League 6 games without a win...aiming for 3 points at home

　League Sec. 19 will face Yokohama F. Marinos at home. In the previous match against Kyoto, they managed to secure a draw in the final minutes. They aim to use the 1 point they gained as a stepping stone for a comeback. This is also a game where they desperately want to win at home. This week, Nagatomo and Kajiyama, who will be competing in the Beijing Olympics, have left the team. However, coach Jofuku said, "Instead of filling the gap left by them, I want to find a different positive aspect," and has chosen Kanazawa as the defensive midfielder for this match. At the same time, Imakawa will play as the defensive midfielder, with Fujiyama as the center back and Mukuhara as the right fullback. Akamine, who had a good result in the Kyoto match, will also start, with Emerson on the right wing and Hayashi on the left.

　Yokohama FM is currently in 16th place and on a 6-game losing streak. Under new coach Kokichi KIMURA, they have lost 2 games in a row, but both were close matches that they were unable to win. In particular, FW Koji YAMASE, who was "done in" in the first half of the season, is a player who can make decisive plays. It is important to not only take good care of him, but also pay attention to accurate long balls and set plays with high scoring rates centered around DF Nakazawa. The key is to maintain concentration with a compact formation and continue with organized defense. In attack, we want to finish with a sharp approach. With Yokohama FM's strong central defense, we want to create chances by exploiting the spaces between the 3-back sides and between the defensive midfielder and defenders.

　It will be a difficult match as both teams have not won in 6 games, and the opponent has defeated us 3-0 in the first half of the season. We want to take revenge and not lose in terms of mentality. The match started at 7:04 PM at Ajinomoto Stadium, under a cloudy sky and intense heat, against Yokohama FM.

Despite conceding the first goal in the beginning, Emerson's skillful goal equalizes the score!

　In the first minute, Yokohama FM launched a counterattack from their attack and Cabore was fouled in the opponent's territory, earning a free kick. Kanazawa took the kick from the left side, but the opponent's DF cleared it. Hayashi, who followed up on the ball, chest-trapped it and took a volley shot, but it was caught by the goalkeeper. However, in the 4th minute, Yokohama FM's left MF Komiyama shook off Mokuhara and sent a left cross. Although Tokyo DF cleared it once, the ball reached FW Yamase Koji in front of the left area, who immediately aimed for the goal and the shot ball reached FW Oshima. He kicked it in perfectly, allowing an early goal.

　However, Tokyo did not let their spirits down and showed an aggressive attitude. In the 9th minute, Kanazawa → Cabore dribbled up from the left side and passed to Emerson, who ran into the center from the right. Emerson skillfully lifted the ball with a trap near the penalty area, leaving the opponent's DF Matsuda behind. He calmly scored a goal in a 1-on-1 situation with the GK, equalizing the score!

　Afterwards, both teams continued to launch speedy attacks and the game progressed at a fast pace. In the 25th minute, Kanazawa took a precise kick towards the goal from a free kick on the right side, but Imakawa narrowly missed it. In the 32nd minute, Akamine broke free on the right side after receiving a pass from Sasaki's free kick, creating a decisive opportunity, but his shot went just wide to the left. In the midst of a fast-paced game with quick transitions between offense and defense, chances were created. In the 41st minute, Fujiyama stole the ball in their own half and quickly moved it to the left side. Akamine broke free and aimed for the goal with a direct shot, but it went wide.

　In the 42nd minute, FW Sakata received a pass in front of the left area of Yokohama FM and made a fierce dribble. He was able to bring the ball into the goal area and get into a shooting position, but was saved by Sasaki's sliding tackle. Then, from a left FK, FW Koji YAMASE headed the ball, but it went over the bar. In stoppage time, Yokohama FM's long ball was initially cleared, but then MF Hyodo took a shot from the rebound. Towards the end, there were also moments where Yokohama FM pushed with a long ball, but they were able to defend with concentration and end the first half with a 1-1 score.

Unable to grasp the rhythm, unable to bring it back to a counterattack... A tough draw at home

　In the second half, Yokohama FM took control of the pace. Tokyo was unable to connect the ball even if they took it away from the tough press. On the contrary, they were pushed back by Yokohama FM's long balls. In the 49th minute, Yokohama FM's FW Koji YAMASE, who received a pass from the left in the midfield, boldly aimed for a middle shot that flew into the bottom right corner, but SHIOTA saved it! In the 51st minute, FW Koji YAMASE, who was free in the center this time, received a pass from MF Hayato TANAKA on the right side and took a middle shot. It was off target, but they couldn't catch his movement. In the 55th minute, Tokyo's FK from the right side was kicked by Fujiyama, and Hanyu, who was sticking on the right front line, followed up with a minus last pass from the right area. They created an open space, but Emerson and Kanazawa were unable to close in.

