Betting on victory! Match against Shimizu S-Pulse

　Sec. 13 of the 1st stage. Today, we face Shimizu S-Pulse, who are in 12th place, at our home Ajinomoto Stadium. Last week on the 16th (Wednesday), we achieved a remarkable comeback victory in the Nabisco Cup, boosting Tokyo's spirits. While the fatigue from consecutive matches is a concern, everyone understands that as we approach the climax of the stage, we cannot afford to drop any points.

　However, in this match, Amaral is suspended, so Abe will be placed at the top in the starting lineup. The substitutes include Kajiama, who continues from last week's Nabisco Cup, and the young player Wu, marking his first appearance in the league. The entire team is united in their effort to seize victory. On the other hand, Shimizu struggled at the beginning of the league with early losses and trial and error in their system, but after the break, in the match against Kashima, their three-back defense achieved a clean sheet, and former Tokyo FW TUTO scored two goals for a complete victory. Missing TUTO due to injury this match is expected to be a significant blow, but with FW An Tae-hwan at the center, their attack utilizing MF Mitsunashi and Ichikawa on both sides is well-regarded. Additionally, they will be entering the Nabisco Cup from the knockout stage, so they will likely come in fully prepared. This important game for both teams to rise in the rankings started at 7:04 PM with Shimizu's kickoff.

Unable to capitalize on opportunities together

　In the 3rd minute, Tokunaga and Ishikawa alternated crosses from the right side, with Toda and Kelly attacking inside the penalty area, but they could not finish. In the 5th minute, Shimizu launched an attack. Mitsunashi's early cross was cleared by Doi, and An, who picked up the loose ball, briefly shifted to the right side before advancing into the area and heading the ball. In the 13th minute, after an interception by the Shimizu defense line, a long pass was sent to An on the right side. MF Ito, who followed up, received it and sent a cross to the center, but they could not connect. In the 18th minute, Mitsunashi's sharp cross from the left side was cleared by Jean. In the 19th minute, Tokunaga sent a cross after a return with Ishikawa, but it flowed to the far side and no one could connect. In the 20th minute, Jean jumped in for a free kick earned outside the right area in front of the goal, but it was offside. Conversely, in the 23rd minute, An matched a cross from Shimizu FW Kitajima, who surged up the left side, and took a direct shot in front of the goal area, but it went over the goal.

　Shimizu's attack, which connects carefully and sends passes to the front line, is defended without difficulty by the defense, but Tokyo struggles to combine after regaining possession and cannot bring about a fast-paced development. In the 25th minute, Miyazawa's through pass for a central breakthrough went between Toda and Abe in front of the goal, which seemed like a chance, but the opposing defense cleared it, resulting in a corner kick. In the 26th minute, Ishikawa cut into the center and passed to the front line. Abe, who received the pass, took a shot while being tightly marked by two defenders, marking the first shot of the day.

Aiming for goals from stable defense

　In the 31st minute, Shimizu DF Emerson's clearance ball went forward, and Dohi rushed out of the penalty area to clear it. Mito picked up the loose ball and aimed for the goal with a floated ball, but Shigeno, who was well-positioned, cleared it. Gradually finding their rhythm from solid defense, Tokyo saw Kanazawa overlap on a pass from Miyazawa to the left side in the 33rd minute, shooting directly. In the 35th minute, Todai jumped in at the near post for a free kick from the right side, but could not hit the goal. In the 41st minute, Shigeno intercepted and advanced, sending a cross that Abe chest-trapped and shot directly, but it went straight to the GK. In terms of attack, both sides occasionally showcased their strengths, but overall, the match felt lackluster as it headed into halftime.

　In the 47th minute of the second half, a pass was made to Toda, who broke through behind the DF from Kanazawa, and the ball was connected from Abe to Ishikawa, but it did not lead to a shot. In the 48th minute, Kelly went to reclaim the ball in the opponent's territory and received a yellow card for rough play (due to accumulation, he will be suspended for two matches starting next game). However, without any disappointment, in the very next 49th minute, Toda intercepted the ball in his own half. Launching a quick attack, a big cross-field pass was made from Abe on the left side to Ishikawa on the right. Ishikawa's cross was met by Kelly and Toda in the center, but unfortunately, they were blocked by the DF and GK.

