Show your daily growth and aim for victory at home

　In the 27th round of the league, we will face Júbilo Iwata at home in Ajinomoto Stadium, following the previous round. In the G Osaka match, we took control in the first half but couldn't convert our chances, and in the second half, the opponent gained momentum, resulting in a scoreless draw. However, Coach Shirofuku said, "We improved on the issues from the Kyoto match. Next, we will solve the issues from the G Osaka match and aim for victory, while continuing to grow."

　Iwata, on the other hand, is currently in 11th place with 35 points. They suffered three consecutive losses from the 23rd round, but they had a convincing victory against Kyoto in the previous round. In this round, if they can beat Tokyo, they will surpass them in points and switch places in the rankings. They will surely want to win and ride on their momentum. Their attacking power is particularly threatening, with a total of 40 goals scored so far. Among them, FW Maeda and FW Iguinho, who are leading the goal scoring rankings, have scored 23 goals together. FW Maeda is skilled at pulling out the ball and making post plays, and is also good at scoring goals from headers off crosses. FW Iguinho has both speed and strength, and they can also score goals through their combination play.

　Therefore, the key to victory is to not let them play freely. We want to thoroughly challenge and cover the ball holder with coordinated defense. On the other hand, Iwata's total of 46 goals conceded is the worst in the league (tied with Kashiwa and Thailand). Even if we continue to struggle to score, we must be patient and continue to play our own football, and we want to score without losing the patience battle against Iwata.

　Tokyo, Ishikawa had been practicing with a separate menu due to a right foot injury, but he made a determined adjustment and started. In addition, Hirayama, who was suspended, and Suzuki will face the game in a formation with two top players. For Iwata, GK Kawaguchi left the team due to injury. GK Yata started for the first time this season. It was a sunny day and the humidity remained at Ajinomoto Stadium. The game started at 4:04 pm with Tokyo's kickoff.

Amid cautious development, neither side was able to take advantage of their chances...

　Both teams pressed each other to prevent the opponent from gaining rhythm, and it became a cautious development. In the 14th minute, Iwata's defensive midfielder Okada crossed from the left. Gonda punched the ball while competing with FW Iguho, but the ball floated into the frame and allowed FW Maeda to head it. The shot lacked power and went wide to the right, but this was the first shot for both teams combined.

　However, in the 16th minute, Tokyo created a chance from their combination play. Yonemoto passed to Suzuki on the left side, who then advanced to a high position and passed to Yonemoto again in the center. Long pass from there to the center of the area, and Nagatomo ran from the left to take a shot! However, the shot from just outside the goal area was blocked by the goalkeeper. In the 17th minute, Ishikawa made a through pass from the right cross by Hanyu. Hirayama, who was right behind him, took a shot but it was blocked by the defender.

　As time passed, Tokyo dominated the ball, but Iwata's return was quick and they were unable to break through the defense. Iwata also tried to break through with strong plays from FW Igno, but Tokyo concentrated on defending. In the 44th minute, Hirayama cut off Iwata's ball in their opponent's territory, and Ishikawa on the right and Suzuki on the left launched a quick attack, but Ishikawa's breakthrough was stopped by Iwata's DF. Then Suzuki ran up the left side and aimed for the goal in the area, but his shot was saved by the goalkeeper, and the score remained tied as they entered the second half.

Despite allowing a comeback, Nagatomo and Akamine's goals lead to a dramatic victory!

　In the second half, it was Iwata who first had a big chance. In the 54th minute, left MF Murai created an opportunity on the left side and the ball fell to FW Maeda who was free in the area. Maeda took advantage of a gap in Tokyo's DF and took a decisive shot, but it hit the bar and bounced down... avoiding danger. Just after in the 55th minute, Tokyo created another decisive opportunity. Hirayama pressed in the opponent's half and stole the ball from Iwata, then entered the area and attracted the DF before passing to a free Ishikawa in the center. Ishikawa swung his right foot, but it missed the bar by a large margin.

　In the 62nd minute, Kajiyama → Ishikawa developed to the right of Hanyu, both missing the chance. Kajiyama runs in on a pass sent by Hanyu to the area, and from the center to Ishikawa from Hirayama. Ishikawa slides the ball into the goal, taking the long-awaited lead from the coordinated passing work! However, in the 64th minute, giving a left CK to Iwata, DF Komano's kick slips from Gonda's hands and to FW Maeda. Yonemoto tries to block with a sliding tackle, but the ball is kicked in again and a goal is conceded... And in the 70th minute, Iwata's left MF Murai's middle is blocked by Tokyo DF, giving another CK. From this left CK, FW Igno is left free in the center and scores a powerful header. Defensive mistakes lead to two goals in set piece situations, allowing the opponent to take the lead.

