Launch fast attacks from a stable defense and aim for consecutive victories!

　In the 8th round of the league, we will face Vissel Kobe away. In the last 3 games, including the Nabisco Cup, we have had 2 wins and 1 draw, with a stable defense. Although the games have been tough with a one-point difference, the team's performance is improving. As Fukunishi said, "We want to connect good defense to good offense and win to gain momentum." In order to overcome the tough game schedule ahead, we want to win and gain momentum.

　Kobe, who returned to J1 this season, is currently in 12th place with 2 wins, 2 draws, and 3 losses. The most concerning player is undoubtedly FW Yusuke Kondo. In his second year after a deadline transfer from Tokyo, he was recently selected as a candidate for the Japan national team. His powerful physique allows him to break through the front line with a fierce play from long balls, showing his strength. However, Tokyo players all know his characteristics well. They want to focus and defend without giving him the chance to face forward and compete.

　Tokyo will face the game with Lucas and Wanchope as the top two, just like the previous match against Yokohama FC. In addition, three Olympic representatives have returned to the team and are adjusting through satellite leagues and practice matches. Inaba was excluded from the roster due to a right shoulder injury, but Hirayama and Kajiyama have recovered their condition and made it to the bench. Coach Hara said, "Even without the Olympic representatives, the team has a good balance, but their strength will be needed at crucial moments," and the player depth has certainly become thicker, including the return of Shige Taira.

　Asari said, "I want to maintain the balance of defense and try to take the ball away," and aims for a clean sheet for the third consecutive game in defense. In attack, Wanchope, who is gradually fitting in, and the in-form Lucas will be the starting point to aggressively create many chances. The match will start at 4:03pm at the sunny Home's Stadium Kobe.

Despite the intense back-and-forth between offense and defense, the first half ended in a 0-0 tie.

　From the start of the match, Kobe attacks with FW Yusuke Kondo and Leandro, but Tokyo calmly responds. In the 6th minute, Lucas connects with an early restart and Wanchope takes a shot, but it goes wide. In the 10th minute, Wanchope heads in a cross from the left side by Kurisawa, but it doesn't meet. On the contrary, in the 11th minute, Kobe's MF Park uses his speed to cut into Tokyo's left side. MF Botti meets a negative pass in the center, but also doesn't meet. In the 16th minute, Kobe's left cross puts pressure on the goal, causing a scramble as Tokyo's DF fails to clear. FW Yusuke Kondo takes a shot from the loose ball, but it is saved by Shioda and goes out for a corner kick.

　Tokyo, at first, was confused by the long grass on the pitch, but gradually got used to it and began to control the pace. In the 19th minute, Lucas → Ishikawa went up deep on the right side and crossed. The opponent's GK who caught it spilled it, but Lucas couldn't finish it. In the 25th minute, Imakawa jumped from the right CK of Ishikawa's head, but hit the DF and returned to the right CK. This time, Wanchope jumped in on the ball kicked by Ishikawa and made a sharp header, but it was saved by the opponent's GK. In the 27th minute, Kurizawa sent a long through pass from around the half line to the front line, and Wanchope jumped out at the perfect timing, but missed the chance due to a trap mistake.

　Lost the ball in front of Kobe's tough press and suffered a counter, but defended well on the final line and did not allow a goal. In the 34th minute, Lucas passed the ball to Kurisawa on the front line, but Ishikawa broke through but was offside. In the 39th minute, Imakawa intercepted a pass in his own zone and attempted a dribble breakthrough from a one-two with Lucas, but was fouled by the opponent's DF in the left front of the area and awarded a free kick. Kurisawa took the direct shot, but it went wide. In the 41st minute, Fukunishi entered the left area from Kurisawa's right cross. He cut back the DF and sent a floating pass to the front of the goal, but Ishikawa's direct volley unfortunately went wide to the left.

　At 44 minutes, Kobe left SB Uchiyama's long feed and was taken away by MF Park for a CK. A perfect header was taken from the right CK, but Shioda made a great save. On the contrary, they brought it to a counter and attacked, but Kanazawa shot and missed to the right. Both teams focused on defensive balance and attacking, but were unable to create any scoring opportunities. As a result, the first half ended with a score of 0-0.

