Maintain the momentum of Nabisco and aim for a rise in the rankings!

　In Sec. 25 of the league, we will face Kyoto SANGA F.C. away. In the Nabisco Cup match against Shimizu held on 9/6, a common awareness as a team was thoroughly established, and we secured a victory with a style of soccer typical of Tokyo, advancing to the finals. On the other hand, Cabore's transfer to Qatar has been confirmed. Coach Jofuku stated, "As a united team, we will strive to turn negatives into positives," and while we want to carry the momentum from Nabisco, now is the time to cover with unity and solidarity.

　Kyoto is currently in 10th place. Since Sec. 24 on August 30, there has been about a two-week interval during which South Korean national team DF Lee was absent, but they have been preparing thoroughly for this match. The defensive line, centered around DF Lee, includes DF Mizumoto and Masushima, boasting players with height and strength in one-on-one situations. Today, the key point will be how to break through this solid defense. We want to navigate through the pressure from Kyoto's front line, seize control in the midfield, and create numerous chances.

　In Tokyo, Japan national team players Nagatomo and Konno have returned to the starting lineup in good spirits. Akamine will replace Cabore. Akamine expressed his enthusiasm, saying, "I have been playing with Saito for a long time, so I understand his characteristics well. I want to utilize Saito's ball retention and height, showcase my own strengths, and bring out the best in each other." The defense has been focused and stable lately, so we want to suppress the opponent's attacks with coordinated defense, bring the game to Tokyo's pace, and fight patiently without rushing.

　The record against Kyoto has ended in draws for the last three matches, but Coach Jofuku explained, "Kyoto excels at neutralizing the opponent's strengths and changes their tactics and system according to the situation. Therefore, we must also prepare several options and be mentally ready." At the same time, in previous encounters, we were confused by the opponent's changes in the final stages and became flustered, so it is necessary to calmly read the flow of the game. We need to respond to changes in the situation with composure and fight to establish a foothold for advancing to the top! The match started at 1:04 PM with Kyoto's kickoff at Kagoshima Prefectural Kamoike Athletic Stadium.

Easily allowed the opening goal and went into halftime trailing

　Immediately after the start of the match, Kyoto launched an attack from a free kick. Left midfielder Kakuta advanced to the center of the area, and forward Diego slipped past Bruno QUADROS to move forward. A shot was taken and scored in the bottom left corner, resulting in a goal conceded... Losing focus allowed the opening goal. After that, they switched their mindset, and as usual, Tokyo connected passes and launched an attack. In the 8th minute, a vertical pass from Kajiyama found Akamine on the left, who then passed to Hirayama in the center. Hirayama dribbled past the opposing defender and almost broke through in front of the goal, but at the last moment, the defender stuck out a foot, resulting in a corner kick.

　In the 15th minute, Konno powerfully cut the ball in the opponent's half. Hanyu connected directly to Ishikawa in the center, and tried to send a pass to Akamine, who attacked towards the goal, but it was cut off. In the 21st minute, Hanyu headed back a right cross from Ishikawa, but it barely missed Hirayama. In the 25th minute, from a long feed by Kajiyama in the center, Hanyu accelerated into the space on the left flank and delivered a sharp cross. At the perfect timing, Akamine headed it, but it just went slightly wide of the target...

　Although we are attacking against an opponent who is completely defending, we lack precision in the final play and have not reached any decisive chances. Still, with 10 minutes remaining in the heat, we finally face a critical moment in front of the goal. In the 34th minute, Konno advanced and passed the ball to Hirayama, who collected it and passed to Ishikawa in the left area. Ishikawa entered the left area and took a powerful left-footed shot. It grazed the defender and resulted in a corner kick. In the 38th minute, from the left, Akamine passed to Hirayama in the center, who acted as a pivot, and Ishikawa quickly circled around from the left to shoot the loose ball. He took a powerful shot, but it hit the crossbar and went out... In the end, we faced the second half with a one-goal deficit.

Ishikawa's equalizing goal gave momentum, but they conceded a goal on the counter and lost.

　In the second half, Suzuki was brought on as a forward to replace Akamine. This sparked movement in the team, and the match progressed within Kyoto's territory. In the 53rd minute, Suzuki brought the ball in from the left side and took a shot. The defender blocked it. Then, in the 60th minute, Hanyu passed to Kajiyama, who attempted to break through the central area with a dribble. Just to the left, Konno was also advancing, but the final pass went to Ishikawa on the outside. Ishikawa struck a controlled, sharp shot into the net from the left area! Ishikawa finally equalized with a goal since the match against Kawasaki on August 1.

　Tokyo, gaining momentum, continued to pass the ball to create chances aiming for a go-ahead goal. In the 62nd minute, Konno intercepted the opponent's ball, surged forward, and delivered a cross. Suzuki connected in the center but was ruled offside. Particularly in midfield, Kajiyama made his presence felt, continuously sending vertical passes to the front line. In the 69th minute, he picked up a loose ball from a right corner kick, entered the right area himself, evaded the goalkeeper, and took a shot from close range, but was unable to score.

