Celebrate the final match of the season with a victory!

　This match concludes the 2001 J1 League against Verdy 1969. It is a rematch since the opening game in March, but the situations of both teams have become contrasting over the course of the season. Verdy, involved in the relegation battle that has come down to the final match, will approach this game with everything on the line. On the other hand, Tokyo will be missing Sandro and Kelly due to accumulated warnings, as well as Amaral and Tetsuya ITO due to injuries, but it is important to focus on the game ahead, separate from the relegation battle. Both teams share "Tokyo" as their hometown, and it is inevitable that Verdy, with no room for error, will come at them with fierce determination from the start, but Tokyo cannot afford to lose this match.

　The starting members are DF from the right: Minoru KOBAYASHI, Yamau, Komine, and Fujiyama. In the midfield, there are the double pivot of Shitohira and Miura, with Toru KABURAGI in the center, Sato on the right, and Masamitsu KOBAYASHI on the left. The formation welcomed the kickoff with Fukuda as the lone striker.

Edimundo shows his presence

　Right from the start, Sato from Tokyo closely checked Verdy's midfielder Ogura on the right side. Verdy took a free kick into the goal area, and midfielder Nagai, receiving a return pass outside the penalty area, shot without hesitation. It was anticipated that the match would be intense from the beginning. Against Verdy's aggressive attack, in the 4th minute, Kobayashi Masamitsu on the left side chased a long ball played behind the defense, passing to Miura who had moved up for support. Miura dribbled into the penalty area, shaking off three opposing defenders and brought the ball to the goal line, aiming for the goal, but his shot went high over the bar. After missing this big chance, Tokyo found themselves on the defensive for the rest of the match. They struggled against Verdy's midfield pressure, quick transitions from defense to attack, and attacks initiated by Nagai and forward Edimundo. In the 5th minute, Nagai dribbled up the midfield and was allowed to shoot. In the 7th minute, Edimundo broke free in front of the goal from a through pass, but Komine managed to block it just in time. In the 10th minute, there was a free kick directly in front of the goal, in the 11th minute, Edimundo had a powerful shot from a post play, and in the 13th minute, another free kick was awarded right in front of the goal, resulting in a barrage of shots, but thanks to Doih's excellent saves, they did not concede a goal.

　However, it was difficult to stop Edimundo's dribble from a withdrawn position, and we couldn't afford to let our guard down for a moment, whether it was a shot or a last pass. Then, just after that, in the 13th minute, Edimundo dribbled into the penalty area, weaving between defenders, and the ball from the last touch spilled right in front of Nagai, who was waiting. As Nagai swung his right foot, it went into the goal. We conceded the opening goal due to Edimundo's breakthrough.

Tokyo struggles to counterattack...

　Tokyo wants to launch a counterattack, but despite having the intention to move forward, they struggle to connect passes, leading to a difficult situation. Even when they win the ball near their own penalty area and send a long ball to the front line, they cannot maintain possession calmly due to trap mistakes or being cut off by the opponent. In the 30th minute, a cross from the right side by Sato is met with a header by Toru KABURAGI, but it goes over the bar. In the 36th minute, Fujiyama makes a sharp interception and pushes forward, sending the ball to the right side, but Sato is brought down by a fierce challenge. The header shot taken by Yamao from the free kick earned here also fails to hit the target.

　After that, Verdy's midfielder Yamada's sharp reading and fierce challenges led to a situation where they were pressured by Nagai to Edimundo, continuing the threat in front of the goal, but the defense remained focused and defended the goal. They managed to limit the 13 shots in the first half to just one goal conceded. Conversely, in the 44th minute, goalkeeper Doi connected the play and advanced it to the front line, where Miura actively attacked and earned a corner kick in front of the goal. When Fujiyama picked up the cleared ball from this corner kick and passed it to Sato, who was left on the left side, Sato delivered an exquisite cross, and Yamao, who jumped in from behind Kaburaki and Fukuda, took a shot. Initially saved by Verdy's goalkeeper Kikuchi, Yamao pushed the rebound into the goal with his body!

　However, it seemed that the ball shook the net, but unfortunately, it was ruled as a "handball." Nevertheless, even under pressure, they showed a play that capitalized on a single chance, keeping alive the hope for a comeback in the second half.

