Maintain the momentum and aim for a 4-game winning streak!

　In Sec. 31 of the J1 League, we will face Júbilo Iwata away. In the previous match, we achieved a remarkable comeback victory, overturning a three-goal deficit, and the team is riding high on momentum. While the number of goals conceded is concerning, Coach Kuramata stated, "The issues are clear, so there is no need for worry," as we aim to correct our defensive shortcomings while maintaining our current momentum, striving for our first four consecutive wins since 2002 (Sec. 8-11 of the 2nd stage).

　Yokohama is currently in 5th place with 49 points. They welcomed new head coach ADILSON during the season, and the style of play has changed from the first half of the season. They connect the ball well, frequently changing positions among forwards Maeda, Ota, and midfielder Fukunishi, as well as Funaya, with Maeda at the center. Their intense movements break down the defense, so it is important to clearly communicate marking responsibilities and respond accordingly. The tactical battle against Yokohama's attacking line can be considered one of the highlights.

　In Tokyo, Kawaguchi starts in place of Ishikawa, who injured his right foot in right midfield. Since this is the first away game after the transfer at Yamaha, he must be particularly motivated against his former team, Jubilo Iwata. Additionally, Jean and Kurizawa have returned to the bench. Jean mentioned, "Regardless of the content, it is important to keep winning now. I want to do my best to contribute to the victory even if I come on as a substitute," while Kurizawa, known as the "Jubilo Killer" for his strong performance against Iwata, is expected to shine when it matters most. We are prepared to be somewhat defensive away, but we want to launch quick counters. The key will be how well we can break through the tight marking in Iwata's midfield and how much we can push forward from the second line to the front line.

　It is true that there has never been a victory at Yamaha Stadium, but Kajiyama confidently states, "Since I joined the team, we have not lost to Iwata. I have no sense of inferiority." Iwata is currently positioned higher, but Tokyo has the momentum right now. They will fight without fear and aim for victory! The match started under cloudy skies at 2:04pm with Tokyo's kickoff.

Although they found their rhythm in the final stages, they ended the first half at 0-2.

　In the first minute, Lucas attempts to break through with a dribble in the area. In the second minute, Kajiyama sends a last pass to Kawaguchi in front of the left area, but the trap goes awry. Tokyo's start wasn't bad, but after that, the defense line dropped against Iwata's passing work, and they couldn't win the ball in the front line. As expected, they were slow to mark the FW Ota, Maeda, and MF Fukunishi, who freely changed positions, and were attacked from that point. Then, in the seventh minute, a cross from FW Ota on the left side was headed in by FW Maeda in front of the goal, allowing the first goal to be conceded.

　From here, Tokyo will counterattack. In the 10th minute, Tokunaga, who overlapped, passed to Kawaguchi on the right side. He took a shot from a tight angle, but it went just over the goal. In the 11th minute, from a quick restart, Lucas broke through and entered the left area, taking a shot aimed precisely, but it was met with a great save from the goalkeeper. In the 13th minute, after cutting a pass, Toda passed to Lucas who shot, but it went outside the frame. In the 15th minute, Kajiyama held the ball on the right side, and a through pass was sent to Kawaguchi who was running in from behind, charging towards the goal, but the opposing defender cut it off and he couldn't shoot. They started to attack from the right side, but conversely, in the 16th minute, Iwata's MF Fukunishi took a shot from the central area, hitting the left post, and the rebound was again pounced on by FW Maeda, widening the gap to two goals.

　Tokyo wanted to regain the flow of the match, but things did not go as planned. With Iwata extending their lead, they began to pass the ball around with ease, and as Tokyo pushed forward, Iwata counter-attacked and advanced towards the goal. Tokyo also tried to seize the ball from the opponent's mistakes and launch an attack, but a vicious cycle continued as they lost the ball in a half-hearted manner. However, after the 35th minute, perhaps due to fatigue on the opponent's part, their defense from the front line began to stabilize, allowing Tokyo to control the ball and create decisive opportunities.

　In the 37th minute, Lucas broke free after exchanging passes with Toda on the left side, but his precise shot went wide to the right of the goal. In the 38th minute, Baba's right corner kick was headed down by Masushima, and Lucas shot at the rebound. It seemed like a goal, but Yamata MF Fukunishi cleared it with a heel just in front of the goal line, blocking a great scoring opportunity... In the 41st minute, Konno passed to Kawaguchi, who then passed to Tokunaga for a cross into the area. Toda, who made a run, shot from just left of the goal, but the GK made a save. In stoppage time, on the left side, Kawaguchi passed to Kajiyama, who then passed to Lucas for a direct last pass. Toda broke free and shot, which was a decisive chance, but once again the GK blocked it, preventing a goal. In the end, the first half concluded with a score of 0-2.

The second half's counterattack only resulted in Lucas's goal. No fourth consecutive league victory.

