Overcome Nagoya with momentum and achieve victory!

　In Sec. 26 of the J1 League, we will face Nagoya Grampus Eight away. We have finally suffered six consecutive losses and are in a situation with no way out. However, players like Moniwa, Jean, and Ishikawa have returned from injuries, and our strength is gradually coming back. With both physical and mental refreshment, we want to aim for breaking the losing streak as a team with a new mindset.

　Nagoya is currently in 11th place with 31 points. They navigated through four matches in September with 2 wins, 1 draw, and 1 loss, and their form is improving. Especially after the addition of FW Yonsen, the attacking line has been working well together, and in the last match, FW Sugimoto achieved a hat trick, demonstrating high scoring ability. Coach Kuramata stated, "It is important to contain the two forwards, FW Yonsen, who is tall, and FW Sugimoto, who is fast. In particular, Yonsen has strong ball retention and chases the ball from the front line. By passing to him, Sugimoto and the second line players can pick up the loose balls and create opportunities, so we want to ensure thorough care in that regard."

　Tokyo changed their system to 4-2-3-1 with Hirayama as the lone striker, and Kajiyama took the position of attacking midfielder. "When I play as an attacking midfielder, I want to stay as close to the forwards as possible without dropping back. Hirayama can connect well with the ball at his feet, so I will look to make penetrating passes. When the ball is in the air, I want to pick up the second balls after challenges and apply pressure from the front in defense," Kajiyama expressed his determination. Additionally, against Nagoya's attack, the sides, including Toda and Ishikawa, must not lose the race, compete fiercely for the ball, and aim to outpace them with momentum without becoming passive.

　In the previous match, although we took the lead, we conceded four goals and allowed a comeback. Given that we also conceded three goals in the previous match against Kashima, Shigenobu's return is significant. Konno also mentioned, "With Shigenobu joining, my role becomes clearer. Nagoya is also good at counterattacks, so I want to let the backline delay them and return quickly myself." The match started at 2:04 PM with Nagoya's kickoff at Mizuho Athletic Stadium in Nagoya City, under clear skies but with strong winds.

Hayama scores his first J-League goal to take the lead, ending the first half with a one-point advantage

　Choosing the windward side in the pre-match coin toss, they launch an offensive from the start. In the 6th minute, Kajiyama passes to Hirayama, who receives the ball and moves to the left side. Fujiyama delivers a direct early cross, but the opposing goalkeeper catches it. In the 9th minute, Dohi's kick spills right in front of the opponent's goal, and a rushing Toda takes a volley shot, but it goes over. Up to this point, Nagoya's attack has been monotonous, simply sending long balls, but after the 15th minute, they begin to build an attack starting with FW Yonsen. In the 16th minute, from FW Yonsen's persistent hold-up play, FW Sugimoto takes a shot from the right area, but Mobu cuts it off. Connecting the loose ball, this time MF Fujita takes a shot, but Miura cuts it off. In the 17th minute, FW Sugimoto cuts in from the right, and although Fujiyama initially cuts it off, Fujita runs in free to the loose ball and takes a decisive shot, but it goes over the bar.

　Tokyo struggled to create attacking plays even after winning the ball, unable to find their rhythm, but in the 22nd minute, they took the lead with Hirayama's first goal in J-League. Miura held the ball in midfield and passed it to Ishikawa on the right side. He connected with Tokunaga, who made a run from the back, and delivered a low cross, allowing Kajiyama to shoot unmarked. Although the opposing goalkeeper made a save, Hirayama reacted to the rebound and calmly slotted it into the goal.

　Then the team begins to gain momentum. In the 24th minute, Kajiyama directly aims for a left free kick, winning a left corner kick. From that corner kick, Hirayama competes for the ball, which flows to the opposite side, and Tokunaga delivers a cross, leading to Kajiyama's direct volley that goes over the goal. In the 28th minute, Ishikawa passes to Miura, who shoots from long range. The ball hits Kajiyama, and Ishikawa follows up on the rebound, aiming for the goal directly, but it goes high. As time passes, Nagoya almost dominates the ball, and the match progresses in Tokyo's territory, but with Shigeno and Jean at the center, the defense maintains a compact formation as a unit, and with focused defending, they do not allow any dangerous situations to arise at all.

　Conversely, in the 42nd minute, Kajiyama chased the Nagoya ball in the opponent's territory, inducing a mistake that Todha seized. He boldly aimed for the goal from the left, but it just went over the bar. In the 44th minute, from Kajiyama's through pass, Ishikawa sprinted up the right side and crossed. Todha ran in at the perfect timing in the center, but his shot missed the target. The match ended the first half with a one-goal lead.

Ishikawa's go-ahead goal secures escape from losing streak

　After the start of the second half, Nagoya tried to regain momentum and launched an attack, but Tokyo's concentrated defense did not allow a goal. In the 46th minute, midfielder Nakamura took a shot from the middle during a counterattack, but Dohi caught it. In the 49th minute, DF Omori's right cross was met by forward Yonsen, but Jean closely marked him, and the header went straight to Dohi. Conversely, from this point, Tokyo launched a quick attack, with Fujiyama passing to Hirayama, who then sent a direct ball to the left side to Toda. He broke through behind the defense and took a shot, but it was deflected by the goalkeeper. However, while the flow of the game wasn't bad, they were caught off guard for a moment and allowed the equalizing goal.

