Switching focus to the league matches, challenging Urawa who have not won in the last 13 matches

　The league Sec. 31 will be held, facing Urawa Reds at home. It is a league match just four days after the fierce battle in the Nabisco Cup, but the trophy we held is already a thing of the past. We will switch our focus both mentally and physically to the league, chasing great possibilities until the final match, and we will fight hard in every game. However, Coach Jofuku stated, "There must have been a sense of achievement in the Nabisco Cup. It is easy to say we will switch gears and concentrate right after playing such an intense game, but in reality, it is difficult. The moment we step onto the pitch is when the real battle begins," and we prepared under time constraints to face this match.

　Urawa is currently in 8th place with 46 points. Although they lost 0-3 to Omiya in the last league match on October 25, they have likely taken two weeks to carefully focus on today. This season, they aim for possession football, and in the first half of the season, on March 14, during the away match, they reflected that they were "completely overwhelmed by Urawa's possession (Coach Jofuku)." Seven months have passed since then. Tokyo wants to show the football and growth they have built up to compete.

　On the other hand, Urawa not only focuses on passing work but also utilizes the speed and breakthrough ability of the two forwards, Edmilson and Tatsuya TANAKA, to develop a winning mentality. This match will see midfielder Ponte suspended, so one of the key points will be how to prevent Urawa's two forwards from receiving the ball. In attack, we want to create chances from the sides against Urawa's solid central defense. Above all, Urawa has not won in 13 matches over the past five and a half years, including league and cup competitions. This time, we want to calmly stick to our style of football and aim for victory.

　Suzuki was injured, causing concern, but he is in the starting lineup as he has prepared to start (Coach Jofuku). The team will face the match with the same starting members as in the Nabisco Final. The Ajinomoto Stadium was pleasantly sunny. The stands gathered 40,701 spectators, and the match started at 15:04 with a kickoff in Tokyo.

Although they suppressed Urawa's attack, the first half ended scoreless.

　From the start, Tokyo dominated possession of the ball and aggressively approached the Urawa goal. In the 4th minute, Konno advanced down the left side and sent a cross, with Hirayama shooting in the area. In the 7th minute, from Kajiwara's play, Hirayama on the left front line passed behind the opposing DF. Suzuki ran into this space. They showed good teamwork, but were cut off just before the shot. They quickly earned consecutive corners, and in the 8th minute, Bruno QUADROS's header struck the opposite side's course but was cleared by the Urawa DF who came in to cover. Unable to capitalize on the early chances, the game settled into a calmer flow as time passed.

　In the 21st minute, from the left, Kajiyama passed to Suzuki in the center, who then set up a shot from Yonehira. In the 27th minute, Suzuki entered the right area in response to a vertical pass from Yonehira. Akamine attempted to make a run for the last pass to the center, but was delayed by the opposing defender and could not finish. In the 25th minute, Tokunaga's advance was blocked, allowing Urawa's right back Takahashi to push forward. A cross was delivered to forward Tatsuya TANAKA, but the ball flowed to the far side.

　In the end, while Urawa's shots in the first half were limited to just one, their defensive awareness was high, and Tokyo was unable to attack effectively from the sides. In the 44th minute, Konno made a forward run that exploited a gap in Urawa's defense, creating a big chance. Konno passed to Hanyu on the left side, then to Konno again, and connected directly to Suzuki, with Konno advancing into the left area to deliver the final pass in front of the goal. Akamine dove in with his body towards the near post, but the shot went wide... Unable to capitalize on the chance, the score remained 0-0 as they headed into the second half.

Conceded a goal from a single chance... Launched a fierce attack against Urawa with 10 players.

　In the early part of the second half, Tokyo found their rhythm and attacked starting from Hanyu and Kajiyama. Right after the second half began, Kajiyama sent a floating pass to Hanyu behind the opponent's defense, and Hirayama aimed for the goal but went well over the bar. However, in the 47th minute, a counterattack from Urawa created a crisis. The ball was switched from right to left, and a cross was met by FW Edmilson with a header, but it went just wide of the goal. This was saved by a shooting miss, but in the following 49th minute, Urawa's right back Takahashi exchanged a one-two with MF Haraguchi and broke through to the front line, sending a cross to the center where the free FW Edmilson took a one-touch shot. This powerfully pierced the net... allowing them to score first with a single chance.

　In the 53rd minute, Urawa MF Haraguchi received a second yellow card and was sent off. With Urawa down to 10 men, they changed their formation to a one-top with FW Edmilson, solidifying their defense by filling spaces in the midfield and DF line. In response, Tokyo brought in Nagatomo as a left MF in the 60th minute, replacing Suzuki. Then, in the 69th minute, they brought in Hiramatsu as a DF, with Konno moving to the attacking midfield and Bruno pushing forward, launching a fierce attack. However, every easy cross was consistently cleared away. Meanwhile, Kajiyama calmly sent a pass to exploit the gaps in the opponent's DF, trying to create a chance.

