Shut down Nagoya's two top players and achieve three consecutive league victories!

　In Sec. 13 of the league, we will face Nagoya Grampus Eight at home. In the Nabisco Cup match against Yokohama FC three days ago, players like Akamine and Kurizawa, who have had few starts until now, performed well, leading to a comeback victory. We achieved three consecutive wins in official matches. This match, we aim to unite as one and strive for three consecutive wins in the league, something we have not accomplished in the past as 'Hara-Tokyo.'

　　Nagoya is currently in 6th place with 18 points. In the consecutive matches since the Golden Week, the team's condition has been declining with 1 win and 4 losses, but the matches lost were all by a narrow margin. Additionally, in the Nabisco Cup, many members were changed, and they have precisely focused on today's league match. Particularly to be wary of are the tall FW Jonsen and the speedy FW Sugimoto. Strictly marking these two forwards and thoroughly covering the DF line is a condition for victory.

　In addition, Nagoya's midfield features skilled players like MF Fujita and Honda, who can connect the ball and launch quick attacks. If they become too cautious of the opponent's two forwards and drop their line, it creates space in the midfield for Nagoya to establish their rhythm. Therefore, it is also important to apply aggressive pressure from the front to prevent them from playing freely.

　Tokyo's starting lineup is based on the members from the league Sec. 12 match against Yokohama F.Marinos, utilizing Kajiwara as a right midfielder, similar to the formation shown in the latter stages of the Nabisco match against Yokohama FC. Coach Hara stated, "I want to create more opportunities to receive the ball and distribute it, along with Fukunishi." Akamine started on the bench considering the consecutive matches. Regardless of who plays, the team aims to continue their dynamic style of football and target a third consecutive league victory. Unlike yesterday's rain, the sun shone brightly from the morning, bringing a sense of summer heat to Ajinomoto. The match kicked off at 15:04 with Tokyo's kickoff.

Unable to create dynamism, allowing the opponent to take the lead by exploiting the gaps in marking.

　In the first minute, Kajiyama aims for the goal from mid-range. The game started with a shot from Tokyo, but Nagoya quickly countered. In the 4th minute, after a right throw-in, the ball was spread wide, and a decisive pass was made from MF Kinda to MF Honda, and then to FW Yonsen as they entered the area. This was cleared by Tokyo's defense. Finally, a cross was sent to MF Kinda on the left side of the area, but it drifted to the far side, escaping the danger. In the 6th minute, Fukunishi handled a cross to Nagoya's front line, giving a free kick from a left-leaning position outside the area. A grounded shot fired by DF Yonemura, using MF Honda as a decoy, was saved well by Doi. In the 9th minute, Tokyo picked up a clearance from Nagoya and launched a counterattack. Inoha connected with Tokunaga, and Lucas took a mid-range shot. It was a well-aimed shot, but it hit the bar, and they could not take the lead.

　Perhaps due to the heat, Tokyo's movement slows down as time passes. There is little movement and support at the front line, and while trying to connect in the midfield, they lose the ball. At the same time, Nagoya also makes mistakes, leading to a back-and-forth situation. In the 16th minute, Kajiyama on the right passes to Lucas in the center. He sends a direct ball to Wanchope in front of the goal, but the trap is too heavy, and he couldn't take the shot. In the 29th minute, they lose the ball in their own half, and a long through pass is sent to the front line. Here, Nagoya forward Jönsson runs in, but Fujiyama clears just before the shot.

　As the defense and offense switched due to mutual mistakes, in the 31st minute, Kajiyama passed to Lucas, who boldly attempted to break into the area from the right. However, he was dispossessed by the Nagoya defense, leading to a counterattack. Nagoya switched sides from the left of their own half to the center and then to the right. FW Sugimoto on the right flank dribbled into the large space in the middle and connected with MF Honda, who had moved up from behind. Tokyo failed to apply pressure on either FW Sugimoto or MF Honda, and although Konno was late to mark MF Honda, he was played through to FW Jönsson, who was completely free in the area. Jönsson scored with his left foot, resulting in a goal conceded. Tokyo allowed Nagoya to take the lead by exploiting the gap in marking.

　Nagoya took the lead and dominated, and in the 36th minute, a left cross from FW Sugimoto was met with a diving header from FW Jönsson. In the 40th minute, in front of the Tokyo goal, MF Honda connected directly with FW Jönsson and MF Kan, and after receiving a return pass, MF Honda forcefully broke through the Tokyo defense to shoot, but Doih was able to save it. Although they did not allow an additional goal, Tokyo was unable to create any chances afterward. In the 42nd minute, Lucas ran onto a pass from Wanchope towards the front line and fell outside the area, but the whistle did not blow. In the end, they could only manage three shots in the first half and went into the second half trailing by one goal.

Despite continuing to attack in an effort to make corrections, we were unable to defend and lost without scoring.