　However, never give up and in the 72nd minute, Akamine was replaced by Akamine, followed by Suzuki and Ishikawa being replaced by Mukuhara and Nakamura in the 75th minute. Mukuhara moved to the right side back, Tokunaga moved to the left, and Nagatomo moved up one row, aiming for a goal from crosses starting from the side. This strategy was successful, as they launched a speedy and powerful attack and fought back. In the 82nd minute, Yonemoto passed to Nakamura, who was speeding down the right side and sent in a fast cross. The ball bounced in front of the goal and Nagatomo reacted to the opponent's goalkeeper's fumble. He calmly finished with his right foot and equalized the score.

　In the final stage, Tokyo switched to a power play formation with Inamoto as the attacking midfielder and Mokuhara, Bruno, and Tokunaga as the back three. As Iwata also aimed for a lead and the game became a back-and-forth of counterattacks, in the 84th minute, Iwata's left midfielder Murai made a run and took a decisive shot at the center forward Maeda, but it was saved by Gonda!! It went out for a corner kick and they held on to defend. And so, it was still tied in the 4 minutes of stoppage time. When Tokyo launched a strong attack, Kajiyama dribbled up the center and spread out to the left. Nagatomo, who had moved up to the midfield, sent a cross and Akamine was left free to head it in at the far post! The ball was sucked into the net for a dramatic lead! "Jubilo Killer" Akamine's strength in crucial moments shone through as they snatched a victory and earned 3 points for the first time in 3 games since the 24th round against Oita in the league.

　【Player Comments】《Nagatomo》"As a side back, I tried to maintain balance, and when I moved up to side half, I tried to go for the goal myself. I think I was able to show a greedy attitude. In the scoring scene, I was aiming for the loose ball beforehand, so I think it became that kind of goal. There was a possibility of scoring from before. It was just a matter of accuracy at the end. We conceded two goals, but mentally, each and every one of us has become stronger, and I myself have been able to move forward without any hesitation. That feeling led to the third goal. Today, I felt the direction that everyone is aiming for in the game. I want to continue this victory to the next one."《Akamine》"The winning goal was when Aita collapsed near me and I was able to become free. I could see the position of the GK and the goal well. I aimed for the only course I thought was there. I myself have been away from the goal for a long time, and the team hasn't been able to get three points recently. I think this goal will give me momentum, and I hope the team can ride the wave. I'm called the Jubilo Killer, but I don't have any special awareness of Iwata, and on the contrary, I haven't scored many goals against other opponents. I want to do my best to score in other games as well."

　[Coach John HIGASHI's Press Conference Summary] "Our current ranking is in the middle, but we wanted to show our attitude towards this season's league matches and our goals for the season. The players' feelings were reflected in the result. Everyone, including the bench, showed that we still have goals for the league matches. In the first half, we were very cautious of the opponent's two top players, but our focus was too much on them and we became a bit stretched. We should have been more compact and pushed up our defensive line. We made adjustments for the second half. I think we did well until we scored the first goal. We need to reflect on the goal we conceded from a corner kick and also on the fact that we shouldn't have given away that corner kick. Mistakes happen, but we need to reflect on the fact that there are still gaps in our defense. However, in the end, we were able to turn the game around by giving our all for the team. We want to cherish this kind of victory and in order to continue it in the future, we need to get all three points in the next match. (In training leading up to this match, did you try various position changes?) This season, our theme was to improve the team's depth, including pushing up backup players, but there were times when it didn't work out well. So we thought about things other than just bringing on attacking players when we want to attack. We had the idea that the new players we bring on don't necessarily have to be attacking players. By pushing the players at the back forward, it becomes a common understanding for the team to be more attacking. We thought this would also increase our options. However, of course, it is best to have this option when we are winning. We don't want to play like we did today in every match when we are losing."

　[Iwata・Yanagishita's Press Conference Summary] "First of all, in the first half, there was a moment where Nagatomo was able to break through behind us, but other than that, our defense was fairly stable. As for our attack, we held onto the ball too much and didn't have enough movement after passing, so we couldn't create chances. In the second half, our players started to move more and we were able to create chances. Our condition is better than when we had three consecutive losses. In the second half, it became a counter-attack battle between both teams, and we were caught off guard in a few moments where we lost the second ball or had our first pass stolen, leading to conceding goals. We need to have a better balance in our positioning and be more proactive in our attacks. At the same time, we need to mark our opponents more tightly in front of our goal. We want to make these adjustments. If we were able to hold onto our 2-1 lead, I believe the players would have had more confidence for the remaining games, but unfortunately we suffered a comeback loss. However, our performance was not bad, so we want to continue fighting with confidence in the remaining 7 games."]