Kajiyama and Kure are brought in, attempting to break through with substitutions, but...

　In the 56th minute, Baba was brought in to replace Toda. In the 60th minute, a counterattack was launched with a pass from Jean to Kelly, and the ball was passed to Ishikawa, who slipped behind the right side at the perfect timing. Abe dove in with his body for the cross but couldn't connect. Shimizu brought in MF Hiramatsu to replace Kitajima in the 61st minute. In the 67th minute, Takagi shot from a free kick near the right sideline, but Jean blocked it, resulting in a corner kick. From this corner kick, Takagi headed the ball in the right area, but it was blocked by the crossbar, and Tokyo escaped the danger.

　Tokyo has a stable defense that does not allow goals, but their attack tends to be monotonous and they struggle to finish. In the 68th minute, Kajiyama came on for Abe. They placed Kelly at the top and hoped for a rhythm change with the introduction of fresh players. In the 72nd minute, Kelly received a throw-in from Baba on the left side and attempted an overhead kick with his back to the goal, but it went to the right of the goal. In the 73rd minute, Ichikawa's cross from the right side for Shimizu was cut by Shigeno. Shimizu continued to attack from the side with a sharp cross from Hiramatsu after a throw-in, but Doi bravely came out to make the save.

　There was a period of pressure from Shimizu, but in the 77th minute, Kelly persisted in front of the goal and passed to Kajiyama on the right side. Kajiyama sent a through ball to Kelly, who had moved into the area, and Kelly then passed to Miyazawa on the left side. However, Miyazawa's shot, taken while he was free, went across the goal and did not result in a score.

　In the 83rd minute, Tokyo substituted Kure for Miyazawa, betting on the remaining time. In the 86th minute, Kelly received a cross from Asari on the left side and dribbled forward. However, the shot he took after cutting past the defender as he entered the penalty area grazed the post and went out of bounds, turning the cheers from the stands into sighs. In a counterattack exchange, in the 89th minute, Kajiyama made a solo run with a dribble, but the final pass did not connect with Ishikawa. In the end, neither side was able to capitalize on their chances, resulting in a scoreless draw. Although they extended their unbeaten record to nine home games this season, including cup matches, it was a frustrating missed opportunity to claim a spot in the championship race, as they could only secure one point.

【Player Comments】《Kajiyama》"Before the match, all the players talked about the possibility of winning if we could win, and we approached the game with the mindset of definitely wanting to win. When I came on as a substitute, I tried to attack while keeping the ball with Kelly, but I was also nervous. I felt that we must cherish every opportunity." 《Jean》"Regarding defense, I was able to coordinate well with Shigeno on the sides and in the holding midfield, which created a good balance. In terms of attack, we were trying hard to make the most of our chances despite the opponent's tight marking. It's disappointing that we couldn't win, but I want to fight with all my strength in the remaining matches and also build up our strength to connect to the future."

[Summary of Coach Hara's Press Conference] "Since Amaral is suspended, we focused on having players with speed like Abe, Toda, and Ishikawa break through. The plan was to bring in players with technique like Baba and Kajiyama when the opponent gets tired, aiming to connect and score. I wanted to spread the ball a bit more and attack from both sides. Shimizu's An Tae-hwan showed tricky plays and Kubo-yama was in good form since the last match, so we had to be quite cautious of them. Mitsunashi and Ichikawa are strong players when they face forward, making it difficult to break through. I thought if we tried to defend too carefully, we would get caught out, so I aimed to use young players like Baba, Kajiyama, and Chan (Korean) to push forward. They showed some nerves and made mistakes, but I also felt their potential. I wanted to secure 3 points in this game to stay close to the top with the players. It's disappointing that we couldn't achieve that. I feel again that Amaral is a key player, but we need to be able to score even without him and create patterns. We need to improve our precision to reach the next level."

[Summary of Coach Oki's Press Conference] "We couldn't win 0-0, but I think it was a very good game. I want to make sure we can win games like this from now on. The players worked hard, and the desire to win was evident. I believe what we have been doing is gradually bearing fruit. The reason we couldn't score was due to the accuracy, strength, and timing being off in the final plays. We had a plan, but there were inconsistencies, such as moments when we entered the near post on crosses and moments when we didn't. I am very disappointed that we lost in the first stage, but it's not over yet."