Intense back-and-forth battle

　Tokyo substituted Yoshina for Shimoheira in the second half. Just after the start, in the 46th minute, Yoshina maintained possession and connected the ball, leading to Fukuda receiving a pass from Seigo KOBAYASHI and shooting from outside the left penalty area. Struggling to connect passes in midfield, Yoshina created rhythm by maintaining possession through dribbling and actively aimed for a shot. In the 47th minute, they earned a corner kick from Sato's breakthrough on the right side, but Yamao's header from that corner was caught by the goalkeeper.

　As always, we couldn't let our guard down against Verdy's attacks starting from Edmundo, but in the 53rd minute, KABURAGI tried to break through behind the DF with KINA's pass, and shortly after, KABURAGI received a pass from KOBAYASHI and attempted to cross from the left side. The cross was inaccurate and couldn't lead to a shot, but we were creating chances. In the 57th minute, after the DF cleared a cross from SATO on the right side, KOBAYASHI boldly took a mid-range shot. This was blocked by the DF and resulted in a corner kick, but in the following 61st minute, we brought in the speedy TODA to replace FUKUDA, raising the mood for a counterattack.

　However, Verdy also saw Atsuhiro MIURA, who had replaced Ogura in the 64th minute, break through on the right side. Nagai, who ran into the pass sent in front of the goal, took a shot while being free. The ball was caught by Doi in front of his body, but the fierce back-and-forth battle continued.

Despite showing a fierce attack, lacking the finishing touch

　After that, Verdy's press began to show signs of fatigue, with Tokyo dominating the midfield. From the right, Sato, and on the left side, Toru KABURAGI and Kina aggressively attacked towards the goal to create chances. In the 69th minute, Kagawa came in for Naruki Kobayashi. In the 71st minute, Miura stole the ball in midfield, and Sato sent a fast pass behind the defense to utilize Toda's speed. The defense cleared it just in time, and the GK caught it, but in the 73rd minute, Toru KABURAGI received a pass from Kagawa on the left side and made a big switch to the right. Sato dropped it to the center, and Kina aggressively attacked the goal with a shot. In the 74th minute, Kagawa aimed for a lob pass behind the defensive line, and Toda broke through, but Verdy GK Kikuchi quickly came out to catch it. In the 7th minute, taking advantage of the gap created by the forward press, Edimundo took a header shot inside the penalty area, but GK Doi made a solid save.

　Verdy is gradually losing possession of the ball, and Tokyo's pace is increasing, but they still cannot bring it to a finish. In the 83rd minute, Fujiyama intercepted at the defensive line, surged up the midfield, and sent a last pass to Toru KABURAGI, but this was ruled offside. From the 85th minute onward, Tokyo attacked by sticking close to the Verdy goal. In the 88th minute, Verdy counterattacked, and Miura surged up the right side, but his shot went wide to the left of the goal. Tokyo then pushed Yamao forward to attack and look for a scoring opportunity.

　However, despite continuing to attack, including 3 minutes of stoppage time, they ultimately could not take a shot before time was up. Although they showed a fighting spirit until the end, they left behind the issue of not being able to secure a win, resulting in a frustrating defeat where a single goal weighed heavily. As a result, the 2nd stage ended with 5 wins, 5 losses, and 5 draws, placing them in 8th place. Additionally, they finished the entire J1 league season in 8th place as well.

　Only the Emperor's Cup remains this season, and the goal is, of course, "victory." This season, we set the goal of "winning at least one title" from the start and have fought throughout the year, but we did not achieve our goals in either the league or cup competitions. To make the Emperor's Cup the culmination of this season, the team and the front office will unite and bet on this "last chance!"

[Coach Komi's Comment] "We had to change our tactics while considering the progress of other matches, but we struggled quite a bit with the long period of being 1-0 up. I think it was good that we managed to hold on, thanks to some luck. Leading by one goal, our inability to push back against the opponent who was trying to equalize symbolized our battles this season. We had the desire to go for a second goal, but I think the difference between a team that can play relaxed and a team under pressure showed there."

[Coach Okuma's Comment] "In today's game, despite the situation with accumulated warnings and injuries, I believe both as individuals and as a team, the players gave their all and were able to execute what they aimed to do. Reflecting on the season, while the defense maintained a good balance as a team, I felt we were lacking in the attacking aspect. If we cannot execute combinations such as vertical pairings and overlapping by the full-backs, as well as the individual ability to 'finish' starting with our decisiveness, we will end up drawing instead of winning. I feel there are barriers to consistently aiming for the top. However, even in situations like today where key players were missing, the team's balance did not break down. I feel progress in the relative depth of our player pool. With a renewed mindset, I want to strive for victory in the Emperor's Cup."