Final home match, aiming for 3 points

　Only 2 matches remain in the 2nd stage. In Sec. 14, we will face Ichihara. Looking back, Tokyo has not won since the match against Urawa in Sec. 6. The matches against Ichihara have also continued to end in draws since last season. In the 1st stage, we let a victory slip away after leading by 2 goals, so this match is crucial to secure 3 points. Additionally, as this is the final match of the season at home, we definitely want to conclude with a victory to respond to the support of many fans.

　However, while Jean returns, Shigeyuki is absent this match due to injury. Kelly, who is still struggling with his condition, also could not make the squad. Ishikawa and Miura are on the bench. Currently in 4th place, Ichihara achieved a big victory of 5 to 1 against Kobe in the last match. While they have momentum, they are also suffering from injuries to key players. The average age of today's starting members is 24.82 years for Tokyo and 24.45 years for Ichihara. Both teams will face off with fresh members. The match started at Ajinomoto Stadium on a pleasant day, with Ichihara kicking off.

Conceding goals consecutively due to mistakes, leading to a difficult situation

　Tokyo, who suffered 4 goals in the previous match against Niigata, wanted to first rebuild their defense, but it happened just 2 minutes into the game. Toda, trying to connect a clearance ball from the DF line, lost the ball in his own half to Ichihara's MF Murai, who delivered a left cross. Ichihara's FW Maki picked up the loose ball from Fujiyama's clearance, controlled it with one touch, and kicked it into the goal, conceding early. Then, just 4 minutes later, Maki broke free in front of the goal, receiving a long pass from DF Milinovic, who had pushed up to the halfway line. He evaded Kaji with a cutback on the left side of the area and scored a clean shot. Ichihara got 2 goals from these 2 shots by Maki. Tokyo struggled to gain momentum at the start and, pressured by Ichihara's intensity, made mistakes, resulting in consecutive goals and falling into a significant deficit.

　The movement was slow in front of Ichihara's intense press, and the counterattack finally came after the 10-minute mark. Kanazawa's cross, following an overlap, was met by Toda's header, winning a corner kick. In the 12th minute, Kaji advanced to the end line and earned a right corner kick. Suzuki connected the rebound from his own corner kick and shot, winning another corner kick. Finally regaining composure, they created a chance. After that, both teams engaged in a battle of presses, resulting in a back-and-forth development, but in the 23rd minute, from a series of passes within Ichihara's territory, Baba broke into the space on the left front and crossed. Lucas, who was waiting in front of the goal for this ball, was fouled and won a penalty kick. Lucas himself took the penalty and scored, closing the gap to one goal.

　Tokyo, having regained confidence, utilized the wide pitch from the quick ball handling of Baba and Kajiyama to find their rhythm. In the 29th minute, Baba received a loose ball from Kaji's right cross at the far side and shot, resulting in a corner kick. In the 31st and 32nd minutes, there were opportunities for corner kicks. In the 35th minute, Baba headed Kaji's early cross, but the shot lacked power. In the 36th minute, Baba's right cross was dropped by Toda to Lucas, but the trap was not successful. Although they dominated and attacked, they could not show any fear in the final play. Conversely, in the latter stages, they struggled with the movements of Ichihara's players running long distances. In stoppage time, an early cross from the left was contested by Maki, and a shot from FW Kaneda, who broke behind the defense, went in, but this was ruled out for a foul by Maki. The first half ended with a score of 1 to 2.

Taking the lead and repeatedly launching wave attacks...

　Tokyo showed aggressive movements from the early stages of the second half. They frequently regained possession from Ichihara and launched attacks. In the 47th minute, Suzuki received a cross from Baba and won a corner with a dribble shot. In the 51st minute, Kanazawa advanced into the center from Lucas's hold and took a shot. However, just after that, in the 52nd minute, Ichihara sent a long ball, connecting in front of the goal. A cross from Murai from the right area was attempted to be connected by MF Abe in the center, but Kaji initially gained possession of the loose ball in the area. However, a pass that was attempted to be connected reached the free Ichihara MF Sato in front of the goal, who kicked it in directly for a goal. Just as they were about to bring in Ishikawa for Toda to launch a counterattack, they conceded another goal due to a mistake, exposing their defensive fragility. It became a difficult situation.

　However, in the 53rd minute, Ishikawa came on as planned. This led to more scenes of breakthroughs by Ishikawa and winning free kicks, raising the mood in the stadium. In the 56th minute, Kaji-yama was fouled in front of the goal, earning a free kick from which Suzuki aimed for the goal with a powerful shot, but the goalkeeper caught it. In the 57th minute, Kaji advanced deep to the end line, and Lucas connected with a fast cross, but was thwarted by a fine play from the goalkeeper. In the 58th minute, Kaji-yama, after a one-two with Kanazawa, dribbled forward and entered the left side of the area. Once again, the ball was passed directly from Kanazawa to Baba to Konno inside the area. Konno's daring shot hit Lucas's foot in the center of the front line, but Suzuki skillfully followed up on the loose ball and kicked it in with his left foot, scoring a goal. With quick passing in the area, they bewildered the Ichihara defense and closed the gap to just one goal again!

　Tokyo gains momentum with this. In the 63rd minute, Abe is brought in to replace Suzuki. They continue to dominate the match against Ichihara, whose physicality is gradually declining. Although Ichihara maintains possession by breaking up the combination plays, their wave attacks from both sides and crosses fail to connect in the center, resulting in no decisive chances. In the 73rd minute, a lapse in concentration allows Ichihara's attacking line to penetrate near the goal. In the 77th minute, Miura is brought in to replace Baba. The formation shifts with Kajiyama moved up a line for an all-out attack.

