Can't lose anymore! Regain Tokyo's momentum

　The 3rd round of the Nabisco Cup will be played away against Oita Trinita. In this qualifying league, we have yet to win with 1 draw and 1 loss, so this is a crucial match where we cannot afford to lose in order to advance to the final round. We faced Oita at home last week and were defeated. They are also our opponent in the league match on the 15th, so even though we are playing away today, it is necessary to secure the points with a solid win.

　Oita, on the other hand, has won 2 games so far and is currently in first place in Group C. If they win this match, they will have a significant advantage in advancing to the final round. It is expected that they will come out attacking as they are playing at home. In the previous league match against Urawa, they were able to equalize and draw in the final minutes, showing that the team's morale is on the rise. In addition, for this match, Oita has made 5 changes to their starting lineup, bringing in a fresh set of players. As for Tokyo, regardless of the opponent's lineup, they will want to quickly switch between offense and defense, maintain a compact formation in the midfield, and calmly pass the ball to create scoring opportunities.

　Tokyo avoided Fukunishi's inclusion in the squad due to his foot condition. On the other hand, Kanazawa returned to the starting lineup after adjusting their condition. Manager Hara analyzed, "There is a subtle gap in both offense and defense. The movement is also lacking and in attack, we are just in front of the opponent's defense without making many runs." Therefore, we expect an aggressive movement in both offense and defense, with Norio Suzuki and Kawaguchi playing as side midfielders. At the same time, we will press from the front and use Lucas as the lone striker in a familiar 4-5-1 system to regain momentum. Depending on the game situation, we will bring in Wanchope, Baba, and Ishikawa to add some impact.

　Kyushu Oil Dome with a chilly temperature of 9.9℃. The match kicked off in Oita at 7:04pm.

Lucas scores the first goal! The first half ends with a 1-point lead.

　Oita started attacking vigorously from the beginning of the game. In the 2nd minute, FW Matsubashi Shou ran up the left side from a counter and crossed. FW Yamazaki tried to shoot in the center, but the ball went outside the frame. However, in the 5th minute, Tokyo also had a chance when Suzuki Nori entered the center from Lucas' post and got into a shooting position. He was blocked by the opponent's DF, but the ball fell to Lucas who took a shot, but the GK caught it. In the 14th minute, Lucas received a pass from Imakawa on the right and took a shot in the area, but it lacked power and the GK caught it. Although Oita had the rhythm in the beginning, gradually their passes started connecting and they were able to turn the tide.

　21 minutes, Oita MF Maranyon sends a long pass from their own half to the front line. FW Matsubashi Akira breaks through and faces off against Shioda in a 1-on-1. He manages to get past Shioda and shoot towards the goal, but it hits the right post and bounces back, avoiding a decisive pinch. Then in the 22nd minute, Inano -> Lucas -> Kawaguchi connects and Kajiyama shoots from the center, but it's also saved by the GK. In the 27th minute, Fujiyama cuts the ball and Suzuki Nori crosses from the left. Kurisawa runs in to shoot after Oita DF clears, but the GK saves it. In the 36th minute, Kanazawa's feed to the front line goes to Kawaguchi on the left, creating a 2-on-2 situation with Lucas. Lucas receives the final pass in the center and prepares to shoot, but is closed down by the opposing DF and unable to finish.

　Against Oita who are pulling back, the ball is connected and turned into an attack, but there is still not enough ingenuity and they cannot create a decisive chance. However, in the 40th minute, they finally take the lead. Norio Suzuki keeps the ball on the left side. The ball is passed to Kanazawa who has run up, and when he crosses from the sideline, Lucas heads it into the goal despite being in a difficult position. In the 44th minute, Kanazawa shoots from the wedge created by Kajiyama and Kawaguchi, but they cannot add another goal and end the first half.

The defense held off Oita's fierce attack in the final stage, earning 3 points.

　In the second half, Oita will bring in FW Takamatsu and MF Nishiyama to score. However, Tokyo also compacted their formation and focused on defense to steal the opponent's ball and launch a counterattack. In the 50th minute, from the right side, Inonami's sharp early cross, Lucas with a diving header! But it was blocked by the goalkeeper's great save. In the 53rd minute, from a left free kick opportunity, Norio Suzuki directly aimed but it went outside the frame. In the 60th minute, Kajiyama made a quick feed from around the halfway line to the front line, Noriyuki Suzuki broke through from the left and made a direct shot but it curved to the left of the goal.