　In the 57th minute, FW Yonsen easily cut into the right area and took a forceful shot, which was passed to FW Sugimoto who had moved into the center in front of the goal, resulting in a goal. Although they were back to square one, Tokyo switched their mindset and began to attack. In the 58th minute, Ishikawa on the right side delivered a cross that Konno kept and advanced into the right area. He carefully passed to the center but it was intercepted. In the 62nd minute, Jean received a ball behind the opposing DF, and Nagoya GK Narasaki rushed out, but Toda skillfully picked it up and, while losing his balance, shot towards the unguarded goal. It was a decisive chance, but it went over the bar.

　Nagoya's MF Honda's powerful left-footed shot and FW Sugimoto's sharp movements utilizing his speed repeatedly threatened the Tokyo goal, but Dohi's determined saves prevented any goals. The back-and-forth battle continued, but it was Tokyo that scored an additional goal. In the 79th minute, from a quick restart, Konno passed to Tokunaga, who dribbled up the right side and found Hirayama in the center. Surrounded by opposing defenders, he aggressively dribbled into the area but was cut off midway. However, the ball hit Konno's foot as he rushed to pick up the loose ball, and it flowed to the right where Ishikawa shot with his left foot, and the ball pierced the net.

　After that, Nagoya pushed forward with everyone and launched a counterattack. Tokyo, seeing fatigue in Toda and Taira SHIGE, brought in Abe and Akamine. They focused on defense from the front line to prevent the opponent's attack from gaining momentum. Even so, in the 85th minute, FW Sugimoto took a shot, and in the 89th minute, FW Jönsson also took a shot, but both went wide of the goal. In the end, the match finished this way, and they finally broke their losing streak. Moreover, the defense, which had conceded many goals until now, managed to limit the opponent to just one goal with the resilient defense centered around the returning Moino, which was the key to their victory and a result that will lead to future success.

　【Player Comments】《Taira SHIGE》"I had some concerns about my leg, but my voice didn't tire. It might have been an energy-saving performance, but as a team, we showed resilience. In the first half, there were moments when we were continuously shot at in the area, but everyone put their bodies on the line to block. I think we showed what it means to be from Tokyo. Personally, I am still in a state of playing cautiously; I can let fast players run and allow skilled players to hold the ball. I was thinking that as long as we can stop them at the end, that would be fine. We conceded one goal, but I believe we did our best. Winning in my comeback match and Taira's goal makes me happy. During my absence, I felt we lacked resilience... but we are originally a team with momentum. I think today's victory will be a good opportunity for our comeback." 《Ishikawa》"It was good to score a goal, but my performance was not good at all. I can move more and should be able to avoid losing races. However, looking back a year ago, I couldn't even imagine standing on the pitch due to injury. Considering that, I feel very happy. I want to switch gears and work hard to be a strength for the team." 《Hirayama》"I am very happy that the team won. The goal came because we created a numerical advantage in the area. Kajiyama's shot came out well. We were pressured by Nagoya at the start, but I think we improved as time went on. Although we were kept by Nagoya, there were times we allowed them to hold the ball, so I don't think we lost our pace. But the defense did a great job. However, we are still in the lower ranks, so this is crucial. I want to practice more and be able to catch the rhythm from the start. I was also happy with the supporters' cheers. I appreciate them coming all the way to support us even after losing at home last match."

　[Summary of Coach Kuramata's Press Conference] "In today's match, we focused on 'how to prevent Nagoya's FW Yonsen from receiving the ball' and practiced for a week on that. I'm glad the results turned out well. (Regarding Hirayama's play?) After winning the ball, we were conscious of delivering the ball to him, so I think we did that to some extent. However, I would like him to increase his movement a bit more, and it would have been better if he could have made more movements into space."

　【Nagoya - VERGOOSSEN's press conference summary】 "In today's match, the first 20 minutes were high tempo and a good game. The wind was strong, making it not an easy game, but we still created several chances. However, after the 20-minute mark, once we fell behind 0-1, the game completely ended for us. The following 70 minutes were a game of taking one step forward and one step back. There was no tempo in the game. I believe the wonderful organization of FC Tokyo was a factor, but we also made mistakes that complicated the game for ourselves. We repeated good plays followed by poor ones. There were several technical and tactical mistakes, and in such a state, we couldn't create a good tempo in the game. FC Tokyo played many long balls, and they picked up almost all the second balls. It seemed we lacked concentration and aggressiveness. In the second half, we didn't create a single chance. Pressuring from the front was difficult due to the strong wind. This was not a game where one person made a mistake; eight or nine players made mistakes. The players played below their usual level. Having worked in football for 28 years, I know well that good football for only 20 minutes won't lead to victory, and it was a disappointing match."