　With the momentum shown in the latter part of the first half, they attempted a counterattack but easily allowed an additional goal. In the 49th minute, Iwata's MF Fukunishi entered the right area from a counterattack. Although two defenders went to take the ball, it was passed back to the center and scored by the free FW Ota. In the 52nd minute, Tokyo substituted Suzuki for Masushima and moved Fujiyama to CB. Four minutes later, they brought in Hirayama for Kawaguchi to strengthen their attack. In the 61st minute, Suzuki on the left side entered the area and passed to Hirayama. He connected to Toda on the right for a shot, but it was blocked by the opposing defense. In the 62nd minute, Toda received a cross from Inoha, took a touch, and shot, but this time it went outside the frame.

　In the 64th minute, Lucas was substituted for Baba and attempted a looping shot, but the goalkeeper caught it. In the 68th minute, Suzuki aggressively dribbled in from the left side into the middle and took a shot from his favorite distance. However, it was deflected for a corner by a great save from goalkeeper Kawaguchi. In the 69th minute, Konno's cross was headed down by Hirayama to Lucas in front of the goal. While being marked by a defender, he turned and took a shot, but it went wide to the right of the goal. Tokyo tried to score by committing more players forward, but in the 70th minute, they allowed a counterattack from Iwata's midfielder Kikuchi, who broke through and faced Dohi one-on-one. Kikuchi calmly evaded Dohi and rolled the ball into the empty net, conceding the fourth goal.

　Without getting discouraged, Tokyo attacks to score a goal. After conceding a goal, Miyazawa is brought in to replace Baba. In the 74th minute, Tokunaga passes to Hirayama, who drops the ball, and Miyazawa takes a mid-range shot from the center. It goes over the bar. In the 78th minute, Suzuki on the left side passes to Lucas, who drops it to Kajiyama, and although he dodges the defender to shoot, it goes wide. In the 85th minute, Hirayama heads down a cross from the left, and Toda takes a sliding shot. However, this also goes to the right of the goal...

　In the 87th minute, Miyazawa's cross from the left side was connected by Hirayama with his head, and although Toda was crushed while reacting to the ball, Lucas kicked in the rebound for a goal! Finally, they scored one point. They launched an attack to secure an additional goal, but the time ran out. In the end, although the number of shots was almost the same at 20 to 21, the inability to convert chances when it mattered affected them, and they couldn't maintain their rhythm until the end, resulting in a score difference of three goals.

　[Player Comments] Doi: "Today, the opponent moved better. In the first half, we let the opponent get too much freedom. We rushed to close down free opponents, which left other players free one after another. We struggled to regain possession, and even when we did, a passing error led to counterattacks. We had chances to score but couldn't convert them. If we had scored, the momentum might have shifted. In the end, we tried to defend with equal numbers against their attacks, but there were moments when two of us went after the same opponent. Our determination to block physically ended up backfiring." Toda: "I feel disappointed and sorry for missing chances. Today, I focused on not pressing outside but cutting inside aggressively. Our aim was to disrupt the opponent's defensive line, and in that sense, we created good opportunities. If only I had played a bit more calmly in the decisive moments. The time until the next match is short, but we can't dwell on this. We will properly switch our focus to the league matches and the Emperor's Cup."

　[Summary of Coach Kuramata's Press Conference] "Today's match was a complete defeat. We started the game poorly and lost the initiative to Iwata during the transitions. We lacked resilience in front of the goal and ended the first half down 2-0. In the second half, I told the players to defend a bit higher up the field and that if we could score, we could turn the game around, but instead, we conceded again, and when the third goal went in, we lost our ability to play our style of football. In the end, we brought on Hirayama for a power play and tried to connect crosses, but due to another defensive mistake, we conceded again. We managed to score one goal back, but despite creating so many chances, only scoring once is the reason we lost. (You were freely creating chances up front?) For both the first and second goals, we should have marked Maeda and Fukunishi one-on-one in front of the goal, but we failed to do so and allowed chances. (What instructions did you give to adjust against their counterattacks?) I instructed to suppress them by creating numerical superiority, but the defensive coordination did not work well, and we couldn't stop their counterattacks."

　【Summary of Coach ADILSON's Press Conference】 "The result is good, and I am very happy. Winning is very important. The match was decided in the first half, but we were a bit pressured towards the end of the first half, so we corrected the issues at halftime. Today's match had many counterattacks, and our side was able to create many chances for counterattacks, which was good as we were able to score from those. However, what was most important was that we achieved our goal (to win). (What were the instructions at halftime?) When we were pressured towards the end of the first half, they were targeting behind the midfield, so instead of just telling Ota to defend more, we increased our numbers to fill the space and used Hattori as a player who could support Fabrício. Maeda was perfect in terms of tactics and his concentration was excellent. He is a player who can play while thinking about the team and can capitalize on opportunities when they arise, which I believe everyone could see in today's match."