　Oita also targets FW Takamatsu and attacks from precise passing to the goal, but does not allow shots. In the 71st minute, Wanchope was substituted for Kawaguchi. Then in the 76th minute, Kajiyama started a counterattack, Nori Suzuki → Kajiyama to Wanchope on the right. Wanchope made a direct pass to the front of the goal, and Kurisawa made a shot. Unfortunately, it was blocked by the goalkeeper, but it created a decisive scene. In the 77th minute, BABA was substituted for Kurisawa, who had a cramp in his leg.

　With 10 minutes remaining, Oita gradually gained the upper hand in terms of physicality, while Tokyo committed multiple fouls and gave away free kicks. However, they were able to prevent any goals with Shioda leading the defense. Oita also substituted DF Uemoto for FW Matsuhashi, increasing their attacking presence and bombarding the Tokyo goal with balls. Despite their efforts, they were ultimately helped by a mistake and the game ended. This victory, their first since the Omiya match, keeps their hopes alive for advancing to the final round.

　【Player Comments】《Kawaguchi》"(Was it your first start of the season?) I only thought about doing what I could and playing with all my strength within the given time. Today, Luccon scored the first goal at a good time. After that, it would have been good if we could have scored a second goal when the opponent came forward... In the end, we were under pressure, but it was good that we were able to hold them off and not concede any goals. Our task is to score a second goal and for everyone to read the flow of the game in dangerous situations and change the flow. There must be some reason why we haven't been able to win so far. Personally, I think that we haven't been able to show the strength that we have as a team in the game. I always tell my teammates, "We are the ones who have to do it!" and we talked about it when we formed a circle before the kickoff today. We won today, but I don't think any player is satisfied with this performance. We need to continue to grow during the game."《Kanazawa》"In the first half, we were able to play at a good pace and rhythm and play the kind of soccer we wanted to. In the second half, we were on the back foot and it was tough to be pushed back from an early stage. This is something we need to reflect on. (Was the cross that led to the first goal good?) The ball came into the front line and the timing was good, so I overlapped. Then, Norio gave me a rare pass (laughs) and I thought I would go for it right away. Fortunately, a good cross came in. We still have a chance to advance in the Nabisco Cup, and we want to use this victory to continue in the league. We need to reflect on not being able to win so far and have a strong mentality. And above all, we want to win at home. We have a lot of support, but we haven't been able to win, so we will win next time."

　[Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference] "In the previous home match against Oita in the Nabisco Cup, we lost without any momentum and that loss carried over to our league matches. Today was an away match, but we approached the game with the mindset of not being afraid to show our strengths. Due to fatigue in Ishikawa, we used Kawaguchi and also because Kanazawa's legs were feeling better, we were able to use Norio Suzuki up front. We tried to regain our momentum by utilizing the movements of our two wingers. As expected, Kawaguchi's selfless runs into space created a good flow. Also, Fukunishi's legs were not feeling well, but in the Kashiwa match, when we brought in Kajiyama in the second half, we felt that our original rhythm came back, so we continued with the double pivot of Konno and Kajiyama. Today, the ball moved well thanks to their movements. We have tried various combinations of new players, and there may have been some confusion among the players. So, our aim today was to start with the familiar approach we used two years ago and then combine it with the new players. In the first half, Oita did not have FW Takamatsu, but on the contrary, their runs up front were scary. In the second half, there were many instances where Takamatsu kept the ball. There were some dangerous moments, but players like Fujiyama and the back four, as well as Kajiyama, held their ground. For us, getting 3 points in the Nabisco Cup was a huge gain."

　[Summary of Oita Chamusca's press conference] "Today may have been our worst game of the year, where we couldn't show our true strength. With consecutive games, we may have used different players to give our players time to recover, which may have affected the overall team's performance. When we play well, we are able to make high-quality passes and control the game. However, today we were easily dispossessed and couldn't keep possession to create attacks. If there is one thing to be satisfied with, it is that the players never gave up and fought with passion for the full 90 minutes. We need to switch our focus to the next game against Shimizu and our players need to recover from fatigue."