Aiming for consecutive wins, a foothold for advancing to the top

　This round, which is five days after the previous round, will face Gamba Osaka. On top of the consecutive games during Golden Week, Shigeki, Ishikawa will face the Olympic Asian qualifiers on May 1st and 3rd, respectively, and their fatigue will reach its peak. Today, the temperature is close to 25 degrees, and the condition is a concern, but in the previous round against Kobe, they won with perseverance away, and the team's atmosphere is good. They are tied with 8 points and are in the top position in goal difference, and they want to take a victory from G Osaka and make it a stepping stone for advancing to the top.

　Tokyo will face the match with the same lineup as the previous round, with Shigenoba, Miyazawa, and Ishikawa on the bench, and Miura as defensive midfielder and Fujiyama as center back. On the other hand, G Osaka will be without their key DF Miyamoto due to suspension. In addition, during today's warm-up, left MF Arai was injured and had to be replaced just before the game, with Inoue stepping in as a starter. Galerano, a MF, was put on the bench and they kicked off the game.

Pushing against the sluggish Gamba Osaka...

　Kickoff at 2:05 PM. Tokyo aggressively attacks from the start despite the heat. The defense also shows a strong performance, allowing G Osaka's FW Maguron to enter the penalty area in the 10th minute, but Fujiyama's quick approach prevents a shot. In the 14th minute, they steal a corner kick from a right throw-in, and in the 15th minute, Abe breaks through the front line on a pass from Kanazawa to Kelly, but is narrowly offside. In the 17th minute, Kelly passes through the area, but Amaral is unable to take a shot. In the 20th and 21st minutes, they continue to steal corner kicks and push the sluggish G Osaka back.

　After the match, Coach Hara looked back and said, "It was lucky for us that Arai was absent." As a result, G Osaka couldn't create any chances from the side and couldn't find their rhythm. In the 21st minute, MF Nikawa took a shot from a counter attack, which was their first shot of the day. In the 23rd minute, Tokyo created a decisive scene. Abe received the ball just outside the left penalty area, beat the opposing DF and dribbled into the area, then sent a final pass to Toda who took a shot, but unfortunately it was blocked by the opposing DF's foot. From the resulting corner kick, Jean took a header shot, but the ball missed the target.

　Tokyo, who never loses their momentum, picks up second balls well and connects them. Kanazawa and Kaji, the fullbacks, show well-timed attacking participation. Against Kanazawa, who creates chances by connecting passes to get behind G Osaka's three-back, Kaji sends in early crosses to look for opportunities. Miura also shows an aggressive rise and has found their rhythm. In the 39th minute, Amaral, who exchanged a one-two with Kelly, takes a shot but it goes over the goal. In the end, they were unable to convert any of their 6 shots and 6 corners into goals, and the first half ended.

Against G Osaka, who are trying to make the most of their few chances

　In the second half, G Osaka substituted U-22 representative FW Nakayama for MF Chikialse. Coach Nishino said, "Tokyo had a 3-top formation with speedy players on both sides (Toda and Abe), so we responded by putting Kiba on the right and Irie on the left in a 4-back formation." Shortly after the start, G Osaka allowed a counterattack by the midfielder Hashimoto, who took a shot with speed but missed to the left of the goal.

　However, in the 48th minute, when Abe saw Julian free in the midfield, he boldly shot from outside the area. The well-controlled shot was blocked by the opponent's GK Matsushiro in the lower right corner, and Toda tried to follow up on the rebound but couldn't get a shot off. In the 50th minute, Toda broke through the front line from a pass from Kanazawa, but was called offside. In the 51st minute, Miura received a pass from Asari and made a wedge pass to Amaral in front of the goal, while he made a fierce dash forward. He received a return pass on the left side and took a free shot, but unfortunately it went over the goal. Although they missed a big chance, they did not let G Osaka take the lead by attacking and trying to regain their rhythm in the second half. In the 54th minute, Ishikawa was substituted for Toda. They kept up their rhythm and in the 55th minute, G Osaka threatened in front of the goal, but they put up a tough check and slowed down their attack.

