Revenge Series 3rd Round, Aiming for the First 4 Consecutive Wins

　Sapporo, Kobe, and Kyoto have been defeated, and Tokyo is on a 3-game winning streak. In this round, which marks the remaining one-third of the 2nd stage, they will face Vegalta Sendai.

　Sendai has been promoted to the J1 league this season, and although they had a strong performance in the 1st stage and placed 9th, they are currently in 15th place in the 2nd stage and have lost 3 consecutive games, showing a lack of energy. In their previous match in the 1st stage, they lost 1-3 at home to their opponent, so this is a crucial match for them to seek revenge and aim for their first 4 consecutive wins of the season and move up in the rankings. They cannot afford to lose.

　However, Sendai's side attack, led by the left MF Iwamoto and the right MF Ando, who have returned from injury, has destructive power. Also, FW Marcos and Yamashita, who have height and decisiveness, should be careful. The key to victory will be to win the battle on the side first.

　The starting members of Tokyo are unchanged from the previous match, following the rule of "WINNING TEAM NEVER CHANGE". MF Yukihiko SATO returns to the lineup after 3 games and is on the reserve. The home game at Tokyo Stadium, which is the first in 3 weeks, started with Tokyo's kickoff under a cloudy sky.

Revenge Part Three

After consecutive victories over Consadole, Vissel and Purple Sanga the opponents for the 11th.game of the second stage were Vegalta Sendai.
Sendai, in their first season in the top flight, caused a minor sensation by posting some good results in the first stage but have since slumped badly and entered the game languishing in 15th.place, currently on a three game losing streak.
Vegalta are not to be taken lightly, however, as TOKYO discovered when they visited Sendai in April and came away with a 1-3 defeat; with Iwamoto on the left of midfield, Ando on the right and a strike force of towering Brazilian Marcos and slippy, darting Yamashita they have sufficient attacking capability to upset any team.
With the old adage of " Never change a winning team " in mind, TOKYO manager Hara didn't, but his inclusion of flying right winger Sato on the bench indicated the importance he laid on gaining the upper hand along the flanks.
F.C.TOKYO kicked off in front of a raucous crowd of nearly 18,000 on a chilly, rainy evening.

Amaral's 4 consecutive goals give the lead

　It was expected to be an attacking game, but the game moved early. In the 3rd minute, Miyazawa's cross from the left side was cleared by the opposing DF, and Toda received it near the end line and connected it again, but the opposing DF cleared it again. From the scramble, Kelly headed it back to Toda, who passed it to the front of the goal area while losing his balance. Amaral, who was free in this area, swung his right foot and scored! Taking advantage of the disarray between Sendai's DF and GK, Tokyo takes the lead with King's fourth consecutive goal.

　With this one point, the Tokyo players were filled with confidence. They pressed from the front, passed quickly, and showed an aggressive attitude in switching between offense and defense, dominating the ball. However, in the 7th minute, Sendai took advantage of a loose ball in the midfield and right back Suzuki overlapped. Marcos received a through pass in the right penalty area but missed the goal with his shot. In the 8th minute, Iwamoto aimed directly for the goal from a right corner kick, but Doi made the save. In the 12th minute, Marcos attempted a header from a cross from the right side, but Jean cleared it. In the 23rd minute, Marcos received a pass from behind and immediately turned to take a shot, but Shigetani closed off the shooting lane and the ball went wide. The Tokyo DF calmly dealt with Sendai's chances and did not allow any decisive opportunities.

　Tokyo, who gradually gained an advantage in the side battle, made a pass to the left side space with Kelly taking a gamble in the midfield at the 26th minute. Miyazawa received the pass and sent a cross, but Toda was unfortunately offside in front of the goal. In the 27th minute, Amaral competed for a header from a direct pass from Kaji to Ishikawa to Kaji, and Ishikawa ran in from the center to take a shot and win a corner kick. In the 29th minute, Ishikawa made a through pass to Toda who broke through the defense and took a shot from outside the left penalty area, but narrowly missed the goal. In the 30th minute, Kaji pressured the Sendai goalkeeper who received a back pass and caused a mistake. In the 32nd minute, Miyazawa aimed directly for the goal from a free kick outside the right penalty area, and the game continued with Tokyo's rhythm.

