Bring victory away in a close match against the top team

　Sec. 17 will face Gamba Osaka and head to the away Expo '70 Commemorative Stadium. This will be the first time the two teams have played each other this season, and currently Gamba Osaka has 6 wins, 2 draws, and 8 losses. They are determined to take as many points as possible and improve their record. Despite facing the top team, head coach Genesio stated, "We will continue to play our style of football, which is to move and run more than our opponents, and challenge them with the football we have been playing recently."

　G Osaka is currently in first place with 35 points. This season, they have not lost since the 7th round on April 22nd and have a strong lead. In addition, they have been undefeated for 22 consecutive games at home since the 4th round of last season. However, in the previous round against Yokohama FM, they ended in a scoreless draw, their first time being unable to score in 40 games. In this round, key DF Yamaguchi will be suspended and instead, DF Nakazawa will make his first appearance in the league. With an unfamiliar partnership, there will surely be opportunities for the opponent to take advantage of.

　However, G Osaka will come to fill the hole of DF Yamaguchi with a more aggressive battle by gathering talent in the attacking line. Considering the data so far, if G Osaka always scores, Tokyo cannot win with just one goal. It is expected to be a tough battle away, but "G Osaka has many skilled players, so if we score first, we can play energy-saving soccer and escape. If possible, we want to score first and make the opponent come forward. And I want to bring it to a close game," said Manager Hara.

　Even if G Osaka is pushed in, it is necessary to fight without panic. It should be possible to shut out G Osaka FW Magnowaubes and Volley's 2 top without losing concentration, and then launch a fast counterattack. Without losing to G Osaka's momentum, we want to quickly switch from defense to offense and open up G Osaka's goal.

　Tokyo will face the same starting lineup for the fourth consecutive game. Ishikawa, who has not played since Sec. 13, is on the bench. The game started at 7:01 PM with Tokyo's kickoff at the Expo '70 Commemorative Stadium, where the sun is setting and a slight breeze is blowing.

Leading by 2 points from the intended formation, the defense also struggles, but...

　Tokyo countered G Osaka's cautious start as planned. They launched quick attacks after solid defense. In the 4th and 6th minutes, Inamoto intercepted through passes to G Osaka's front line. In the 10th minute, G Osaka FW Magno Alves cut into the deep right area and sent a minus pass to the goal. FW Bare's powerful volley shot was on target, but Tokyo DF blocked it. They concentrated on defense and it happened right after that.

　Kono steals the opponent's dribble and changes to the left. Kanazawa → Lucas passes a vertical pass to Norio Suzuki, who has moved up to the left front line. Norio Suzuki enters the area, attracts the DF, and sends a last pass to Fukunishi, who has come up from the right. Unmarked Fukunishi neatly scores the first goal from the intended development!

　15 minutes after the opening goal, a FK was awarded on the left side. From Kajiyama's kick, Inakano took a shot from the far side! It was blocked by the GK and the post, but Norio Suzuki was able to push it in while being pulled by a G Osaka DF, scoring a goal! From the set play, they were able to quickly secure a second goal.

　However, G Osaka, who conceded two goals, also calmly attacked. In the 18th minute, G Osaka's FW Vale dribbled and advanced into the right area. Tokyo couldn't keep up with the mark and allowed a free shot, but Doi made a save. In the 20th minute, Endo took a sharp FK, but Doi saved it and escaped the pinch. In the 22nd minute, Tokyo also got a FK from just outside the area after Lucas was fouled. Norio Suzuki took a shot with his left foot, but unfortunately it hit the top of the bar.

　At 29 minutes, G Osaka MF Endo dribbled into the right area, but was ultimately saved by Inonami's sliding tackle for a corner kick. As they were unable to pick up second balls in the midfield, they gradually fell behind, but their backline defended well. However, at 34 minutes, G Osaka MF Nikawa pushed forward and, seeing no pressure from Tokyo, took a precise shot into the bottom left corner. Despite having enough defenders, it was a regrettable goal to concede.

　At 35 minutes, Lucas immediately shoots after turning around from Kanazawa's left cross. There was momentum, but they couldn't score. After conceding a goal, Tokyo gradually began to make more mistakes and were countered in the midfield. At 36 minutes, G Osaka's FW Barei cuts in from the left area with a sharp counter and shoots, but Tsuchiho saves it! The end of the game was a fierce back and forth between offense and defense, but Tsuchiho made great saves and maintained a one-point lead going into the second half.

Consecutive goals from G Osaka after a mistake led to a crushing defeat.

　In the second half, we tried to regroup and aim for another goal, taking advantage of the lessons learned in the first half. In the 2nd minute, Kawaguchi showed persistence as he competed with G Osaka DF Yasuda and broke through to the line, crossing the ball. The ball flowed to the far side and was connected, but Kajiyama's shot from the middle went high. Just 4 minutes later, G Osaka passed to DF Kaji, who overlapped on the right side, and he took a bold shot. Doi deflected it with one hand, but FW Magnouaube was quick to close in on the left area and scored. We conceded an equalizer early in the second half and lost our momentum.

