Defeating reigning champions Jubilo, aiming for sole possession of the top spot

　Sec. 5 will be a match against Júbilo Iwata, the 1st stage champions. Due to being held one day later than other matches, the current provisional ranking has Júbilo in 3rd place and FC Tokyo in 4th place. It is an important match for both teams as they face each other in a direct battle between 3rd and 4th place, and a win today will allow them to rise to the top of the standings with 3 points.

　In the first stage, Jubilo suffered a complete defeat of 0-2 at home. However, they have been able to repay their debts to Gamba, Verdy, and Jeff, who also suffered similar defeats, and to Jeff, who ended in a draw. Although it is never an easy game against the champion team, the team's condition is improving. They are full of determination and have entered the away game against Iwata with a desire for revenge. Ishikawa, who was worried about his injury from a right thigh contusion in the previous match, started the game in good spirits. In the rain that started before the match, the game started with Tokyo's kickoff.

F.C.TOKYO Reach For The Top

The fifth game of the second stage saw F.C.TOKYO visit Jubilo Iwata. The results from the games played a day earlier had left Jubilo in third place and TOKYO in fourth; a win for either team would see them go top of the league.
TOKYO had lost the corresponding first stage fixture 0-2 but gutsy performances in the recent victories over Gamba and Verdy had boosted their confidence and the team entered the game against the champions elect in a positive frame of mind. The only injury doubt, Ishikawa, had made a rapid recovery from a knock received in the Verdy game and was included in the starting eleven. F.C.TOKYO kicked off in a light drizzle at Iwata Stadium.

Unable to capitalize on opportunities and conceding the first goal due to mistakes...

　Tokyo, who actively moves forward from the first touch. However, when the ball is cut off by the final line, Júbilo's speedy ball movement puts pressure on the goal. Then, Júbilo FW Julian's pass from outside the penalty area on the right is cut off. Following that, Ito, who was marking Julian, tried to clear it, but the ball spilled just outside the penalty arc and was passed to MF Terry, who was waiting freely like a gift ball. Terry's low and controlled shot hit the bottom right corner of the goal, and just 1 minute into the game, Tokyo was already behind.

　However, Tokyo never looked down and in the 5th minute, Toda and Amaral boldly ran into the goal, and when the opponent DF cleared the through pass, Ishikawa picked up the loose ball and took a powerful shot. They won a corner kick, and Jean headed Miyazawa's ball, but unfortunately missed the goal. In the 12th minute, Ishikawa won a corner kick by beating the opponent DF on the right side, and Toda jumped in on Ishikawa's right corner kick, but it was cleared by the opponent DF at the last minute.

　Jubilo will come wide with a series of direct passes. The pressure is also intense, and in the 14th minute, Tokyo's back pass was intercepted by Tsuji, who put intense pressure on Tsuji's kick mistake and led to a throw-in. In the following 15 minutes, MF Kawamura received a ball from MF Nishi on the right side and sent a sharp ground cross from the right side of the penalty area. FW Nakayama then let it through and behind him, Takahara stopped the ball accurately with his left foot and took a powerful shot to the left of the goal.

　As if mesmerized by Jubilo's flowing attack, Tokyo fell behind by two goals in the first 15 minutes, but still boldly pushed forward and attacked Jubilo's defense. In the 18th minute, Ishikawa stole the left corner kick from a shot and Kelly headed it, but Jean followed up with a shot that the GK caught. A close goal opportunity was missed. In the 23rd minute, Jean tried to score with his foot again from Miyazawa's left free kick, but it went over the goal. They tried to find a way through set pieces, but lacked finishing and couldn't score.

　Jubilo's transition between offense and defense is incredibly fast, and even when Tokyo applies pressure and cuts off their passes, they are unable to connect their passes from a low position in their own half and end up losing possession quickly. In the 24th minute, Takahara made a big switch to Hattori on the left side, then connected with Nishi and Fujita in the center, before returning to Takahara on the right side. Takahara evaded the defenders and took a shot, showcasing a dynamic attack from a wide position.