Four Games Four Goals

Given both teams' commitment to attacking football an open, exciting game was anticipated but the speed with which TOKYO took the lead surprised everyone in the stadium. With only three minutes on the clock Miyazawa crossed from the left; a defender headed clear but only as far as Toda, standing right on the byline to the left of the goal. Toda headed the ball back into the danger area where a game of head tennis ensued until Toda again squirted the ball into the path of Amaral who, never one to look a gift horse in the mouth, gleefully blasted it into the net from close range.
The Vegalta defence's inability to clear the ball cost them dearly and gifted Amaral a fourth goal in consecutive games.
The early lead invigorated TOKYO and forced Vegalta into a more aggressive approach. Both teams played the ball around in exemplary fashion with Suzuki overlapping down the left in the 7th minute before pulling the ball back to Marcos who shot wide. Iwamoto attempted to curl a corner under the bar soon after but TOKYO keeper Doi was alert to the danger and made a fine fingertip save. Jean cleared a Marcos header in the 12th minute and Moniwa blocked the same player's drive in the 23rd. The TOKYO defence, steadied by the early goal, dealt comfortably with Vegalta's best efforts and, having weathered the nascent fight back, pushed forward in search of a second.
With Kelly orchestrating the midfield TOKYO began to find space on the flanks. Toda was given offside in a marginal decision after a cross from Miyazawa in the 26th minute, a slick move resulted in a well struck effort from Ishikawa being turned around the post for a corner soon after and Toda fired fractionally wide following a defence splitting pass from Ishikawa in the 30th minute. The Vegalta defence wobbled mightily and keeper Takahashi nearly gifted Kaji another goal as he fumbled with a short back pass. A minute later Ishikawa tried his luck from a free kick and a second goal seemed a certainty for TOKYO.

Amaral, strong in chances! Seizing the opportunity and scoring an additional point.

　And in the 36th minute, Tokyo, who had taken the ball in the midfield, sent a cross from the right side with Kaji. Amaral, who had drifted to the left side after the opponent's DF cleared the ball, picked it up and kept it. However, Amaral, seeing no pressure from the opponent, took a shot from outside the penalty area that crossed the goal. The ball was sucked into the far side goalmouth, mocking the Sendai DF who let it go, and Tokyo scored another goal! In top form, Amaral's performance puts him in 4th place in the top scorer race with this goal. His bold attitude of not missing any chances leads to another goal, giving Tokyo an advantage in the game.

　At 38 minutes, Ishikawa attempts to break through from the center of the field towards the goal, while at 40 minutes, Kaji tries to make a move from the right side into the penalty area. Immediately after, Kelly receives the ball from a short corner on the right and uses impressive technique to turn around, evading an opponent who came to mark him from behind. He then crosses the ball from the end line, where Jean jumps in and heads it towards the goal, but it narrowly misses to the left. Tokyo, who has been dominating the game, heads into the second half with a comfortable 2-0 lead.

　In the second half, Sendai replaced Ando with MF Murakami. Murakami formed a double pivot with MF Chiba from the one-man midfield. Sendai tried to make a comeback, but in the 51st minute, Marcos received two yellow cards in quick succession for rough play and dissent, resulting in his dismissal. Losing a key player early in the second half put Sendai in an even tougher situation.

　Tokyo thoroughly implements the "simple play" targeted by manager Hara. In the 53rd minute, Ishikawa received a pass from Amaral and took a shot from the left penalty area corner. In the 54th minute, from Fujiyama's interception, Kaji → Kelly connected directly, and Miyazawa made a perfect through pass to the front line. Kelly's shot was cut off by the defender, but Tokyo overwhelmed Sendai with fast passing and clear intentions. In the 56th minute, Fujiyama ran up the left side and cut inside, taking a powerful shot from just outside the penalty area. It narrowly missed the top right corner of the goal, but it was also a good attempt.

　Today, Tokyo's defense was stable and they were able to cut Sendai's counterattacks with their DF line. It was reassuring to watch.

Amaral Seizes The Moment!

It came in the 36th minute. TOKYO won the ball in midfield and fed Kaji whose cross from the right was cleared out to Amaral on the left. Expecting another center, the Vegalta defense backed off, allowing Amaral time and space on the ball. He took one touch and fired in a low shot that evaded the mass of players in the area and skated inside the far post. The goal, his fifth in four games, boosted Amaral to fourth place on the list of leading scorers.
Searching for a third goal to kill off the game before the break, TOKYO poured forward. Kelly produced a dazzling turn to throw off a couple of defenders and reach the byline; Jean directed his cross just the wrong side of the post. Vegalta somehow hung on and a thoroughly satisfying first half finished 2-0.
Sendai shuffled their formation for the second half, replacing Ando with midfielder Murakami and moving to a double defensive half system. Any thoughts of a comeback were effectively dashed, however, when leading scorer Marcos was dismissed in the 51st minute after some foul play and dissent earned him two yellow cards.
With their danger man taking an early bath, Vegalta's already fragile confidence collapsed completely and TOKYO totally dominated the game.
Comfortably maintaining possession, TOKYO passed the ball around searching for an opening: Kelly had a shot blocked in the 54th minute, Fujiyama blasted inches wide a couple of minutes later.

