Fight with passion, aim for consecutive wins, and strive for victory at home

　Sec. 24 will be a home game held at Japan National Stadium, facing Vissel Kobe. In the previous match, we achieved a great victory against Hiroshima. We pressed from a high position and played a football style that did not lose in both offense and defense, resulting in a win. This match comes just two days later, but we want to maintain that momentum and aim for consecutive victories with a Tokyo-style football. Above all, this match is crucial as we have not been able to secure many home victories this season. The players are all saying, "If we lose here, the meaning of the previous victory will be lost," and they are fully motivated.

　Kobe is currently in 11th place with 29 points. In the last five matches since August, they have won against Iwata and Omiya, but have lost their last three matches. However, even during this losing streak, they are creating chances centered around MF Yoshito OKUBO by launching counterattacks from a solid defense to gain rhythm. They have lost due to not converting decisive opportunities, so they will likely challenge aggressively this match despite being away. The player to be most wary of is MF Yoshito OKUBO. Coach Hara has noted, "His speed in an instant and sharp movements are something to pay attention to."

　In response, Tokyo aims to defend effectively against Kobe's dynamic two-top formation, consisting of the active FW Yusuke KONDO and the speedy FW Leandro, while skillfully passing off marks and covering the space utilized by MF Yu OKUBO. At the same time, they want to apply pressure in the midfield and regain possession before passes reach the front line. If the press functions as it did in the previous match, they should be able to dominate the midfield. From there, they want to quickly create chances by initiating plays through players like KAJIYAMA and FUKUNISHI. By not losing in one-on-one situations, the entire team can support each other on both offense and defense to seize the opportunity for victory.

　The starting lineup remains the same as the previous match to maintain the flow. Lucas, who has completed his suspension, is on the bench. The match started at 18:34 with a kickoff from Kobe at the Japan National Stadium, where the temperature has dropped and a sense of coolness can be felt.

Although they allowed the first goal, Konno scored a determined equalizer!

　Kobe connects the kickoff ball, and left MF Yu OKUBO advances powerfully with a dribble to the left side of the area and delivers a cross. The Tokyo DF's clearance flows to the far side, where Kobe MF Park, who was free in the right area, takes a header shot. Just after the start, Kobe created a chance by exploiting a gap in the marking, but it went over the goal. Tokyo, having escaped the danger, immediately tried to regain their rhythm and launched a counterattack with an early pressing effort.

　In the 6th minute, Konno, Kurizawa, and Fukunishi surrounded the Kobe ball in the opponent's territory and quickly countered. Fukunishi advanced with a dribble and made a through pass to Kurizawa, who was running into the center of the area from the left. Kurizawa shot, cutting between the opposing defenders. It created a decisive opportunity, but was thwarted by the GK's save. Konno also rushed in on the loose ball in the area, aiming for the goal, but with no angle, it was caught by the GK again. Still, they seized the pace, and Kajiyama and Konno boldly attacked after winning the second ball. At the same time, Kurizawa utilized his abundant stamina to maintain balance and pushed Kobe back.

　On the other hand, Kobe countered with sharp attacks. In the 17th and 18th minutes, they launched quick attacks in succession, but due to the opponent's missed shots, they managed to hold their ground. Today's Tokyo had a high awareness of switching sides, and in the 19th minute, they regained possession on the right side of their own half, with Ishikawa passing to Kajiyama, who connected with Akamine and spread the play to the left. They quickly circulated the ball, and finally, Kajiyama, who had run into the box, attempted a header from Kanazawa's early cross. It missed the target and went to the right, but they displayed a dynamic attack. In the 23rd minute, Konno on the left side of their own half switched the play to the right. Ishikawa passed to Tokunaga, who made a line-drive cross. Akamine competed with the opposing defender, and Ishikawa was also closing in, but it was caught by the GK.

　In the 25th minute, Kajiyama was fouled by Kobe MF Yu OKUBO on the right side, earning a free kick. Kajiyama's kick went to Kurizawa at the far post. Kurizawa cut back past the opposing DF near the goal line and delivered a final pass. He sent a fast ball between the Kobe DF and GK, creating a decisive opportunity, but it was defended successfully. Then, just after that, in the 27th minute, Kobe MF Botti received a throw-in near the left front corner and was fouled, resulting in a free kick. From the free kick taken by MF Botti himself, DF Kawamoto scored with a high header in front of the goal. This resulted in conceding the opening goal.

　However, Tokyo remained calm, switched their mindset, and launched a counterattack. In the 30th minute, Tokunaga's right cross led to a volley shot by Kajiyama. In the 36th minute, Kurizawa's left cross was met with a direct volley from Ishikawa. In the 38th minute, Konno took a long-range shot. In the 39th minute, Akamine dropped Tokunaga's right cross, and Kurizawa picked up the opponent's clearance in the left area, delivering a final pass in front of the goal. Although Fukunishi collided with the opposing defender and pushed it in, it was ruled offside. Despite the aggressive play, they couldn't score, but in the 44th minute, after winning a free kick and a corner kick in quick succession, Konno headed in Kajiyama's right corner kick for a goal! Just before the end of the first half, Konno's passionate equalizer brought the score to 1-1 as they headed into the second half.

Lucas scored 2 goals from Akamine's assist, leading to a comeback victory!