　On the other hand, at 29 minutes, Ishikawa crosses after receiving Kaji's long throw, Amaral enters the shooting motion, but the opposing DF cuts it off. In the 34th minute, Kelly connects with a throw-in from the right side, and Toda jumps into the goal area to steal a corner kick, but the corner kick does not result in a goal. In the 38th minute, Asari is substituted for Shimodaira. In the 42nd minute, Amaral jumps into Miyazawa's FK from the right side, but the header goes over the goal. In stoppage time, Toda heads Kaji's cross, but it is cut off by the DF. Despite having more shots at 10:8, Tokyo was unable to score a goal and ended the first half without taking the lead.

TOKYO Struggle After Conceding Early Goal

TOKYO looked to surge at Jubilo straight from the kick off but the ball was cut out by the defense and quickly returned downfield to Takahara. Tetsuya Ito managed to intercept his pass but succeeded only in directing the ball into the path of Jubilo midfielder Fujita who wasted no time in striking a low shot inside the right post to put his side ahead with less than a minute on the clock.
If the early goal had stunned TOKYO they didn't show it and nearly equalized minutes later as Amaral and Toda tore into the home defense. Amaral's final through pass was only half cleared and Ishikawa, following up, let fly a powerful shot that the keeper turned around the post for a corner. Jean marched forward and met Miyazawa's corner with a towering header that flew narrowly wide. In the 12th. minute Ishikawa harried a defender into conceding another corner which he took himself; a defender beat the diving Toda to the ball by a hair's breadth.
Jubilo responded with some sharp direct passing and pressed TOKYO down the flanks. In the 14th. minute a back pass put TOKYO keeper Doi under pressure and he was forced to kick into touch. A minute later Nishi found Kawamura on the right of the TOKYO area and Nakayama dummied his low cross into the area. Takahara, although under pressure and losing his footing, managed to control the ball and blast it past Doi.
Despite being two goals down after only 15 minutes TOKYO continued to drive at the Jubilo defense with a fine effort from Ishikawa winning a corner in the 18th. minute. Kelly, and then Jean, got touches on the ball but the Jubilo keeper eventually claimed it. Jean was again involved in the 23rd. minute, turning a free kick from Miyazawa over the bar. TOKYO had several chances from set plays but were unable to convert any into goals.
Jubilo were able to turn defense into attack with such fluidity and speed that TOKYO, hemmed into the last third of the pitch, were unable to find a forward outlet for the ball when they regained possession. Or, if they did, support was slow in arriving and it was lost again. A sumptuous move involving five players and a double side change, started and finished by Takahara, nearly produced a third goal in the 24th. minute.
In the 29th. minute Ishikawa picked out Amaral with a fine cross but his shot was charged down by a defender. Toda won a corner in the 34th. minute with a brave diving header but again it came to nothing. Asari replaced Shimotaira in the 38th. minute, Amaral headed a Miyazawa free kick over the bar in the 42nd. minute and in injury time Toda had a fierce drive blocked by a defender. TOKYO had outshot the home side by 10 to 8 but finished the first period 2-0 down.

Fukuda scores a valuable goal that he wants to use as a starting point for a comeback, but...

　Tokyo, who faced the game with a 3-back formation by raising Kaji to a high position from the middle of the first half. Manager Hara said, "To go for more attacking goals, and to put Nishino in for Ito's covering", but in the second half, Fukuda was substituted for Toda. With a two-top formation, Ishikawa was placed as the left MF, and they faced the game with a 3-5-2 formation.

　However, in the 47th minute of the second half, just 2 minutes after the start, the left side was dribbled by Kawamura and allowed a cross. This cross flowed sweetly to the unmarked left side, but Tokyo could not get the ball and MF Hattori ran in fiercely and took a shot. Although Doi initially saved it with his left hand, Takahara, who was closing in on the goal, pushed it in and Tokyo conceded their third goal at the start of the second half.

