Important first game after the break, let's unite and win at home!

　After a break of about three weeks, the J-League resumes. In the 14th round, they will face JEF United Chiba at home. During the break, they mainly focused on "how to play in difficult situations" and worked hard in training. Based on that, this week they have been focused on the Chiba match, training for various situations such as quick transitions from defense to attack and how to play in a disadvantaged situation.

　While Konno returns from the Japan national team, Nagatomo, Shigetaka, and others have been injured one after another. In this round, Sasaki and Fujiyama will play as center backs, and Kanazawa will play as left back. Coach Shirofuku said, "Regardless of whether they make the roster or not, the players are showing a united front to face Chiba. In a good sense of tension, I hope we can turn accidents into positives."

　Chiba, on the other hand, is currently in last place in the league. However, with the arrival of coach Alex MILLER, they have not lost in their last 5 matches, with 4 wins and 1 draw (2 league matches and 3 Nabisco Cup matches). They have been able to defend without breaking their backline with a 4-back formation and midfield players, and have been accumulating points with sharp counterattacks based on solid defense. In addition, in all 5 matches, they have scored the first goal and have shown resilience in holding off their opponents' attacks.

　Manager Jofuku said, "During this break, Chiba should have improved their defensive system and counterattacks after winning the ball. If we can't break through that, we won't be able to get 3 points. It will be a tough game, but we want to outperform our opponents." If we allow the first goal, we can expect them to sit back and defend. We want to create chances with quick passing and superior movement, and take the lead. Even in difficult times, we want to maintain balance and calmly execute "Moving Football" to create opportunities.

　Chiba has a 5-3-2 formation on the member table, but DF Toda has moved to the midfield and FW Ronaldo has taken the front line, approaching a 4-1-4-1 formation. Unfortunately, the game started at 4:04 pm with a rainy sky at Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo.

Leading without feeling disadvantaged by the numerical disadvantage even though it becomes 10 people in 7 minutes after the start!

　Started attacking from the beginning, 3 minutes, Emerson aims for a middle shot. In the 5th minute, Emerson moves up to a high position on the right side and crosses. Hirayama in front of the goal tries to shoot after trapping the ball with his chest, but is unable to finish due to the DF's pressure. However, in the 7th minute, Chiba DF Bosnar's vertical pass goes over Sasaki's head and to Chiba FW Ronaldo. Ronaldo uses his speed to break through the front line and is fouled by Inakoshi in the area, resulting in a penalty kick... Ronaldo takes the PK but Shioda makes a great save, avoiding a desperate situation. However, Inakoshi receives a red card and is forced to play with 10 men from an early time.

　In the 9th minute after, Chiba FW Leinado broke through the right side of Tokyo again and shot from the area. The ball was followed up by MF Kudo, but both were saved by Shioda in succession. Tokyo regained their composure after defending the goal with Shioda's good defense. From an aggressive attacking plan, Kajiyama, Emerson, and Hanyu increased their defensive awareness in the midfield and had to change their strategy to counterattack, but calmly connected passes and looked for a chance to counterattack by playing their own style of soccer.

　At 23 minutes, Hirayama was brought down in the area and Tokyo was awarded a PK. However, Cabore's PK was blocked by Chiba GK, and they missed a great chance to take the lead. Still, they continued to attack the open spaces and at 28 minutes, Kanazawa made a daring run towards the center and aimed for the goal, despite being surrounded by the opposing DF. At 33 minutes, Cabore received the ball just outside the area on the right side and cut inside to take a shot. It was a well-placed shot, but it missed above the frame. At 38 minutes, from a cross on the right, Hirayama received the ball in front of the goal with a defender on his back, but managed to turn and take a shot. It was a skillful play that created a big chance, but the shot went straight to the GK.

　Approaching the Chiba goal with a fighting style that doesn't make you feel outnumbered, in the 39th minute, Hirayama chases after Chiba's clearance and earns a left corner kick. When Uyu kicks it, Sawara is completely free on the far side. Although the angle was not ideal, he calmly heads it into the goal! With Sawara's first J1 league goal, they take the lead and head into the second half with a one-point advantage.

Sahara injured, draws due to taking advantage of an accident...

　In the second half, they continued to attack from a solid defense and the intense battle continued. In the 46th minute, Kajiyama dribbled into the center after a left FK and a one-two with Hayashi, and took a shot. In the 49th minute, Cabore took a shot from a quick attack after Hayashi on the left, but it lacked power and went straight to the GK. In the 53rd minute, Chiba's right cross was dropped in the area and Shinni was in a shooting position just outside the area, but Kajiyama blocked it with his body. In the 56th minute, Hayashi expanded to the left and Kanazawa crossed from the left. It reached Hirayama in the right area, but he lost his footing on the pitch and couldn't take a shot. Hayashi didn't give up and followed up on the loose ball to earn a right CK, but they couldn't create a chance from the CK.

