Defeat the highly anticipated Shimizu S-Pulse on enemy territory!

　For the Japan national team's match, the 4th round will be played after a 2-week interval, facing Shimizu S-Pulse away. This round will be a battle between 3rd and 4th place, with Shimizu boasting national team players in top form such as MF Mitsutoshi, Ichikawa, and Toda, making them the most anticipated team. In the league, they have won all their games, including 2 extended matches. It will be a tough game on enemy territory, but in past matches, both teams have won 2 games each, showing an evenly matched competition. We hope for another exciting match this round and a victory!

Repulse S-Pulse!

Following a two-week break for international games, the fourth round of matches saw F.C.TOKYO visit Shimizu S-Pulse. Fourth placed S-Pulse, unbeaten this season and boasting Japanese internationals in Santos, Toda and Ichikawa, all on top form for club and country, were expected to prove a formidable opponent for the visitors. F.C.TOKYO travelled in hope, however, as previous games between the sides have been close affairs, with the record currently two wins apiece, and no draws.

First goal by Amaral in the midst of fierce fighting with intense determination!

　Tokyo's right, Sato, left, Seigo KOBAYASHI x Shimizu's left, Mitsuru MITSUHASHI, right, Ichikawa's "side attack showdown" is the highlight of today's match. One minute into the match, Shimizu's Ichikawa went out to the space on the right side, but Seigo KOBAYASHI stopped him with a fierce tackle. Then, FW Kuboyama tried to forcefully enter the penalty area with skillful dribbling, but Shimpei SHIMODAIRA stuck to him and took the ball. Today, Tokyo's fighting spirit is still strong.

　In the 4th minute, Miyazawa was fouled just outside the penalty area and attempted a direct goal from the FK, but unfortunately it hit the crossbar. In the 10th and 12th minutes, Sato created chances from crosses, but the opposing DF cleared them. On the other hand, in the 13th minute, Shizuoka's MF Sawato passed to FW Baron who took a free header shot, but GK Doi saved it in front of him. Shortly after, Tokyo took possession of a loose ball and connected with Asari → Miyazawa, and finally Kelly boldly attempted a shot, but Shizuoka GK Kurokawa caught it. Both teams had moments of miscommunication and mistakes, but they fought fiercely with their fighting spirit.

　At 19 minutes, Kuboyama broke through on a through pass from Sawato and took a shot. Immediately after, Baron took a strong shot with his foot on a clear ball from the Tokyo DF. However, both were saved by accurate plays from Doi. The domination is evenly split, but Shimizu has slightly more chances. Shimizu's right player, Ichikawa, is in good form and is the starting point for continuous attacks, but Shimodaira and Ito hold them back with determined plays. At 25 minutes, Tokyo approaches the goal with a quick switch from Kobayashi, Kelly, and Sato, but they are unable to take a shot. At 26 minutes, Sato is fouled by Mitsushu and earns a free kick, which Miyazawa aims for the goal.

　That was the time when Tokyo went on the offensive. In the 28th minute, Kelly broke through the defense with a lob ball from Miyazawa and took a shot, but the opponent's GK made a fine save and escaped with a corner kick. The opening goal was born from that left corner kick. Ito connected with Sato's ball and Amaral headed it in! Tokyo took the lead with their second goal of the season from a corner kick.

　Afterwards, Tokyo defended against Shimizu's counterattacks with Jean at the center, who played with his body on the line. There were some difficult moments where they couldn't pick up loose balls, but they continued to show an attacking attitude by winning back possession and ended the first half.

Amaral Opens the Scoring!

All eyes were on the "Battle of the Wings" as Sato and Minoru Kobayashi lined up for F.C.TOKYO against Santos and Ichikawa for S-Pulse; and it was the latter who burst down the right straight from the kick off, only to be stopped in his tracks by Kobayashi. Soon after, S-Pulse forward Kuboyama dribbled into the area but Shimotaira stuck close and stole the ball. F.C.TOKYO were displaying their customary fighting spirit.
Sato made some headway down the right and curled in a couple of crosses, but the home defence dealt with the danger. At the other end Baron connected with Sawanobori's cross but Doi held his header. Both teams were guilty of some loose play, but the commitment wasn't in doubt. In the 19th. minute a Sawanobori through pass let in Kuboyama for a shot that was blocked and
moments later Doi made a solid save to deny Baron. Possession was about fifty-fifty but S-Pulse were creating the better chances, with the sparkling Ichikawa the chief instigator.
F.C.TOKYO produced their best chance in the 28th. minute when a delicate lob from Miyazawa allowed Kelly to get behind the home defence and fire in a powerful shot that the keeper did well to turn behind for a corner. Sato curled an inviting ball in, Minoru Kobayashi flicked it on and Amaral planted a firm header beyond the keeper for the opening goal. F.C.TOKYO had taken the lead with only their second corner of the season! S-Pulse piled on the pressure but the Tokyo defence, marshalled by Jean, maintained their discipline and the first half ended 1-0.

Shimizu's home team shows determination and ties the game.