　Tokyo, still trying to strike back, desperately attempted a counterattack. In the 56th minute, the opponent's DF cut off a shot from Miyazawa from a distance, and the ball fell in front of Amaral who had broken through on the right side. He faced the GK in a one-on-one situation, but the shot was saved by the GK, and the goal seemed even further away. Jubilo, who had become even more aggressive, had a fast passing game with unified intentions between the receiver and the passer, and had matured in terms of pressing and other aspects. The game continued to progress within Tokyo's territory.

　However, it was the 66th minute. Miyazawa on the left side sent a pass to Fukuda, who received it in the right penalty area and cut inside, dodging the defender, and took a shot. The ball was blocked by the goalkeeper, but they earned a corner kick. From this, Kaji brought the ball into the center with his left foot and sent a ground cross, which Fukuda ran into the near side, competing with the defender and scoring a goal! For Fukuda, it was his long-awaited goal in the league, and it was a valuable shot that both he and the team had been waiting for. Tokyo finally grabbed a precious goal to start their comeback!

Fukuda Pulls One Back But...

Midway through the first half TOKYO had pushed Kaji forward and opted for a three back system. As manager Hara reasoned " We needed to score desperately and I wanted Moniwa covering in front of Ito ". Forward Fukuda replaced Toda at half time and Ishikawa moved to the left in a 3-5-2 formation.
Unfortunately a defensive lapse in the 47th. minute saw a cross from Kawamura sail across the TOKYO penalty area to the unmarked Hattori. Doi managed to block his shot but Takahara was on hand to bundle the ball over the line for the third goal.
Down but not yet out, TOKYO continued to push forward. Miyazawa tried his luck with a long range blast in the 56th. minute; the ball cannoned off a defender straight into the path of Amaral, who only had the keeper to beat.
Somehow his effort was saved and the TOKYO players must have thought they were predestined not to score.
In the 66th. minute a raking cross field pass from Miyazawa picked out Fukuda who rounded a defender and fired in a shot which the Jubilo keeper turned around the post for a corner. It was taken short to Kaji who whipped in a low cross for Fukuda to outmuscle a defender and power the ball home at the near post. Fukuda's delight was plain to see: his first league goal for nearly a year was a just reward for TOKYO's hard work and suggested a fightback was possible.

Defeated by a fully matured Jubilo

　In the 67th minute, Ishikawa, who had been pushed on the left side, was replaced by Kina due to injury. However, in the 68th minute, Jubilo advanced into the Tokyo territory and Fujita kept the ball in the right penalty area, then passed it back and Nishi ran in to take a shot. Takahara, who was in front of the goal, changed the direction of the ball with a heel and scored. With Takahara's amazing hat-trick, they quickly lost their fourth goal, bringing the score back to a 3-point difference. In the 74th minute, Jubilo substituted MF Kanazawa for MF Nami, and in the 78th minute, they substituted Nishi for speedy FW Kawaguchi, completely dominating over Tokyo.

　As planned, in the 80th minute, Tokyo countered and Jean made a quick return while the gap was open. Nakayama connected with a ball from the back and Takahara sent it to the right side. Kawaguchi received the ball and dribbled through the right side, evading the defenders and taking a shot. From there, they were able to earn three consecutive corner kicks.

　And in the 85th minute, Tokyo's Asari was sent off with his second yellow card of the day. With this, their concentration was broken. In the 87th minute, Nakayama dribbled down the right side and sent a cross to the center, where Takahara once again scored, making it 4 goals for himself and 5 for Jubilo. Then in the 89th minute, Tokyo's DF cleared a ball from the goalkeeper, which Kanazawa received in the midfield and sent a lob pass to the front line. Nakayama jumped in and, while competing with Ito, scored the final goal with a looping shot over Doi's head. Tokyo's DF collapsed and they were defeated with a large goal difference, unable to resist.

