Approach the milestone game with a winning attitude

　J1 League First Stage will temporarily suspend after this section due to the World Cup. Tokyo, who dropped to 8th place after losing in the worst game of the season in the previous section, must win in this milestone game and enter the Nabisco Cup one week later and the league match in July with a good feeling. The opponent is Sendai, who has achieved 5 consecutive wins since the start of the J1 promotion this season and is blowing hot air into J1 at the end of the 6th section. The enthusiasm of the local Sendai is tremendous, and the Sendai Stadium at home is in a state of overheating with every game being sold out, and their passionate support is already considered one of the best in J1. On this day, Tokyo will enter the Sendai Stadium.

　Tokyo made significant changes to their lineup from the previous match, including forcing injured MF Kelly and DF Jean to play, as well as starting debutant Kaji at right back, Fujiyama at left back, Hoshi at right midfielder, and Toda at left midfielder. On the other hand, Sendai will be without their ace Marcos due to accumulated warnings, but they will be led by veteran former national team players FW Yamashita, MF Iwamoto, MF Yamada, MF Moriyasu, and DF Komura in their best lineup.

　Amidst a difficult team situation with many injured players, Tokyo is determined to win this game with an all-out effort, including playing Kelly and Jean who have not fully recovered from their injuries and not having a substitute goalkeeper, an unprecedented move of having all substitutes as field players. The match takes place at the passionate Sendai Stadium, where the stands are shaking with cheers from both teams. As soon as the kickoff whistle blows, Tokyo Eleven aggressively charges towards the enemy's territory.

F.C.TOKYO Ready To Roll

Following the seventh round of games the J-League takes a two month break for the World Cup. After producing their worst performance of the year last Saturday, falling to 8th. in the league, F.C.TOKYO were hoping to bounce back in style ahead of the upcoming Nabisco Cup matches. Today's opponents, Vegalta Sendai, were promoted from J2 last year and have taken J1 by storm, winning their first five matches of the season and currently lie third. The fans have played no small part in this success, packing out Sendai stadium and roaring their team on in exemplary fashion.
TOKYO were able to welcome back Kelly and Jean, while Kaji made his first team debut at right back. Fujiyama started on the left with Hoshi and Toda as side backs. Ace striker Marcos was suspended for Vegalta but Japan forward Yamashita and veteran midfielders Iwamoto, Yamada, Moriyasu and defender Omura ( all former internationals ) made the starting eleven.
F.C.TOKYO started the game with five outfield players on the bench, an indication of Manager Hara's attacking intentions. A barrage of noise from the sell out crowd greeted the teams as they entered the field.

Attack Soccer in Full Swing! Overwhelming Sendai from the Beginning!

　With the kick-off whistle, Toda from the left side chased after Sendai's ball with great force. The ball was pushed from left to right by Toda's pressure. Toda continued to put pressure on the opposite side of his position, in other words, Sendai's left back. While thinking "it doesn't have to be that intense", I realized that this intense pressure from the front line was exactly the type of soccer that Tokyo was trying to play this season. As if being pulled by Toda's momentum, Amaral, Hoshi, Kelly, and Miyazawa charged at the opponent's ball one after another. Sendai Eleven faltered, and Tokyo took the ball and attacked sharply, completely grasping the rhythm from the beginning.

　2 minutes, Kelly broke through from a one-two with Amaral near the penalty area and charged towards the goal, but was cleared by the opposing DF and resulted in a corner kick. Jean headed the ball from the left corner kick, but narrowly missed. In the 8th minute, Star received a low cross from Akaji after breaking through the opposing DF on the right side, and Amaral jumped in but was cleared by the opposing DF at the last moment. In the 11th minute, Toda aggressively charged and stole the ball from the opposing team in front of the goal, but his shot was blocked and did not result in a goal. The highlight came in the 12th minute, when Fujiyama intercepted the ball and made a sharp run with Kelly from a tight space, dribbling 40 meters and taking a powerful left-footed shot. Although it was saved by the goalkeeper, this movement proved that Fujiyama had made a comeback, and he continued to create numerous chances with his sharp interceptions and dribbles.

　The defense line was also stable. Jean's presence was indeed significant, as he cleared every ball that came in from the side with his head or feet. What sets him apart from other players is the size of his clearances. For the opponent, every time they tried to attack, it was blocked by Jean, preventing them from launching a continuous wave of attacks. His balance with Ito was exquisite, and they did not allow the opponent to find any openings. Not only Fujiyama, but also Kaji, who made his debut, fully demonstrated his potential. He impressed with his strength in one-on-one situations and frequent participation in attacks.

　On the other hand, Sendai lacked attacking power as Jean kept a clean sheet in place of the absent Marcos, leaving no target in the front line. Occasionally, they attempted sharp central breakthroughs through FW Yamashita's post-play, assisted by MF Silvinho, but Tokyo's central defense, including Miyazawa and Asari, remained solid and was not easily broken down.