Broke through the Ichihara DF to catch up, but fell just short

　This formation fits. And each player's tenacious and aggressive attitude towards scoring led to the equalizer. In the 81st minute, Kaji surged up the right side and passed back to Ishikawa. Ishikawa cut inside while competing with a defender and sent a sharp ground cross aimed between the goalkeeper and the defender from just outside the right area. The opposing goalkeeper Kushino deflected it, and the loose ball fell in front of Kajiyama. Although he initially missed with his right foot, he quickly shot with his left foot. The ball pierced the net and scored! They caught up to equalize.

　In the 82nd minute, Ichihara's defender Yuki received his second warning of the day and was sent off. With only ten players left, Ichihara was on the defensive, and a fierce attack was launched against them, making a comeback seem imminent. However, in the 87th minute, Abe's breakthrough led to a left corner kick, but they couldn't convert it into a finish. In the 88th minute, a shot from Miura after a loose ball from a cross was saved by the goalkeeper. In the 89th minute, Kaji's cross barely missed Abe in the center. In stoppage time, Abe connected with Kaji through a one-touch pass, but Kaji's through ball to Miura, who had broken into the goal area, was just a bit too long. They were unable to secure the go-ahead goal. Despite consistently trailing Ichihara, they fought back tenaciously and managed to equalize with three goals, but fell just short. The early goal conceded weighed heavily, and the match ended in a 3-3 draw.

　【Player Comments】《Suzuki》"I was just in the right place to score the goal. More than that, I wanted to win. I don't think my movements were good. If I had pressed a little more, I think we could have created more chances. To become a regular, I need to make some fine adjustments, and above all, I want to contribute to the team by showcasing my strengths more. I want to play in a way that leads to victory." 《Kajiyama》"It was painful to concede a goal from our own mistakes at the start. Today, I first thought about playing close to Baba to maintain balance, but it was difficult to keep up with the runs of the Ichihara players. Gradually, it became easier once I started defending in combination with Konno. (Regarding the goal scene) I sensed the opponent's presence and initially missed the shot. Fortunately, it spilled right in front of me, so I aimed to get it into the frame with my left foot. I absolutely wanted to win, but I wish we could have played our game from the beginning."

　[Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference] "Ichihara is a team with momentum, as they scored 5 goals and won in the previous match. Today was also the final home game, so we talked about starting strong from the beginning. However, we conceded 2 goals due to mistakes and were unsettled. Around the middle of the first half, we finally managed to effectively use Kajiyama and Baba, which was our plan for today, and when the ball reached them, we were able to utilize the flanks. Ichihara played man-to-man, especially with fast pressing from their fullbacks and stoppers. In the 1st stage, Tokyo was the one pressing and scored early. Ichihara probably had that image in mind and pressed faster than expected. We should have kicked the ball into the space ahead, but we hesitated, passed backward or sideways, and were quickly targeted, losing our rhythm. So at halftime, I told the team not to be afraid and to get the ball to Lucas, Baba, and forward players to recover possession. Or if the opponent started to pull back, to connect passes through the gaps. However, we conceded a third goal from a ball that was unclear whether it was a clearance or a pass by Kaji, which was tough. But from there, we fought back well and scored. Ishikawa had been overthinking and not performing well recently, so I brought him on midway through the game with some expectations. Since the ball was starting to reach Kajiyama and Baba, I believed that if Ishikawa faced forward, we could definitely create chances. There were still mistakes, but I think he finally showed his characteristic speed and forward runs. Then I thought bringing in Abe would allow us to attack from the left again. Baba was getting tired, so we brought in Miura and pushed Kajiyama forward to balance the team. We caught up well, but honestly, I wanted to score one more goal. Despite struggling to get results in the league, many supporters came to the home game, and we wanted to win no matter what. Recently, conceding goals has been a wake-up call in matches. We want to be able to play from the start like we did in the second half today. Kajiyama and Baba have enough ability to compete in the J.League, so while using them well and managing their condition, we want to give our all in the next G Osaka match and the Emperor's Cup."

　[Summary of the press conference by Ichihara coach Ivica OSIM] "Today's match was symbolic of Ichihara's season. They ran well and did what they had to do, and they have been scoring regularly. However, they lack the strength to maintain the lead and continue playing the kind of football that scores until the end. Even if they have the ability, they lack experience. In that sense, it reflects the quality of the team. If they remain in 3rd place, it will of course be good for the younger players going forward, but until now, Ichihara's way of playing has been like pouring one liter of milk and spilling it just before finishing it all. That is how they have been losing. Experience is not something you can gain immediately; it takes many years. Ichihara has many players who have long been involved in battles to avoid relegation or fight for mid-table positions, and that habit remains. It is truly difficult for them to switch to having ambition and the desire to aim higher. Without changing that, they cannot reach the top ranks. FC Tokyo won the Nabisco Cup and may have been a bit complacent, but I think they are a good team with a future. In previous matches, Tokyo was closer to winning, but today Ichihara was closer. Both teams know each other's members well, so it becomes a close contest. Today both sides attacked each other, making it a good match. The unfortunate thing was that Ichihara was far from their best lineup. They have been missing their regular forwards for half the season, and today defenders Hanyu, Hayashi, and Yamagishi were also out due to injury. They are very important players for Ichihara, but on the other hand, players who had not had many opportunities to play got their chance, which was both unlucky and lucky. However, it is unknown how far those players can go from now on. We will take these factors into account and think about the future."