　However, in the 73rd minute, starting from KAJIYAMA, YONEMOTO connected to KONNO, and HEYAMA's shot shook the net, but KONNO was offside in the preceding play. In the 77th minute, they won a right corner kick from TOKUNAGA's cross, and from this flow, KONNO found himself free in the left area and took a decisive shot. Then, in the 78th minute, NAGATOMO's left cross was met by Bruno QUADROS, who headed it down, but both were thwarted by the Urawa goalkeeper's saves.

　In the 84th minute, Tokunaga was substituted for Bruno QUADROS in the center, who aimed a precise mid-range shot that was saved well by the goalkeeper, resulting in a corner kick. In the 87th minute, Nagatomo passed to Hirayama, and Akamine broke through to create a decisive chance, but the shot went wide of the goal... They continued to attack the goal, but as they faced a defensive Urawa, anxiety began to set in, and they could not capitalize on their numerical advantage and scoring opportunities until the end. Without scoring, they suffered a defeat for the first time since the match against Kyoto in Sec. 25 on September 12, extending their winless streak against Urawa to 14 matches...

　[Player Comments] {Konno} "Whether the opponent has 11 players or 10, we will continue to play our football. The pressure from Urawa wasn't too intense, but we might have gotten anxious because we couldn't score despite creating chances. It would have been better if we could have pushed the opponent back a little more and delivered crosses after making them ball watchers, just like we usually do. Still, we were able to create chances. The difference between scoring or not scoring in those moments is huge. If we could have used our heads a bit more and fought calmly, the result would have been different. It's understandable to say, 'If you don't score there, it's hard to move up.'"

　"Bruno QUADROS" "I am very disappointed that we could not achieve a good result. I don't think the performance was bad at all, but we allowed Urawa to take advantage of the few chances they had and scored first. We tried to catch up, but the performance did not translate into results, and I am truly frustrated. (Was there an impact from the Nabisco Final?) In soccer, consecutive matches are a given. In that sense, it's not a matter of time. Today's defeat is unrelated to the Nabisco. It comes down to not being able to capitalize on chances, including my own. I really wanted to win, so I am very frustrated, but... I have not given up on the league yet. We will switch our mindset from today's defeat, and in the next three matches, we will play well one by one and fight until the end."

　[Summary of Coach Jofuku's Press Conference] "Many people came to the venue, but it is very disappointing and regrettable to not achieve a result there. Looking back calmly, the five minutes during which we conceded a goal were deserving of a loss. The remaining 85 minutes are difficult to accept. I would have preferred to fight with 11 against 11, and if that were the case, I believe we could have had a straightforward match without feeling stressed about the officiating. However, a loss is undoubtedly a loss. We continued to miss scoring opportunities and must sincerely accept the fact that we allowed the opponent to score one goal, and we want to aim for consecutive wins in the remaining three matches. Many Tokyo fans came to support us, but despite being at home, we were continuously sung to by Urawa fans, which is nothing short of humiliating. What we can do is to finish above Urawa in the annual standings. I believe that is the only option. (Do you think fatigue from the consecutive matches since the Nabisco Cup affected the team?) I think that depends on people's perspectives or the results. We prepared without regrets, but losing today will be attributed to the Nabisco Cup. That was our situation as well."

　【Urawa - Coach Finke's Press Conference Summary】 "Many players were injured, and in fact, some players who have not fully recovered from their injuries were included in today's lineup. Nevertheless, I believe we were able to show a solid performance. I particularly wanted to demonstrate our fighting spirit to the supporters, and all the players who stepped onto the pitch were able to embody that. Therefore, today's victory is a just result. In the first half, we did not allow the opponent many scoring opportunities, but it is also true that we could not create chances ourselves. After halftime, we were able to improve overall, and in the second half, we created several good scoring opportunities. Considering the play during that period, I think it was reasonable for us to take the lead. After that, we were reduced to ten men, but even in that situation, we knew what we had to do. With a 4-4-1 system, we tried to regain possession of the ball as much as possible and extend the time we kept the ball. (Is the victory more a matter of chance or inevitability?) Being outnumbered 10 to 11, especially away from home, against an opponent who has been in good form and achieving good results, it is understandable to allow the opponent 3 to 4 chances under these circumstances. Also, it is common in football that luck is necessary. In some cases, a small bit of luck can be the difference between scoring a goal or losing. However, in today's match, we did not require a lot of luck."