　In the second half, aiming for a lead, we boldly and tenaciously attacked from the start. In the first minute, we advanced in front of the Kobe goal, and Ishikawa picked up a loose ball to deliver a right cross. It was cleared by the Kobe defense, but Kurizawa picked up the loose ball again and took a shot from outside the left area. In the 48th minute, from a quick restart by Konno, Kajiyama made a timed run forward and attempted a looping shot. However, both went wide of the target. In the 50th minute, Lucas was brought on to replace the injured Fukunishi. In the 54th minute, from a side change by Mobiwa, Tokunaga passed to Ishikawa, who connected with Kajiyama through quick passing to win a corner kick. From this right corner kick, Lucas, free in the box, attempted a diving header but it went to the left.

　They continued to control the ball and advanced the match mostly within Kobe's territory, but they were unable to break through decisively. Kobe took the opportunity to counterattack. In the 60th minute, from a corner kick by Tokyo, Kobe launched a counterattack. MF Yu OKUBO aimed for a shot with speed, but Shigeno blocked it. In the 65th minute, they lost the ball in their own half, allowing Kobe to launch a quick attack. FW Leandro's shot, which came from the left into the center, curved to the right. In the 66th minute, FW Kurihara jumped in for a cross from right MF Park, but it went over the bar.

　Although helped by mistakes, we did not allow Kobe to find their rhythm. In the 68th minute, Ishikawa advanced on the right side and received a pass from Akamine, who immediately sent a through ball in front of the goal. Lucas, who received the pass, broke into the area and shot. It grazed the goalkeeper's hand and went into the left side of the net, securing the go-ahead goal. In the 74th minute, we substituted Asari for Ishikawa. While maintaining defensive balance, we continued to attack without letting up. In the 81st minute, Akamine, who drifted to the right, sent a grounded cross in front of the goal. The opposing defender slipped in, but Lucas shot the loose ball. It went over the goal, securing our third point.

　In the 82nd minute, Hirayama was brought on to replace Akamine. They prevented Kobe from gaining momentum for a counterattack and continued to press until the end. However, in the 85th minute, Hirayama slid in to connect with a header from Konno, but missed the target. In the 89th minute, Konno made a dribble and from the loose ball, Hirayama turned and took a left-footed shot, but the opposing goalkeeper blocked it. Although they couldn't secure an additional goal, they displayed passionate play throughout and won 3-1. This was their first three points at home since the match against Kofu on June 20.

　【Player Comments】《Lucas》"I was suspended for the Hiroshima match, but the team had momentum. We continued that this match and played well. I think that was good. I don't think my movement was bad today. There has been a period where I couldn't score goals, but I want to take this opportunity to actively aim for goals and contribute to the team's victory in the future." 《Akamine》"Lucas's first goal came from a quick pass from Ishikawa. Because of that, I was able to maintain my balance and the trap went well. Konno came in as a defensive midfielder, and together with Kajiyama, we moved forward with good balance, keeping the distance between players close. I think we were able to connect passes calmly, including Fukunishi and Lucas being close together. Even today, whenever I play in a match, I always want to score. There is a two-week interval, but first, I want to win the competition within the team and prepare to contribute to the victory on top of that."

　[Summary of Coach Hara's Press Conference] "In the previous match, Lucas was suspended, but we played well, so we started with the same members today. Since Lucas is our ace, starting him was an option, but we wanted to keep the same rhythm and bring him in at a decisive moment. Fukunishi was injured during an offside scene in the first half, so we brought Lucas in early, and it worked out well in the end. Lucas hadn't scored recently, but coming in midway seemed to give him a chance to regain momentum. Although we had been winning away games this season, we kept losing at home, so we really wanted to play well and get a result today. Kobe is a strong team, and midfielder Yu OKUBO has the ability to work on his own. However, by changing the sides, we thought we could create chances with 2-on-1 situations. On the right, Ishikawa and Tokunaga connected through the middle, and on the left, Kurisawa linked up inside, with Kanazawa spreading the attack to the sides. We actually created some good opportunities several times. However, we conceded from a free kick in the first half. During the losing streak, conceding a goal would cause us to panic and play poorly, but today we talked about continuing the same approach even if we conceded one goal, so we held firm. Moreover, we equalized just before halftime, and that goal was very important. It's just that we finally won consecutive games, but winning at home on the last Saturday of summer vacation for all the supporters was great. Four players will be absent due to national team and Olympic duties, but in these two weeks, we can try pairing Moiniwa and Evaldo. Of course, Fujiyama is also here, and I think we can play even more expansive football. I'm happy that everyone fought well today and didn't falter even after conceding a goal."

　[Summary of Coach Matsuda's Press Conference] "I wanted to stop the losing streak somehow. It was good to take the lead for the first time in a while, and I think we were in a very good shape up to that point. However, conceding a goal just before halftime was significant. Still, we tried to reset and switch our mindset for the second half. FC Tokyo seemed to be in a 4-5-1 formation with Akamine as a lone striker, but Fukunishi, Kajiyama, and Konno positioned themselves between our midfield and defense, receiving the ball the moment they switched to attack. So at halftime, I instructed the team not to focus on Akamine but to push the line up to Fukunishi's position to create a more compact situation. However, in the second half, it was clear that FC Tokyo had the upper hand in terms of momentum. As a result, the score difference ended up like this."