TOKYO Take The Initiative

TOKYO began the game in aggressive fashion with Toda switching sides to harry the Vegalta left back, while the front line closed down their opponents, denying them any time on the ball. Vegalta were forced onto the back foot as the visitors seized control of the midfield and found their rhythm.
In the 2nd. minute Kelly and Amaral played a neat one-two on the edge of the area; a defender cleared the ball for a corner which Jean headed narrowly wide. In the 8th. minute a fine through pass from Kaji put Hoshiin behind the defence but a defender whipped his low cross off Amaral's toe. Three minutes later Toda robbed a defender and bore down on the goal only to see his shot blocked. In the 12th. minute Fujiyama intercepted a pass, played a sharp one-two with Kelly and embarked on a 40 yard run. His powerful shot failed to beat the keeper but, emboldened, he looked to get forward at every opportunity.
The TOKYO defense held firm: Jean dealt comfortably with everything Vegalta threw at him, while Ito's superb game reading ability allowed him to nip attacks in the bud. Debutant Kaji showed his potential; strong in one-on-one situations and ready to lend his weight to the attack.
With striker Marcos missing and Fujiyoshi effectively shackled by Jean Vegalta offered little in attack.

Unable to capitalize, end the first half with no points

　In the first half, Sendai only had one chance to score. In the 23rd minute, Iwamoto on the left side sent a cross that was shot from the center, but the ball bounced back and almost went in, hitting the top of the bar. It was once again recognized that giving Iwamoto space results in accurate crosses.

　Tokyo continued to attack after this. The offense and defense worked perfectly, making it safe to say that they were a "different team" from the previous match. Fujiyama's interception was sharp, and after taking the ball, he would pass it to Kelly, who would then pass it to Amaral for a one-two or a side attack towards the goal. In addition, when passed to the wide-eyed Miyazawa, he would repeatedly send long passes to Toda, who would run behind the Sendai DF. In the 39th minute, Hoshi on the right side dribbled forward after clearing Jean's pass, and then switched sides perfectly to Amaral, who was running free on the opposite side. Amaral faked a shot, but it went straight to the goalkeeper. In the 43rd minute, Kelly and Toda passed the ball back and forth after Amaral picked up a mistake from the opponent, and Toda made a run towards the goal, but his shot was blocked by a tackle. The decisive moment came in the 44th minute, when Fujiyama intercepted the ball in the midfield and dribbled up the right side. He then crossed the ball, which Toda fought for and dropped to Kelly, who took a powerful volley shot, but it was saved by the Sendai goalkeeper. The resulting corner kick was headed perfectly by Jean, but it was also saved by the goalkeeper. Tokyo had nine shots in the first half, three times more than Sendai, but failed to score and ended the first half.

All Square

In fact, they managed only one serious attempt on goal in the first half; a cross from Iwamoto led to a free shot on goal, and the resulting loose ball was blasted over the bar. TOKYO escaped but the danger posed by Iwamoto's centering ability was clear.
TOKYO continued to attack with abandon, hitting long balls over the Vegalta defence to Toda. In the 39th. minute a quick break from the back saw Hoshi rake a pin point cross field ball to Amaral. The big Brazilian feinted around a defender and fired in a shot but the keeper was equal to the task.
As the half drew to a close TOKYO turned up the heat-Fujiyama intercepted a loose pass and set off down the wing, his cross aimed at Toda fell invitingly for Kelly whose powerful volley was somehow deflected around the post by the keeper. Jean made solid contact with the resultant corner, but the keeper again denied TOKYO.
The first period ended soon after with TOKYO having out shot the home side by 9 to 3. Unfortunately they had nothing to show for a commanding performance.

Despite dominating the game, we conceded a goal from just one corner kick.

　Tokyo's momentum did not wane even in the second half. In the middle of the first half, Shimohira, who came on for the injured Asari, created a rhythm with accurate distribution in the midfield. In the 2nd minute, a flowing direct pass from Kelly to Shimohira to Hoshi to Kelly to Shimohira on the narrow right side, and Shimohira quickly passed vertically to Toda, creating a chance. In addition, in the 10th minute, Amaral competed for Kelly's soft cross from the right and dropped it forward, but Toda's shot was too late and was blocked by the opposing defender.

　In the second half, Sendai also started to create chances from the left side with Iwamoto. In the 5th minute, Tokyo's defensive mistake fell to Iwamoto's feet and he charged towards the goal. He passed to Silvinho, who broke through the crowded defense and had a one-on-one with GK Doi, but Doi blocked the shot with his foot. Tokyo had been dominating the game, but they were starting to struggle with Sendai's counter attacks. In particular, Iwamoto, who was waiting on the left side, was becoming a key player. In the 15th minute, a pass was sent to the free Iwamoto, who charged from the left and skillfully avoided Kaji to take a powerful shot. The ball deflected off a DF and went out for a corner. However, Sendai's DF Komura scored a header from this corner, giving them the lead.

One Corner, One Goal

Shimotaira had replaced the injured Asari towards the end of the first half and he assumed the role of MF distributor as TOKYO began the second half where they had left off. Some slick direct passing opened the Vegalta defence twice but Toda was unable to finish off the moves.
From around the 50 minute mark Vegalta started to claw their way back into the match as Iwamoto finally found some room in which to work. He set up Silvinho with a neat through ball but Doi blocked the shot with his feet. In the 60th. minute he received the ball unmarked on the left, beat Kaji and fired in a shot. The ball was deflected by a DF and Doi did well to scramble it around the post. From the corner Omura rose to head Vegalta into the lead.