　In the second half, Ishikawa was brought in as a right midfielder to replace Wanchope. Lucas moved to the top, and Kajiyama took the central position to launch a counterattack. They corrected the issues from the first half and took control with aggressive movements. In the 51st minute, Rychely boldly attacked from the left area and delivered a final pass in front of the goal. Lucas's shot after turning was saved by the goalkeeper. They earned a corner kick but couldn't convert it into a finish. In the 53rd minute, Tokunaga's feed was dropped by Kajiyama, who had surged forward, and Lucas shot from behind. In the 57th minute, Konno contested Suzuki Norio's left corner kick, and Ishikawa took a shot.

　While grasping the rhythm, they lacked precision at the final moment and were unable to score. In the 63rd minute, Akamine was brought in to replace Fukunishi, strengthening the front line with two forwards in pursuit of a goal. In the 68th minute, Kajiyama took a direct shot after a clearance of Ishikawa's right cross, but it went well wide. Meanwhile, Nagoya also changed their formation to a three-back. In the 73rd minute, Katayama was brought in to replace forward Sugimoto, and in the 75th minute, Takeuchi was brought in to replace right midfielder Kan, solidifying their defense in response. In the 79th minute, Ishikawa's cross was headed back by Akamine, and Lucas made a header shot. They created a decisive opportunity, but could not find the goal.

　In the final stages, against Nagoya, who pulled back with a five-man defense, Konno also moved up front, and both sides, Tokunaga and Noriyuki SUZUKI, delivered crosses from the left and right. However, they were repelled by the concentrated opposing DF, and even when they picked up the loose balls, they couldn't take shots on target, making it difficult to score. In the 89th minute, from a free kick on the left side, Akamine skillfully broke into the area to shoot, but with no angle, the GK made a save. In stoppage time, Konno shot from inside the area, but the Nagoya DF blocked it. Following that, connecting a feed from Doi, Akamine broke into the area, but again the DF cleared it. Despite attacking with intense play, they couldn't break through Nagoya's solid defense. They lost without scoring and couldn't achieve three consecutive wins in the league.

　【Player Comments】《Dohi》"In the first half, we couldn't play the kind of football that attacks from the front. The coach also instructed us to 'go more forward,' but we couldn't push up until Akamine came in. I think we ended up matching the slow rhythm of the opponent. (In a match commemorating my 300th game) I wanted a win, but there will be another match. It's more important for the team to win. If we can accumulate points even with a draw in a match like today, I think the team's condition will improve." 《Akamine》"In order to participate, if you don't move, you can't create chances or score goals, so I entered thinking about aiming for goals in coordination with everyone. The coach instructed us to defend from the front and to move into space. Also, Nagoya's defensive midfielders are aggressive, so space opens up between them and the defensive line. If we can receive the ball there, I thought the space behind the defense would also open up. We created several chances, but if they don't lead to goals, it doesn't mean anything. If we are more conscious of finishing with shots, we might get corner kicks or even own goals. I want to keep that in mind."

　[Summary of Coach Hara's Press Conference] "With only two days in between, both teams felt that their movements were 'heavy' in the first half. We were at home and I told the players to be aggressive, but the heat had an impact. Also, while Wanchope has improved his defensive work, I wanted him to make more runs behind the line. However, he tends to be a slow starter, which caused him to be late in his movements. As a result, we couldn't get the ball to the top, and we were only making back passes and sideways passes, which made it difficult for us in the early stages. I told Wanchope to 'move a bit more to receive the ball,' but he remained unclear, and it continued to be difficult for the midfielders to connect with the forwards. Furthermore, after conceding a goal in the first half, our defense became a bit lax. At halftime, I brought in Ishikawa and instructed the team to attack from the sides. Lucas also changed the rhythm with clearer movements, but we couldn't score at that time and were unable to hold on. In such hot conditions, both teams faced tough situations, but if we can't score, we can't win. There were scenes that could have been penalties, but without scoring, we can't win. I think the balance in defense has improved, so breaking through and scoring will be our challenge moving forward."

　【Summary of the press conference by Nagoya's coach VERGOOSSEN】 "We were able to end the first half in a very good shape. The organization in defense was good, and we were able to effectively utilize free players in attack. We made good use of MF Honda and both full-backs, Omori and Abe. However, I think there were also problems. There were many judgment errors, such as when we needed to cross the ball or shoot more quickly, and we lacked precision in the final pass. Another issue in the first half was the choice of shoes. I think many players were slipping. However, the game is not 45 minutes but 90 minutes, so we should have taken more shots and scored more goals to pull ahead in the first half. In the second half, FC Tokyo changed to a two-top formation, so we were afraid of being outnumbered 2 to 2 at the back line and switched to a 3-5-2. However, I think we weren't using the space well. We created chances from counterattacks two or three times but couldn't score. As a result, we allowed the opponent to attack and create chances, making it a very intense game. Since it was a 1-0 situation, FC Tokyo took risks to attack. Instead, space opened up behind us, and we could have used that better. Towards the end, FC Tokyo also came with a power play, so we had to respond to that. I think the result of the victory had some luck involved. However, FC Tokyo has been in very good form recently, so I am happy to have taken points here. I want to praise the players."