Aiming for the Semifinal Round, the team fights as one

The Nabisco Cup Quarterfinal Round 2 match will be against Nagoya Grampus away. In the first match on July 15, we won decisively with a score of 5 to 1. Therefore, in the second match, even if we lose, as long as we keep the margin within three goals, we will advance to the Semifinal Round. While we can say we are currently in a favorable position, Coach Jofuku stated, "Nagoya will come into this match with considerable determination. It is a home game for them, and if we approach it lightly, we will face painful consequences. We want to express our strong desire to go for the Semifinal Round ourselves!" and he emphasized the need to stay focused and fight.

　Nagoya, facing the halfway point of the league, has welcomed Australian national team FW Kennedy. Not only has he already scored consecutive goals in two matches, becoming a source of scoring, but the team's unity has improved, bringing out the best in the surrounding players. Therefore, how to contain attacks targeting FW Kennedy will be a significant point. As Coach Jofuku wryly smiles, "No matter how much we are on guard, we can't change FW Kennedy's height," we want to tightly control the sides and take care of the sources of early crosses.

　Tokyo will make significant changes to the lineup and approach the match with fresh members. Goalkeeper Shiota will make his first official appearance of the season, and in place of Tokunaga, Yonemoto, Ishikawa, and Hirayama, Mukuhara, Suzuki, Tanabe, and Akamine will start. Coach Jofuku explained, "We have been able to use the same starting lineup for a while, so the aim is to provide stimulation, increase new options, and ensure that we can coordinate regardless of the combination. Each player has their own needs, including recovery for injuries and accumulated fatigue."

　In this match, if Tokyo can score the first goal, they should be able to take a more advantageous position in the game. However, since Nagoya has also regained their solid defensive strength, it won't be easy. Tokyo wants to take advantage of the spaces opened up on both sides by Nagoya and make their moves. This match will test the team's overall strength and their ability to read the flow of the game. They will unite to secure a place in the Semifinal Round! The match started at 19:00 with Nagoya's kickoff at Mizuho Athletic Stadium in Nagoya.

Allowed a one-point lead and the first half ends

　Both teams had a strong desire not to concede goals, showing a cautious start. Despite this, Tokyo began to connect passes and create chances. In the 13th minute, Kajiyama picked up a loose ball in the center, dribbled forward, and sent a through pass to Akamine, who had moved to the right area. He took a direct shot, but it went wide of the goal. In the 22nd minute, a quick transition led to a counterattack. Cabore sent a last pass from a dribble into the right area. Akamine made a precise run and took a decisive shot, but it was thwarted by a great save from the goalkeeper...

　In the 32nd minute, Kajiyama's switch to the side allowed Muku to overlap and deliver a right cross. Akamine in the area attempted a header shot, but was slightly off timing and it went over. Defensively, they were effectively containing Nagoya's long balls, but in the 33rd minute, Konno and Nagoya FW Maki contested for the ball, which spilled to Tokyo's right side, where FW Kennedy quickly reacted. A ground pass was sent back to the center, and FW Maki jumped in to score... They conceded the opening goal that they didn't want to give up.

　However, Tokyo continued to play calmly without getting discouraged. In the 36th minute, Akamine kept the ball while being marked by the defense after receiving a pass from Tanabe. He took a decisive shot towards goal after a run from behind by Hanyu, but it went over the bar. In stoppage time, Cabore, Suzuki, Hanyu, and Tanabe worked together on the right flank, and Hanyu tried to break forward, but his pass from Tanabe was intercepted, leading to a counterattack. Although this counter was contained, in the end, Nagoya's right back Tanaka surged forward and delivered an early cross. However, Kennedy, the forward in the left area, did not make contact, and the ball went out of play. Ultimately, they ended the first half allowing a one-goal lead.

The match is decided with Hirayama's goal! Advancing to the Semifinal Round

　In the second half, Nagoya launched a thorough power play, while Tokyo took advantage of the gaps to counterattack. In the 50th minute, Nagatomo overlapped and delivered a left cross. Cabore, who was free in the right area, attempted a volley but could not direct it towards the goal. In the 52nd minute, Kajiyama quickly restarted the play. Cabore chased down a long ball sent to the right front line, skillfully turned past the marking defender, and aimed a loop over the advancing goalkeeper, but the shot went wide to the upper left.