　G Osaka, who is gaining momentum, runs into the area with FW Varee and takes a powerful shot at the 50-minute mark. This is saved by Tsuchi who manages to stop any further goals. However, at the 53-minute mark, G Osaka loses the ball due to a mistake in the opponent's territory. FW Magnouaube rushes into the area from a quick pass. Tokyo DF tries to take the ball back with three players, but it is kept well by using the body and a pass is made to the left. MF Hashimoto is running freely here and easily scores, allowing for a reversal.

　Still, there was only a one-point difference and there was time left. In the 56th minute, Ishikawa was substituted for Kawaguchi. He tried to create chances from the side. However, in the 61st minute, Inonami injured his right knee and had to leave the pitch. In the 63rd minute, Kurisawa was brought in as a defensive midfielder, but he made consecutive mistakes and received a counterattack from G Osaka. In the 60th minute, Ishikawa, who had moved to the left side, persisted and ran for the loose ball, taking a shot. It was a well-controlled shot with momentum, but the goalkeeper caught it.

　In the 72nd minute, Lucas → Ishikawa picked up speed and crossed. He sent a good ball, but the jumping GK caught it. From here, Tokyo received a quick counterattack and couldn't get back in time, resulting in a 2-2 tie. G Osaka FW Hato advanced cautiously. As soon as he saw no press from Fujiyama, he took a powerful shot. The ball bounced off Tsuchi's hand and flew into the goal. It was scored by G Osaka FW Hato, who had just come on as a substitute in the 71st minute. Tokyo, who had lost concentration, stopped moving and completely lost their rhythm, unable to stop G Osaka's attacks.

　Substituted Kajiyama for Baba in the 73rd minute. However, they were unable to create any decisive opportunities and instead, in the 79th minute, they allowed FW Hato of G Osaka to slip behind the DF line from a right cross and score their fifth goal. In the 83rd minute, a right cross from G Osaka's FW Hato found an unmarked FW Magnouaube in front of the goal, resulting in their sixth goal... In stoppage time, Ishikawa tried to retaliate by cutting inside and taking a left-footed shot, but it was saved by the GK and resulted in a corner kick. They were overwhelmed and conceded points continuously in the last 10 minutes. It was a major defeat with 6 goals conceded, the first time since the match against Iwata in September 2002.

　【Player Comments】《Doi》"The problem was how we started the second half. We were caught off guard by a missed pass. In the end, we had to go for it, but all the goals were our own mistakes. Even though we were attacking, we were countered and lost the ball at crucial moments, like with the final pass. But I don't think we were completely broken down. We have another game coming up, so we need to switch our focus."《Fukunishi》"For the goal, I was anticipating Norio Suzuki to make a run when he received the ball. We were able to create a shape and score an additional goal from there. I think we had a good start to the game. Looking back, if we had been able to keep a clean sheet in the first half...there's a part of me that thinks that way. We knew G Osaka had strength, but if we had held on and scored a third goal, we could have stopped their momentum. In the second half, the distance between players became too far and G Osaka's third goal was crucial. The fourth, fifth, and sixth goals were all a matter of our mentality."

　[Summary of Manager's Press Conference] "In the first half, we used the sides well and were able to score in a good way. After that, the pace slowed down and we started to lose loose balls. The scene where MF Nikawa scored a goal, even though there were players around him, we were slow to close in. At halftime, I instructed the team to be more careful with the sides and to pick up the pace. However, we lost the ball in the midfield and the tension seemed to break after the second goal from DF Kaji's shot. We were immediately scored on for a third goal, which was painful. In addition, Inaba got injured and we were behind, so I tried to spread the ball to the sides by putting in Kurisawa. However, he also made a mistake and we conceded a goal from there. It's a shame in the end. I don't want to blame individual mistakes, but our focus dropped and mistakes were made. We can't beat teams like G Osaka if we can't continue to play like we did in the first half. Even small mistakes or lack of concentration can lead to a game like today's. In the midst of a tough schedule, we couldn't stop the team from falling apart after being in the lead. I feel truly sorry for the supporters who sang for us even after the game. Despite being tired, our focus dropped. We need to quickly regroup for the sake of the supporters who cheered us on until the end."

　[G Osaka Nishino's press conference summary] "Considering the goals we conceded in the 10th and 14th minutes, it was not DF Nakazawa's fault, but rather the overall balance at the start was poor. After that, we adjusted the distance between DF Nakazawa and DF Shijikurei, and were able to smoothly make adjustments within the overall balance and gradually settle down. With MF Futagawa's goal in the first half, I thought we could turn things around. The second half was an easier development. Tokyo's defensive system makes it easier for us to use our strong points as a two-top. That's why we had a goal rush. FC Tokyo lost their way and stopped pressing in the midfield. This situation was an easy development for us to showcase our strengths. I think the high awareness of making adjustments after conceding and aiming for goals led to this result. Recently, we have had many games where we come from behind, but we want to have a style where we can go from the beginning. It was the last game of a series of games, but we were able to maintain a high level of physical and mental condition. FW Vale's injury seems to take a long time to heal, but we have one more game this month. We want to prepare well and fight together as a team."