　However, Tokyo, who dominated overwhelmingly, struggled with their finishing. In the 62nd minute, they were caught off guard by G Osaka's quick attack, and from a direct pass from DF Mitsuhiro, MF Nikawa passed to the back and Nakayama made a one-touch loop shot. Although it narrowly missed the goal, in the 69th minute, Nikawa was allowed to dribble from the side to the center of the goal and take a shot, showing a lack of concentration.

Kelly's goal leads to the first consecutive win of the season!

　Tokyo, who never let up on their attack, had a header shot from Jean off a right corner kick in the 71st minute. In the 74th minute, Amaral, who was on a counter, sped into the penalty area and was brought down, but was instead given a simulation foul. This gave G Osaka the opportunity to counter, but midfielder Hashimoto's shot was caught firmly by Tsuchi. In the second half, with over 30 minutes gone, Abe was replaced by Baba and Miura was replaced by Miyazawa, as they tried to make a push for victory in the last 10 minutes. However, in the 78th minute, G Osaka's forward Okubo received his second yellow card of the day and was sent off. Tokyo gained the advantage and fought for the remaining time.

　Tokyo took the numerical advantage, but in the 80th minute, Kelly's volley shot hit the bar and bounced back, and Miyazawa launched a wave attack with a shot, but they couldn't break through the goal. In the 82nd minute, Kanazawa sent a soft cross from the left side to the far post with exquisite timing, and Ishikawa, who was waiting, was brought down in the area, but the whistle did not blow. In the 83rd minute, from another side change by Kanazawa to Ishikawa, Miyazawa aimed for a middle shot, but it went straight to the goalkeeper.

　But finally, the long-awaited goal comes for Tokyo as they continue to attack without giving up! In the 85th minute, Kelly, who was waiting in the penalty area on the left, receives a pass from Amaral and sends an early cross to the goal. Kelly then heads the ball with precision towards the bottom left corner, scoring a valuable, truly valuable goal.

　In the end, without letting up on the attack even in the remaining 5 minutes, we were able to defend this one point and time was up. We managed to overcome a tough match by a one-point margin and achieved consecutive victories. Manager Hara commented, "The next match against F. Marinos will be against a strong opponent, but we want to continue building on this momentum and prepare for the next one." Let's go into the next round with this momentum!

【Player Comments】《Kelly》"I'm happy to have earned 3 points against a good team like G Osaka. But today's win was also thanks to the support of many fans on Children's Day. I want to continue winning, so please continue to support us."《Kaji》"The early cross that led to the goal was exactly what I was aiming for, as always."

[Summary of the Manager's Press Conference] "I thought we might end up with a draw, but it was good that we were able to score at a good time. Last week, I watched the match between G Osaka and Kashima, and G Osaka kept coming forward as Kashima seemed a little scared. So I told the players not to be afraid and to attack from our side. I thought today's match would be a tough one as it was played during the day, so I decided to start with Toda, Fujiyama, and Miura, who are in good condition, as Miyazawa, Ishikawa, and Mobata are tired from last week's injury and Olympic qualifiers. I wanted to bring in Ishikawa, Miyazawa, Baba, and Mobata at crucial moments. The team's competitive spirit is showing in a good way. Miura returned to the starting lineup for the first time in a year and two months, but he didn't make us feel Miyazawa's absence and had an even greater presence, and Fujiyama also played great defense. That's what makes me the happiest. Of course, there were some tough moments, but we created so many chances and had many more shots and corners compared to last year. We still have a long way to go in terms of finishing, but we want to continue playing this style of soccer and aim higher. Today's result is thanks to the players. I am grateful for their hard work."

[Summary of G Osaka Nishino's press conference] "Due to a last-minute injury to Arai before the game, we were forced to make a sudden change in the lineup and put in defensive-minded Irie, who has a different style. However, we were unable to create attacks from both sides and couldn't find our rhythm. There are games like this, so at halftime, we knew we had to play a patient game. We talked about taking advantage of the few chances we have and changing our system, but we couldn't get into the flow of the game."