　Former coach spoke about the cause of defeat, saying "When we make mistakes, we couldn't push ourselves to regain our rhythm. We need leadership to push ourselves no matter what." Yes, we can't get down here. The road to battle is still long. The remaining 10 matches, whether we can use this defeat as nourishment or not, depends on tomorrow's battle.

[Summary of the press conference by former coach] "We wanted to be aggressive from the start, but I think we lost confidence after conceding the first goal. Jubilo also came out aggressively from the beginning, so we tried not to be afraid and play simple, but we ended up self-destructing by trying to connect and pass back. After conceding two goals in the first half, we created several chances centered around set pieces, so I told the team at halftime, 'If we can score one goal, we can control the pace of the game.' However, giving up another goal early in the second half had a big impact. And then, right after we managed to score one goal, we gave up another one and Asari was also sent off, and we fell into a vicious cycle and ended up being dominated by Jubilo. It's hard to beat Jubilo when we make mistakes like this. We wanted to take the lead in the first half, but we lost to Jubilo's quick pressure and decision-making. From the next match, Ishikawa and Shigeta will leave the team for the U-21 national team, but we want to regroup in one week and not let things continue like this."

[Summary of Jubilo Suzuki's press conference] "We lost at home in the previous match, so today we couldn't afford to lose. I think we were able to play with that kind of determination. We knew that Tokyo would come aggressively from the start based on their previous battles. So we focused on not conceding any goals, as once we do, the game tends to go in Tokyo's rhythm. When we gradually switched from defense to offense, we were able to play in good spaces, which led to this result. We wanted to score a third goal in the first half, but the players understood the importance of the next goal, and I think it was crucial that we were able to score the third goal at the beginning of the second half."

Fightback Fizzles

Kina replaced the injured Ishikawa in the 67th minute. Disaster struck for TOKYO a minute later as Fujita held the ball up on the edge of the TOKYO area, then rolled a pass back into the path of the charging Nishi whose shot was deflected past Doi by Takahara. The deficit returned to three and Jubilo further tightened the screw by replacing Nanami with Kanazawa and Nishi with the speedy forward Kawaguchi.
With Jean lending his weight to the attack in the 80th minute, a fast break saw Kawaguchi streak through on goal only to be foiled by a fine save from Doi. Jubilo won three successive corners and effectively penned TOKYO back as the game entered the final few minutes.
After Asari received a second yellow card and his marching orders in the 85th minute, it was game over for TOKYO. To add insult to injury, Nakayama crossed for Takahara to notch his fourth and Jubilo's fifth goal of the match in the 87th minute. Soon after, a lofted through ball from Kanazawa saw Nakayama outpace Ito to lob over the charging Doi for the sixth goal. It was a depressing end to a thoroughly miserable afternoon for F.C.TOKYO.
As manager Hara said, "After giving away the first goal, we never really found our rhythm. We really needed someone to step up and show some leadership, but it just didn't happen." Still, with ten games remaining, there is plenty to play for and the team will have to knuckle down and bounce back in the next match.


F.C.TOKYO manager Hara:
"We wanted to make an aggressive start but giving away a goal in the first minute completely knocked the stuffing out of us.
We knew how Jubilo would play and we felt that if we could keep it simple we stood a chance. After their second goal we had a string of chances from set plays and definitely felt that scoring first in the second half could turn the game around. Unfortunately they scored first and when we did pull one back they responded immediately. Losing Asari was a blow and after that we collapsed. You can't afford to make the mistakes against a team like Jubilo that we did today and expect to win. We're losing Ishikawa and Moniwa to the Japan U-21 team from next week; we have a week until the next game and are going to regroup and come out fighting".

Jubilo manager Suzuki:
"We lost our last home game here and the players were determined not to let it happen again today. We knew TOKYO would be very aggressive after they conceded the early goals but kept our concentration and defended well. I really wanted a third goal before half time and we were very aware that the next goal would be the important one.
Scoring early in the second half was the key to victory today, I think".