4 consecutive wins for the first time in 2 years with a shutout victory!!

　In the 65th minute, Toda was replaced by Sato and Sato was placed in the right and Ishikawa in the left MF. The expectations of the stands are also rising. In the 68th minute, Kaji, who received a pass from Sato, ran to the end line in a form that surpassed Sato and sent a ground cross. Amalao tried to score with his feet, but narrowly missed. In the following 69th minute, Sato cut in from the right side and passed to Kaji on the outside, and Kaji's cross crossed the goal, but Ishikawa, who picked it up far away, crossed again in front of the goal, overwhelming Sendai with a big development. On the left side, Miyazawa runs into the space created by Ishikawa, creating chances one after another.

　However, Tokyo, who had been attacking, had fewer shots and in the 82nd minute, Sato boldly took a middle shot. In the 84th minute, Shimodaira was substituted for Miyazawa. Immediately after, Amaral took a powerful shot but the GK saved it. In the 86th minute, Keri was substituted for Kina.

　In defense, Jean and Shigeki Shigeno showed a stable defense, repeatedly catching Yamashita offside and avoiding damage. In the 89th minute, Jean attempted to overlap and receive a cross from Fujiyama after an interception, but was unfortunately caught offside. In stoppage time, Sato was brought down in the penalty area, but no whistle was blown.

　In the end, we were unable to score any additional points, but it was a dominant performance and the time was up. We avenged our loss in the 1st stage and achieved our 4th consecutive victory with back-to-back shutout wins. Tokyo also escaped the relegation zone thanks to the results of other matches, and now we will face Nagoya and Shimizu in the next stage, seeking revenge and aiming for a higher position in the remaining 4 matches with our own strength.

[Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference] "I was prepared that it wouldn't be easy to win. I was also afraid of Iwamoto's attacking power, but since the focus was on attacking, I thought we could create chances from the right side if we could keep up with Akaji and Ishikawa. In the first 3 consecutive wins of the season, we focused and fought, and Amaral was very energetic and the ball was in his hands. We talked about playing simply here, and we were able to create a rhythm by easily deploying from Amaral to Akaji, Kelly, and Ishikawa, and then Toda gets involved. However, Marcos was sent off and from that moment on, we fell a little. We wanted to score 1 or 2 more points, but our desire to win was too strong and we may have become too safe. With this 4 consecutive wins, we can aim for the top. We have 4 games left and we still have strong opponents, but we want to take each game seriously and raise the team's strength as much as possible."

[Sendai/Shimizu Coach Press Conference Summary] "It was the same in the previous match, but we conceded a goal in a mistake-like manner at the beginning and were shaken. We recovered a little afterwards, but then fell behind by 2 points again, and in the second half we changed our system and faced it. However, we ended up with a red card due to unnecessary play, and unfortunately, we ended up tightening our own necks, but that's the result."

Four Out Of Four

Sato replaced Toda in the 65th minute and moved to the right wing while Ishikawa shifted to the left of midfield. His appearance thrilled the crowd who were delighted to see both players on the field at the same time.
Barring the most bizarre of occurrences the points were clearly in the bag and the TOKYO faithful roared their team on in search of more goals. In the 68th minute Sato fed Kaji whose near post cross Amaral just failed to convert and in the 69th minute a double side change flummoxed the Vegalta defence but failed to produce another goal. As the game wore on the number of chances decreased and manager Hara replaced Miyazawa with Shimotaira and Kelly with Kina.
Vegalta produced nothing of any note in attack, allowing Jean the comfort of getting forward to join the attack on occasion. He even overlapped and centred but was given offside. In injury time Sato was flattened inside the area but the referee chose not to award a penalty and soon after the final whistle blew on a comfortable 2-0 victory. The win was TOKYO's fourth on the trot and second consecutive clean sheet.
Next up on the revenge trail are Grampus.

F.C.TOKYO manager Hara:
" 'Keep it simple' was the approach for today's game. Iwamoto is a danger for Sendai but we knew Ishikawa and Kaji could handle him. Amaral is in fine form and scored a couple of real poacher's goals today. We found our rhythm and played well early on. When Marcos got sent off I think we relaxed a little and I would have liked to have seen a couple more goals but ensuring the win was the most important thing. We have four games left, all against strong opposition, but we're going to give it our best and hopefully finish higher up the table ".

Vegalta manager Shimizu:
"Well, today's game followed the same pattern as last week's. We gave away a soft goal early on, then began to make inroads only to concede again. We changed the system for the second half but shot ourselves in the foot with the sending off. It's disappointing but that's the way it went".