　However, as time passed, fatigue began to show and they gradually reached a point where they couldn't keep up with the press. In the 57th minute, Chiba replaced DF Toda and brought in FW Maki up front, starting to push Tokyo back with long balls. In the 59th minute, they lost the ball in midfield and fouled Chiba FW Maki just outside Tokyo's right area, giving away a free kick. Chiba MF Kudo's free kick was initially cleared, but from the resulting throw-in, they were able to exploit the space in front of the goal. In the 62nd minute, Chiba's long ball from the left was brought down by FW Maki at the far post, creating a decisive chance for FW Ronaldo in the near post. It was a close-range shot, but Shioda's save prevented the goal from being scored.

　The accident happened in the 66th minute. Saitama and Kanazawa collided while trying to take the ball from Chiba's front line. They couldn't steal it and Chiba's FW Ronaldo took a shot from the right area. Saitama avoided danger by cutting to the left, but he suffered a facial injury and had to leave the pitch for treatment. In the 68th minute, Chiba's DF Ikeda sent a long pass and FW Niina on the right side made an early cross. FW Ronaldo jumped in with his head in front of the goal and finally broke the deadlock...

　In the 74th minute, Otake was replaced by Hanyu, and in the 79th minute, Kondo was replaced by Cabore, followed by Akamine replacing Hirayama, as they aimed for additional points by bringing in attacking players. However, Chiba also attacked with substitutes such as MF Tanihara, FW Arata, and Maki, and in the 85th minute, a header from FW Maki was released from a left early cross by Chiba MF Tanihara, but Shioda caught it. In the 86th minute, Kondo was fouled just outside the left area, earning a free kick. Kondo's direct ground shot was blocked by the Chiba DF wall. As the back and forth continued, in the 87th minute, a quick attack was launched, with Emerson dribbling up the center and passing to Kondo, who ran from left to right. Kondo circled inside and aimed for the open course, but missed the frame. The intense battle continued, but neither team could score an additional point. The first match after the restart ended in a 1-1 draw.

　【Player Comments】《Shioda》"We wanted to win because it was a home game. It's disappointing to end in a draw. However, we were able to hold on with the least amount of goals conceded while playing with 10 players for over 80 minutes. I think everyone's feelings were not scattered and we were able to come together as one. When we became 10 players, we switched to a quick attack while passing the ball, but we made sure not to lose in terms of running and fought firmly. We were able to connect well and create chances that were not inferior to the opponent... However, conceding a goal when we became 9 players was a previous issue. We need to either buy time or make small adjustments in our decisions. However, the 1 point we earned without losing here is necessary for us to continue fighting at a higher stage in the future. I want to continue to build on the fact that we were able to fight in the same direction even when everyone was struggling."《Hanyu》"We want to take the 1 point we earned even with 10 players as a positive. The midfield became 3 players, but we created a block with the 4 defenders to defend. However, the coverage area naturally expanded and there was fatigue. In that situation, we were able to score from a set piece and there were chances to win. The goal we conceded when Sasaki player went out of the pitch was a point of reflection. I tried to drop back to the side back position to defend, but as a result, I couldn't press from the front and allowed an easy cross. We couldn't do what we wanted to do with 11 players, but we were able to do some things with 10 players. We want to use these experiences as a positive for the future."

　[Summary of Manager Jofuku's Press Conference] "The J-League has resumed and despite the bad weather, many people came to the stadium and we wanted to achieve good results. It's unfortunate that we could only get 1 point. We always simulate various games and prepare for different situations, but today Konno was sent off early in the game. We didn't expect to be down to 10 men so early, but we changed to a 1-top formation and a diamond midfield. I think the game went well. In the first half, the opponent's formation didn't change, so we played with a block and were prepared for a 0-0 draw. We were able to end the first half with a goal, but in the second half, Chiba came with a 3-top formation, set up wide, and brought in FW Maki. We were prepared for various situations, but we also had a player injured during the game and we didn't expect to have only 8 field players for such a long time. We have to reflect on the goal we conceded during that time. However, it is extremely difficult to play for more than 80 minutes with 10 men in bad weather conditions. As for the way the game went, I think the players fought very well."

　[Chiba - Manager Alex Miller's Press Conference Summary] "I think we had a good start. We were able to make moves from the early stages and earned a PK, but the enemy's GK made a good save. After that, we couldn't possess the ball and it became a difficult situation. We couldn't break through and ended the first half with a goal conceded from a CK. However, the second half was better. GK Tatsuo Tateishi made several saves for us. The reason we were able to function better in the second half was because we were able to use side attacks. We used a lot of side changes and were able to create several good chances. We used the wide area well from short passes and various movements came out from there. As a result, I think we did enough to earn 1 point. The players fought very well and we want to continue to play like we did in the second half from now on."