　In the 85th minute, while pushing forward, we lost the ball in the front line, and the opposing defender's clearance fell into the midfield. Here, Yonemoto competed with Kyoto FW Kan, and the ball hit FW Kan and went towards the Tokyo goal area. Gonda also rushed out but was evaded by FW Kan and the ball was rolled into the unguarded goal, resulting in a conceded goal. After that, Tokyo desperately wanted to equalize, and from set plays, substitute Ohtake repeatedly sent the ball into the goal area, but they couldn't score and the match ended. While Tokyo dominated the ball and aimed for a second goal, they were caught off guard and lost the match. They could not start the league restart with a victory.

　[Player Comments] {Ishikawa} "We equalized and aimed for another goal, but it's disappointing that we couldn't secure it. We had discussed where to defend and where to look for chances before the match, so up until that equalizing moment, things were going as planned. Then, I think it was the time to aim for the additional goal, but not being able to secure it became the reason for our defeat. (Was the goal as you imagined?) Yes. However, I regret not being able to convert the chances in the first half. I think we spent too long chasing. I wanted to equalize in the first half. The conceding of goals is not about who did it, but rather a mistake that the entire team should not have made. While reflecting on that, perhaps the timing of our equalizer was a bit late. The game plan needs to adapt to the situation, but in the end, even though there was no panic, we lost our composure. It felt like Kyoto took control. (Has the image before the injury returned?) Rather than going back to that point, I am seeking to evolve beyond what I was before the injury. Today we scored the equalizer, but I want to focus on the work beyond that. It's easy to feel down after a loss, but I want to change the atmosphere of the team as well."

　Kajiyama: "At first, I couldn't concentrate and we conceded a goal in that way. However, we didn't panic and connected our plays, and I think we gradually got back to our normal rhythm. In the second half, Tatsuya-san started to target the space behind, and the team found its rhythm. There was a feeling that we could turn the game around, but... (What about the shot in the 69th minute?) The opponent didn't really come to mark me. I had chances to shoot besides that moment, and I was thinking of aiming for the goal instead of the near post, but it went off target... I wanted to be involved in the goal."

　[Summary of Coach Jofuku's Press Conference] "It was a game that is hard to describe. I feel sorry for the fans who came from far away. Everyone understood that today's game was in a difficult situation, so I don't want to make various excuses, nor do I think I should. The team that won is strong, and we were weak. (What was the intention behind bringing in Suzuki at the start of the second half?) We couldn't provide a threat behind the opponent, so we decided to use a player who could break through. Of course, it's not that Akamine was bad, but in terms of balance, we need to show both the feet and the back to be a threat to the opponent. In the first half, we had possession but judged that we couldn't pose a threat. The Kyoto defense line was deep, but we need to raise our awareness about the timing to break through, including the passer. The moment we stole the ball, the opponent's line wasn't necessarily deep, so we created a situation where the opponent's defense could drop back quickly. I think there were some issues on both the passer's and receiver's sides that led to only being able to move the ball in that way. (How will you regroup for the next match?) We will reorganize our mental aspect once again. The fans who came from far away were singing the cup competition song, which is very appreciated and encouraging, but in a way, it is also humiliating for us. The only thing left this season is the cup competition. I think it was meant to encourage us, but as a team, we need to work on how we can fight in the remaining nine league matches, and we want to make sure that we are not only sung to with the cup competition song next time, but we absolutely want to go for the three points."

　[Kyoto - Summary of Coach Kato's Press Conference] "Since we are playing the home game in Kagoshima, which is also the main sponsor Kyocera's hometown, and the hometown of Chairman Inamori, many people came to support us, including many supporters who traveled from far away Kyoto. I am glad we could give something good back to those supporters. In the first half, we scored a goal quite early, and of course, taking the lead is a significant advantage, but I think a feeling of wanting to take care of the lead grew a bit in the players' minds. I think we should have been more proactive when we had the ball or moved the ball faster, but I felt that our decisiveness and energy to push forward diminished a bit. As a result, there were parts where we were pushed back by FC Tokyo, but I think it was good that we ended the first half at 1-0. In the second half, I was considering bringing in FW Yanagisawa at some point. Today's match was played in higher temperatures than we usually practice in, and while FW Hayashi did very well, I expected FW Yanagisawa to create time up front, so I brought him in at the start of the second half. During the match, MF Shijikurei had an injury due to an accident, which put us under a bit of pressure. MF Shijikurei's presence is very significant, but players like him are not always in their best condition, and I think we need to reduce our dependency on MF Shijikurei as a team during such times. The positioning and balance of FW Kan and MF Nakamura, who came in afterward, did a good job, and FW Kan scored the winning goal, continuing from the Niigata match. Having a rookie like him score an important goal is a significant boost. I believe it will have a positive influence on other rookies and young players. We were able to take three points from FC Tokyo, who advanced to the final of the Nabisco Cup, and I think the players are very satisfied. However, there are still nine league matches remaining, so we want to steadily catch up with the teams above us and aim to surpass them."