　Tokyo substituted Cabore for Hanyu and brought in Tokunaga and Ishikawa in quick succession. They attempted to launch a counterattack using their substitutions. However, in the 65th minute, they failed to clear a right corner kick from Nagoya, allowing defender Yoshida to score with a header, resulting in the loss of a second goal. Nagoya, gaining momentum, continued their fierce attack. Tokyo faced sustained pressure, and in the 77th minute, they substituted Hirayama for Tanabe in an effort to regain their rhythm.

　As time passed, Nagoya became more aggressive, and gradually seized opportunities from counterattacks. In the 82nd minute, Ishikawa sprinted down the right side and delivered a final pass, but it was caught by the goalkeeper. Following that, a left-footed shot taken after cutting back against the opposing DF in the right area hit the DF and resulted in a left corner kick. Then, in the 85th minute, Ishikawa picked up a loose ball after a contest between Akamine and the opposing DF and charged into the right area. Hirayama connected with a backward pass to score a goal. The match ended with that score, resulting in a loss in this second match. Although the number of victories was tied, we advanced to the Semifinal Round due to a superior goal difference. We will face Shimizu S-Pulse in September.

　【Player Comments】《Shiota》"It was my first official match in a while, and I felt both the tension and the enjoyment. I'm happy to be back, but since we lost, I think I could only do the bare minimum. We had been conceding few goals lately, so I was conscious of keeping it to a minimum today as well, but we were under pressure for a long time and conceding two goals is a concern. However, even while facing power plays, I think it was good that we managed to score. (Did you receive loud cheers from the stands?) I stood on the pitch with a sense of gratitude for all the support I've received up to this point. I'm really happy to be back on the field thanks to my teammates, family, and friends... I want to repay that support by delivering results from now on. (Have you supported each other with Gonda?) Moving forward, I want to strive for titles through high-level competition and mutual improvement." 《Hirayama》"Although we lost, we achieved our primary goal of reaching the Semifinal Round, which I think is good. Even while sitting on the bench, there were chances, so I wasn't too anxious. I thought that if we scored one goal, it would make things much easier... I was watching with that in mind. In preparation for the match, Nagoya played a lot of long balls, so we, the forwards, focused on suppressing those. The goal came from Nao, who was sharp, so I aimed to align with that. Then, the pass came just as I envisioned, and it was an easy goal. (The streak of not losing has ended?) Everyone isn't too down, and we will switch gears for the next match. We have a goal of winning against Kawasaki, and we aim for the title, so we want to win one by one towards the Nabisco title."

　[Summary of Coach Jofuku's Press Conference] "I think it was very good that we were able to achieve the result of advancing to the Semifinal Round, which is our minimum requirement, and I believe the players did their best individually. Although we lost today, I want to see the fact that we were able to conduct the match with the minimum required result as one achievement. However, we thought that if we scored one goal without showing any gaps in today's match, the game would be over. With that game plan, I believe the players were in a position to go for that goal and were moving well up until the final shot. However, by continuing to miss decisive chances, we were reminded that it can revive the opponent. Originally, it was not a match that would make the opponent feel any possibility, but if we miss that many decisive chances, it will turn into such a game, and the players must engrave that in their hearts. If we aim for the next stage in both the league and the Nabisco Cup, we should have stopped the opponent's breath much earlier. That is something we need to take as a challenge along with our achievements and connect it to the next, including the league. Today, I am glad that we could celebrate advancing to the Semifinal Round with the fans who came from far away."

　[Summary of the press conference by Nagoya's coach STOJKOVIC] "I believe our team showed good play. We were able to win, but it was a tough game. It was really difficult because it was a game based on the result of the first match. We were able to play aggressively and achieved victory, but it wasn't enough. I think the loss in Tokyo (from the first match) was significant. (In terms of game management, did we fail to attack effectively?) In the first 10 minutes, it would have been good to apply pressure and score about three goals, but the result of the first match was a big factor. However, we went for the third goal, and I thought we could have scored it with just a little more effort. I truly believe we showed what we have today, and if we had scored the third goal, everything would have changed and opened up various possibilities. I am satisfied with the content of the match, and I really think the players put in a lot of effort. Tokyo is a team that effectively targets counterattacks; they are a good team and it was a difficult game. Although the result turned out this way, we want to focus on the ACL and the league and move forward."