Kelly scores a goal, but falls to Sendai due to the difference in finishing ability.

　Tokyo had no choice but to attack even more. In the 16th minute, a decisive through pass from Miyazawa reached Amaral, but he did not take the shot and instead tried to dribble past the defenders, only to be cleared. Amaral seemed to be fatigued and his body was noticeably heavier compared to the first half, allowing Sendai's defenders, Komura and Ricardo, to easily take the ball away from him and miss out on chances.

　30 minutes, Amaral was robbed of the ball by Ricardo on the left side, and Ricardo immediately passed it to Yamashita on the front line. With the whole team pushing forward, Ricardo made a brilliant decision and passed a perfect ball behind the Tokyo DF, which Yamashita reacted sharply to and broke through towards the goal. From top speed, he unleashed a powerful right-footed shot that shook the Tokyo goal net.

　It was certainly tough to be two points behind with only 15 minutes left in enemy territory, but Tokyo Eleven never gave up. In the 32nd minute, Jean seemed to score a goal with a header from a left corner kick, but once again, Sendai GK Kelly's miraculous super save stopped it. However, in the 39th minute of the second half, Fujiyama dribbled into the left side of the penalty area and made a heel kick to Kelly, who came to support from behind. Kelly swung his right foot powerfully as he ran in, and the ball went past Kelly's saving attempt, finally becoming a long-awaited goal.

　There were 6 minutes left, and with added time, there was about 10 minutes left. It was possible to catch up and tie the game. However, just after thinking that, at the 41st minute, once again, Iwamoto on the left side was allowed to break through, and Yamashita jumped in on a sharp cross and scored the third goal without any resistance. In added time, Kelly floated a ball and Amaral headed it forward, and Fukuda passed it to the back, where Jean ran in and took a volley shot, but it went over the bar. In the end, the game ended like this, and Tokyo cried over their lack of finishing despite playing a fantastic game, and lost an important milestone game.

　After losing the game and Asari getting injured, there were some dark stories, but there was also some good news. The return of Fujiyama. His sharp interceptions and attacking plays will surely become a big weapon in the future. In one week, the Nabisco Cup is coming up, and what is required of the team now is to produce results no matter what. Tokyo will enter the battle of Golden Week, aiming to advance to the Nabisco Cup qualifying league.

[Summary of Manager's Press Conference] Today's game was one that we really wanted to win, so we used Kelly and Jean, who are not fully recovered, and we didn't even put a substitute goalkeeper in. We really wanted to win with an all-out attack, so it's very disappointing. There are many challenges, but I think the performance today was much better than the previous match. As expected, even if we create such good opportunities, we can't win if we can't score. On the other hand, we took care of it, but the opponent was able to score with their set pieces from few chances. In the future, we need to improve our accuracy in various aspects in order to win important matches. We have many injured players and many challenges, but we want to prepare well for the Nabisco Cup and the league matches after the World Cup break.

Kelly Pulls One Back

F.C.TOKYO poured forward in search of an equaliser, but Amaral was guilty of over elaboration after a superb through ball from Miyazawa had sent him clear of the defence, and the chance was lost. Amaral seemed to be tiring following his first half exertions and the Vegalta defensive pair of Omura and Ricardo stole the ball from him repeatedly. In the 75th. minute Ricardo robbed Amaral on the left and placed a perfectly timed ball into the path of Yamashita as he sped through the TOKYO back
line. Yamashita lashed the ball past Doi for a 2-0 lead.
F.C.TOKYO were down but not out, and nearly pulled a goal back two minutes later but Jean's powerful header from a right side corner was again miraculously stopped by the Sendai keeper. TOKYO were not to be denied however and in the 84th. minute Fujiyama burst into the penalty area, backheeled the ball to Kelly and Kobari was beaten at last.
With about 10 minutes remaining TOKYO felt they were back in the match but only two minutes later that hope was extinguished. Once again Iwamoto was the instigator as he raced clear down the left wing and Yamashita flung himself forward to turn in a hard, low cross at the far post. Jean nearly made it 3-2 in the dying seconds with a close range volley, but fired over the bar. The final whistle blew and TOKYO had lost a game they dominated for nearly the entire 90 minutes. A lack of accuracy in front of goal let them down.
Despite the loss and the injury to Asari something positive can be taken from the game: the excellent performance of Fujiyama. The qualifying group league stage of the Nabisco Cup starts next week; hopefully TOKYO can build on the improvement they showed here and post some positive results.

Manager Hara: "Today was a game we wanted to win at any cost - I didn't even name a goalkeeper on the bench. We played well so it's very disappointing. The performance was far better than last week, which is an improvement, but we didn't make the most of our chances and they did. We have many injuries and other things to deal with but we're looking forward to the Nabisco Cup games and the resumption of the J-League."