　In the second half, Shimizu made a substitution, bringing in MF Toda for Kuboyama, moving Sawato to the top and pushing MF Hiramatsu up one line to launch a counterattack. In the 46th minute, just after the start, Sawato broke free from the DF and took a shot while competing with the DF, but it narrowly missed to the left of the goal. In the 52nd minute, Baron headed the ball again from Santomaru. The shot was blocked by the ground and the post, and Tokyo escaped a big pinch with the help of the opponent's mistake. Tokyo used Kelly's strong ball control to push towards Shimizu's goal, but their movement behind the DF was caught offside. In the 14th minute, GK Kurokawa came out to save a cross from Sei Kobayashi, and Sato connected it to Kelly for a shot. It was a decisive chance, but it was cut off by the DF just one step away from the goal.

　Shimizu, who is known for his fast passing, returns and gets into rhythm. Tokyo tries to disrupt this rhythm by putting pressure, but in the first half, Mitsuru, who was not performing well, came back to life and created chances one after another. In the 69th minute, he challenged Kobayashi Minoru in a one-on-one battle just outside the left penalty area, earning a corner kick. In the 70th minute, Tsuchi saw an opportunity and calmly took a shot, aiming for the goal. Kobayashi Minoru managed to clear it just in time. The stands were filled with excitement after this series of plays by Mitsuru, and they all came together to support the counterattack. And in the 72nd minute, Ichikawa cut inside from the right side and crossed the ball. Although Tokyo's DF initially cleared it, Ichikawa picked it up again and entered the penalty area. MF Yoshida connected with it, and finally Sawato turned around the DF marking him and took a shot. Sawato's determined play paid off, and Tokyo was caught up in a tie.

　After that, Shimizu attacked relentlessly. As the temperature rose, Tokyo began to tire and lost loose balls, unable to cross the half line. In the 76th minute, they tried to break through the difficult situation by substituting in Hoshi for Sato and Toda, who made his first appearance of the season, for Kobayashi in the 79th minute. However, both teams showed strong defense in the ensuing counterattacks, and no goals were scored. The game ended after 90 minutes and went into extra time.

S-Pulse Fight Back

At half time S-Pulse reshuffled to a more attacking formation with Toda replacing Kuboyama, Sawanobori pushed forward into a striking role and Hiramatsu moving up to fill the space he vacated. Sawanobori nearly had the equaliser in the 46th. minute but his shot from a perfect Santos cross sailed fractionally wide. Six minutes later Baron headed another pinpoint cross from Santos against the post; poor finishing from their opponents kept F.C.TOKYO in the game. Kelly worked tirelessly to retain possession and relieve the pressure and nearly made it two when S-Pulse keeper Kurokawa spilled a Kobayashi cross in the 59th. minute, but saw his shot blocked.
As the half progressed S-Pulse began to find their rhythm with Santos, invisible in the first half, exerting his influence on the left. He brought the crowd to their feet in the 70th. minute with a lob over the charging Doi that Minoru Kobayashi cleared off the line. Two minutes later the scores were level as Ichikawa picked up a clearance from his own cross and burst into the area, the ball finding its way to Sawanobori who slotted home.
S-Pulse poured forward in search of the winner as F.C.TOKYO defended in depth, rarely managing to get out of their own half. Toda made his first appearance of the season in the 79th. minute but was unable to break the deadlock and the ninety minutes finished all square.

Unfortunately, we lost in extra time with a V goal and suffered our first defeat of the season.

　Tokyo, who was caught up, switched their mindset and did not break their attacking posture when entering extra time. In the 92nd minute, they took the ball in the midfield and started an attack with Amaral, Kelly, Toda, and Hoshi moving up quickly. Although no one was able to connect with Hoshi's cross in the end, it was a play that showed their mentality of "moving forward".

　However, the ending came suddenly. In the 94th minute, Shimizu's clear ball from the DF was connected by Hiramatsu, who dribbled down the right side and launched a counterattack. Hiramatsu drew in the DF and sent a final pass to FW Tsubitanobitchi, who was sprinting up the left side. Tsubitanobitchi calmly took the ball and shot. The Tokyo DF had also cut off the angle, but Tsubitanobitchi's skilled shot surpassed it and the intense period came to an end.

　Tokyo, who played with all their might and effort, was defeated by Shimizu's clever and unrelenting play. However, it was not a bad performance. Let's switch our mindset and move on to the next game!

[Summary of the press conference by former coach] "In the end, the players were fatigued. I think we were able to play our own game from the start of the first half, but as time went on, fatigue started to build up and we were gradually falling behind in responding to Shimizu's outside players, Mitsuhashi and Ichikawa. However, we had chances throughout the game. If we can not only break through vertically with players like Sato and Seigo Kobayashi, but also keep possession, our fullbacks can get more involved in the attack and we can play in our own rhythm. It was our first loss, but the players did well. We still have a long way to go, so we need to make the necessary adjustments and work hard for the next game."

Extra Time Goal Sinks TOKYO

F.C.TOKYO started extra time on the offensive, with some neat interplay allowing Hoshi to cross but the ball evaded the TOKYO front line. In the 94th. minute an S-Pulse counter attack allowed Hiramatsu to burst down the right and his early cross field ball found Cvitanovic free on the left. The striker coolly fired past Doi from the edge of the area for the winning goal.
Despite the loss F.C.TOKYO can draw some consolation from their performance, particularly in the first half.

Manager Hara: "The players worked very hard and fought to the end. We were able to impose ourselves on the game in the first half, but fatigue set in as the game progressed. It's our first loss of the season, but there's still a long way to go. We're going to focus on improving our game and give it our all in the next match."