J.League resumes from the Nabisco Cup! Challenging Kashiwa away

　The J.League, which had been suspended since May 24, will resume today with the Nabisco Cup. The Nabisco Cup is entering Sec. 5, and the qualifying league is reaching its climax. Currently, Tokyo is at the top of Group B, but they are tied on points with 2nd place Yokohama F.Marinos and 3rd place Vegalta Sendai, all with 7 points. This is a match they cannot afford to lose if they want to advance to the knockout stage. On the other hand, Kashiwa is in 4th place with 1 point. They are in a tough situation to aim for the top two, but depending on today's results, there is a possibility of being eliminated from the qualifying league, so they will show their determination not to lose easily.

　While being particular about the competition, how much we can showcase the results during the break is also a highlight of today's match. It holds significant importance for entering the league matches in a good shape. The long-awaited game took place at the chilly away Kashiwa Soccer Stadium, kicking off at 7 PM.

Aggressively taking shots, but...

　Tokyo is set up in a 4-4-2 formation. At the front line is Amaral, with Abe in the center, and Kelly moving freely from a position closer to the left side. In contrast, Kashiwa also has a 4-4-2 lineup on the roster, but with FW Marcinho at the top and FW Tamada and MF Jushie positioned on the sides, it resembles a 4-3-3 formation.

　Both teams aggressively tried to take the ball from the start. Tokyo's Amaral headed a cross from Ishikawa on the right side in the 1st minute. In the 3rd minute, Marcio of Kashiwa received a cross from right back Nagai and attempted a header shot. However, both teams ended up sending the ball in the air. Tokyo gradually found their rhythm with direct passes, and in the 9th minute, Miura played a through pass to Amaral who had broken forward, but it was offside. In the 11th minute, Amaral stole the ball on the right side of midfield and launched a quick counterattack, with Kelly delivering a well-timed through pass to Abe in front of goal. Abe took a powerful shot from outside the penalty area, but Kashiwa GK Minami saved it, resulting in a corner kick. In the 13th minute, Ishikawa passed to Kelly in the center, who then passed to the side, where Kaji sent an early cross. Kelly connected again in the center creating a decisive chance, but the shot went over the goal. In the 15th minute, Miura passed to Kelly in front of goal, who returned it back, and Amaral ran in to take a mid-range shot, but it was caught by the GK.

Intense play with back-and-forth battles

　Both teams fiercely battled in midfield, and in the 23rd minute, Kaji received a yellow card for stopping Kashiwa's left-back Tanoue's breakthrough. This play resulted in a free kick for Kashiwa, and from just outside the left side of the penalty area, midfielder Ricardinho launched a powerful kick towards the goal. In the 26th minute, Marcinho dribbled up from the halfway line, and Jushie took a shot from the last pass. In the 27th minute, Ricardinho also took a shot from a free kick. All were denied by Doih's excellent saves, but Kashiwa's shots were accurately on target, demonstrating high precision.

　In Tokyo, after 30 minutes, Ishikawa in the center passes to Kelly on the right, then to Kanazawa on the left side, and they approach the Kashiwa goal with wide passing, but they struggle to attack in front of the solid Kashiwa defense, where the defensive midfielder Shimohira has pulled back to secure the area in front of the goal. Around this time, "Abe was losing the ball often in the center, so we changed positions, putting Kelly in the center and Abe on the left (Coach Hara)."

　In a back-and-forth battle for midfield possession, in the 34th minute, Ishikawa made a strong defensive play to win the ball, followed by Miura. The strong ball sent to the front line was blocked by the opposing DF, and the loose ball was picked up by Miyazawa, who took a free shot but missed the target. In the 34th minute, a fierce play resulted in a yellow card for Shigeno. In the 35th minute, Kaji's early cross was one-trapped by Amaral, who took a shot that went to the right of the goal. Kashiwa connected a right corner kick in the 39th minute, with Jushie entering the right side of the area to shoot. After hitting the DF, they earned another corner kick, and from the ensuing scramble in front of the goal, Marcinho attempted an overhead shot. However, Doi caught it firmly, and the first half ended with both teams scoreless.

Unable to create decisive scenes together, ending in a draw

　The instructions from Coach Hara for the second half were to "make the midfield more compact and not allow the opponent to easily hold the ball. Once we regain possession, let's connect simply and utilize the spaces on both sides. Let's deliver fast balls from the sides." However, due to the aggressive movements of Tamada and Márcio attacking from the front following Ricardinho's pass, it was difficult to maintain ball control. In the 49th minute, they cut off Kashiwa's attack at the DF line and launched a quick counterattack, but Kelly's shot was blocked by the DF. In the 52nd minute, Abe intercepted the ball in the opponent's territory, dribbled forward, and took a shot. In the 56th minute, Ishikawa initiated a dribble from the right side, entered the area, and shot, but both attempts were caught by the GK.

　The match turned into a back-and-forth of interceptions and passing errors, gradually leading to more fouls. In the 71st minute, Kashiwa connected a quick passing play in front of the goal from Jushie to Ricardinho, then to Tanoue on the left side. From here, a cross was sent in, and Marcinho headed the ball towards the goal. It was a decisive moment, but Jean's clearance avoided the danger. The loose ball was picked up by Kashiwa, and Tokyo, which had gradually stopped creating chances, substituted Abe for Toda in the 72nd minute and Amaral for Suzuki in the 77th minute. They opted for fresh players to stir things up in the front line.

　However, the game was interrupted by fouls, and both teams lacked decisive plays. Finally, in the 84th minute, Miyazawa made an early cross from the left side, which Todai headed in at the far side. In the 88th minute, Suzuki stole a loose ball and sprinted down the left side, where Kelly was free to head the cross, but both attempts went off target. In stoppage time, Kelly passed to Ishikawa, who sent it to Kaji on the right side. Suzuki headed the cross but did not make solid contact, leading to the end of the match. It ended in a scoreless draw. Tokyo secured one point away, but their advancement to the knockout stage will be decided in the group stage match against Sendai in Sec. 6.

【Player Comments】《Dohi》"As we approached the first game after the break, we discussed as a team to play simply and fight as usual. I thought we needed to be cautious of Ricardinho, as this was our first match against him this season. As expected, we were attacked through him, but the Tokyo defense line stepped up when needed and demonstrated clear play. I think we defended well." 《Miyazawa》"From the position of the defensive midfielder, I had to push forward to break through, so I consciously attacked aggressively. However, in the second half, the team became stretched, and there were times we couldn't pick up loose balls. The opponent's one-on-one marking was strong, but I felt we needed to move the ball a bit faster and effectively utilize both the center and the sides. I want to correct these issues and approach the league matches with a better mindset."

[Summary of Coach Hara's Press Conference] "The key point was how to enter the game after a long break. We prepared well, but Kashiwa came at us fiercely. Especially the forwards - Marcinho, Jushie, and Tamada were very active, and amidst their intense movements, we couldn't develop the game as we wanted. In the first half, we created good opportunities from one-twos and counters, with Kelly and Abe creating chances several times. As a team, we want to convert those into goals. We wanted to take all three points, but we will think positively about getting one point, and we want to correct our issues and approach the league matches with that in mind."

[Summary of Coach Aurelio's Press Conference] "I think both Kashiwa and FC Tokyo gave their all, and it was a very balanced and good game. Kashiwa did well with their marking, created chances by taking advantage of the few opportunities they had, and moved well. The two full-backs are usually not players who play in this position, but they worked hard. The team was also well-organized. For FC Tokyo, it was a match they absolutely had to win, but I believe Kashiwa was also focused on the competition and was able to play a very good game."