If we cannot "decide" things with individual strength, such as combinations of vertical and overlapping side backs, or finishing power, we cannot win and end up with a draw. I felt that there was a wall to consistently aim higher. However, even in a situation where players who are always playing are missing, the balance of the team did not collapse. I feel progress in the fact that the layer of players has become relatively thick. I want to aim for victory in the Emperor's Cup with a new mindset."