Unable to capitalize on scoring opportunities in the second half, ending in a scoreless draw.

　Tokyo started to connect passes well and took control in the second half. In the 56th minute, Kurisawa put in an early cross from the left side. Although it was cleared once, Fukunishi connected with the ball and crossed from the left. In the 59th minute, Fukunishi stole the ball and received a return pass from Wanchope, running into the right area. Lucas and Wanchope both tried to score from the well-aimed cross, but it was cleared by the defense in front of the goal.

　63 minutes, Lucas -> Ishikawa's left cross is contested by Wanchope and the opposing DF in front of the goal, and Lucas, who ran in to the loose ball, takes a free shot. He cuts to the left but misses the goal. Immediately after, Norio Suzuki is substituted in for Ishikawa. In the 65th minute, Kurizawa's right cross is dropped by Wanchope, and Lucas, who is right next to him, takes a shot but also misses the target. In the 67th minute, the opposing DF heads away Tokunaga's right cross, Wanchope traps it with his chest and turns forward, but does not take a shot...

　Substituted Kajiyama for Fukunishi in the 71st minute. Kobe also put in MF Miura and attacked from a set play, but we concentrated and repelled it. In the 80th minute, Nori Suzuki broke out of the area with a skillful trap from Asari's side change and cut in for a shot. It was a good shot that just missed the bar. Baba was substituted for Wanchope, who showed signs of fatigue, and we attacked even more. In the 83rd minute, we took a left CK from the combination of Nori Suzuki and Baba. Lucas headed Baba's kick, but it was outside the frame.

　In the 86th minute, Kajiyama → Lucas → to the right to Kurizawa. Suzuki Nori tries to match the cross, but it is brought to the DF and floats. In the 88th minute, from Lucas' post, Kajiyama passes to Suzuki Nori who was free on the left side from the shooting motion, and he immediately shoots. It hits the opponent's DF and becomes a CK. From Baba's left CK, Imano jumps in with a header, but he cannot hit it because the DF is close to his body. In the end, the time is up. In the end, Tokyo dominated the ball and attacked, but they could not break the goal and ended in a scoreless draw.

　【Player Comments】《Fukunishi》"(It was my 300th J1 game, but?) I wish we could have won... It's not satisfying because we didn't get the result we wanted. Our performance wasn't good either. In the first half, we were too defensive and couldn't create chances. We weren't completely broken down, but we couldn't break through either, so we thought set pieces would be the key... In the second half, we were under pressure, but we still have room to improve. We want to create more depth and get involved in the attack."《Shioda》"We all wanted to win... I think everyone had the same feeling. We all tried our best to score until the end. Our passing wasn't connecting in the first half, but our defense was stable. We just need to score. We want to take the one point we got away from home in a positive way, review what needs to be fixed, and move on to the next game."

　[Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference] "I watched Kobe's last game and they are a team with overall momentum. Even though Okubo will be suspended for this game, they have other good players like Leandro. The team's defense has been stable recently, but the challenge is how to launch speedy attacks from defense. Wanchope's condition has been improving and he and Lucas can create opportunities in the center. However, the key is how to finish or how to deliver crosses from there. Today, we took too long to create chances and couldn't shoot, or even when we did, we missed the target. That's the challenge. Kobe has been chasing us well and the long grass made it difficult for the ball to roll, which seemed to make it a bit uncomfortable. However, I still think we should have taken the decisive chance first. As for defense, there were some dangerous situations, but Nakano, who was playing as a stopper, was almost perfect. Also, Asari, Fujiyama, Tokunaga, and Kanazawa in the defense line have been doing well. Now, we want to create good attacks from here and score goals."

　【Kobe, Manager Matsuda's Press Conference Summary】"As it was a home game, we really wanted to win, and in the first half we played a game that allowed us to do that, so it's very disappointing. As a positive, it was the first game where we didn't concede any goals. In the past, we were unable to score despite playing well in the first half, and the whole team couldn't hold on and ended up conceding at the end. Of course, the challenge remains to score and win in that kind of situation, but we were able to endure and continue playing. The remaining challenge is how to improve our finishing."