　Tokyo made substitutions in the 59th minute, bringing in Hirayama and Ishikawa for Cabore and Emerson. They were hoping to score more goals with these player changes, but the momentum remained with Yokohama FM. In the 67th minute, Yokohama FM's right MF Tanaka Hayato sent a low cross into the box, which was met by FW Sakata. In the 69th minute, Hayato received a vertical pass from Hirayama and was fouled, resulting in a free kick on the left side of the penalty area. Ishikawa took the direct shot, but the ball hit the crossbar. In the end, Tokyo only managed to take two shots in the second half, the direct free kick from Ishikawa and a mid-range shot from Hirayama in the 74th minute. In the 75th minute, Otake was substituted in for Kanazawa and played as left MF, while Hayato moved to the central midfield position, in an attempt to counterattack. However, both teams struggled to maintain their defensive lines, resulting in a fierce back-and-forth of counterattacks.

　79 minutes, Otake kept the ball on the left side and invited Tokunaga's attack, and Tokunaga's cross led to a corner kick. However, Otake's left corner kick was cleared. In the 81st minute, Ishikawa received a pass from the left and dropped it with his chest in the area, and Akamine broke through in front of the goal. However, he collided with the opponent's GK and the ball went to Yokohama FM due to a hand foul. In the 84th minute, Imakawa lifted a left cross from Tokunaga's left throw-in. Akamine was there to finish, but the opponent's GK escaped with a punch.

　88 minutes, Yokohama FM earned a FK on the left side of the Tokyo team, and Koji YAMASE's kick was headed by Kawai. In the 89th minute, the right side of Tokyo was penetrated and a cross was lifted. MF Mizunuma, who had closed in on the loose ball from Tokyo DF, was shot from the right area, but it went wide. In stoppage time, Ishikawa was brought down while trying to cut off the opponent's counterattack, earning a FK from the right side of Yokohama FM's field. From here, Ono headed Daichi's kick, but it was blocked by the DF and resulted in a CK. While Yokohama FM was saved by Tokyo's missed shots, they were unable to take advantage of the late set piece and the game ended in a 1-1 draw. They narrowly avoided a loss at home.

　【Player Comments】《Emerson》"(About the goal) I am always aware of the movements of other players, whether I am passing or receiving the ball. Today, I started moving thinking that Cabore would pass to me, and I received a great ball just as I expected. I was able to trap it well and calmly score a goal, which was good for us to equalize. However, after that, we were unable to bring the ball to the finish while connecting passes. In those situations, I think we should have been more aggressive and created rhythm by shooting from outside the box. In the future, I want to be more aware of that. If we could have played more calmly, we might have had a better result."《Kanazawa》"We conceded a goal early on and it was a tough start for us. It was good that we were able to equalize quickly, but we couldn't really control the game at our own pace. I have regrets about that. Personally, I tried to play with balance. And we came into the game with the intention of getting 3 points, but unfortunately we couldn't. We also gave the opponent an advantage with the first goal we conceded. After that, we were able to equalize, but it turned into a situation where the opponent could show their attacking strengths. We didn't have many opportunities to shoot, so I want to increase the number of patterns where we can take the ball more offensively. I wish we could have played in a way that would have threatened the opponent more."

　[Summary of Coach Jofuku's Press Conference] "I wanted to taste the joy of victory with the nearly 30,000 people who came to the stadium. It's a shame we couldn't do that. The game was not something we could proudly say was even. There were 2-3 shots that could have been scored, and although we weren't completely dominated, Yokohama FM had the upper hand in terms of momentum. The players had the determination to get 3 points, and I think we could have prevented the first goal. However, we continued to make mistakes in our attacks and missed chances, making it difficult to create good opportunities in the flow of the game. Yokohama FM was very focused, and in order to take advantage of their weaknesses, we needed to move the ball more. I recognize that there were moments when players lost confidence in their play, even though they were confident in various positions. (The intention behind substituting both Hirayama and Ishikawa at the same time) It wasn't satisfying in terms of physical performance, so I made the change to give the team a boost. I'm not sure if the substitution affected our ability to take shots, but I think it's important to be able to move the ball forward and face the game in a good state. Whether it's the FW, midfield, or defense's fault in terms of build-up play...we need to carefully analyze and think about it."

　[Yokohama FM - Manager Kimura's Press Conference Summary] "This is my third game as a manager, but today our game plan was a bit disrupted. The pitch was not as good as we expected, and both our players and Tokyo's players were struggling. This led to some dangerous situations, and there were also times when we couldn't control the ball in midfield. In the first 5-10 minutes, we tried to press high and create a rhythm. After that, our plan was to use the wings effectively...but due to the pitch conditions, we couldn't execute that. In the second half, our energy level was not as high as in the first half, but we got used to the pitch. We also used some fresh players, but we ended up playing more long balls. However, we did have some good moments attacking from the wings, and I think we were just one step away from getting a win. We had our chances, now we just need to score. I told the players that conceding one goal is inevitable, and we cannot win without scoring at least two goals. We are not going to play defensively and try to hold onto a 1-0 lead. We will always attack, and I don't think there is a big gap in quality between the 18 teams in J1. In the last three games, I have been using players who are in good condition, and today was our best game. We maintained our energy until the end, and I am proud of that."