A match to regain confidence and escape from adversity

　On Saturday the 21st, Sec. 20 of the league was held. Returning home, they faced Sanfrecce Hiroshima. In the previous match against C Osaka, Morishige was sent off. Unable to overcome the numerical disadvantage, they conceded 4 goals and suffered a complete defeat. The team has not won in the last 5 league matches and is in a difficult situation. Even so, the players look forward as if to confirm their strong feelings. Coach Shirofuku also said, "There was a difference in aggressiveness in the C Osaka match. That is a difference in confidence. Without wins, the mentality tends to weaken, but I want the players to have confidence and stand on the pitch."They want to seize the chance to rise no matter what and gain confidence in this match, but with Morishige suspended for 2 games, Mukuhara was appointed as center back this time. Konno plays as defensive midfielder, Tokunaga as left side back, and Hirayama and Oguro are in the forward line.On the other hand, Hiroshima is 10th. Missing MF Mikicchi and MF Yamagishi due to injury, and currently on a 3-game losing streak, Hiroshima is also expected to aggressively attack aiming to escape this crisis. They use the pitch widely from the defensive line to move the ball, switching play from the sides, but among them, FW Sato’s movements and runs behind the defense are sharp.Against this, it is important to maintain a compact formation and coordinate to defend. It will be tough if they concede the first goal and are forced to retreat, so they want to score first at all costs. While paying attention to how the match starts, they want to switch quickly and attack with confidence. As evening falls, the continuous heatwave has eased a little, but the humidity remains at Ajinomoto. The match started at 18:34 with Hiroshima’s kickoff.

Although they were caught in the rhythm of Hiroshima, they held on well and ended the first half scoreless.

　The early stages saw both teams attacking each other. In the 2nd minute, from Nakamura's right throw-in in the opponent's half, Ishikawa cut inside aiming for a goal, but his shot lacked power and was caught by the GK. In the 8th minute, from a vertical pass by Hiroshima's DF Makino, MF Takahagi, who had moved to the left side, passed into the area. MF Morisaki Hiroshi timed his run well and took a shot. However, the ball went wide of the goal, avoiding danger. In the 9th minute, Hiroshima's right MF Moriwaki advanced high up the pitch and crossed. FW Sato headed the ball centrally but missed the target. In the 11th minute, Konno won a midfield battle and passed to the right to Oguro. Ishikawa broke free with speed and sent in a cross, but it could not be connected centrally. At the 17th minute, Ishikawa seized a loose ball from Matsushita's right corner kick just outside the area and aimed for goal, but it deflected off an opponent and resulted in another corner. Despite three corners in total, they could not convert into a shot on target. In the 18th minute, Tokunaga switched play to the right area where Hirayama laid the ball off, and Oguro made a near-post run, but the GK cut it out, leading to a corner. Afterwards, attempts were made to create chances starting from Ishikawa on the right side, but Hiroshima's superior stamina and quick transitions gradually allowed them to gain control of the rhythm. Nevertheless, the defense remained focused, effectively suppressing Hiroshima's second line runs. In the 35th minute, Hiroshima's right MF Moriwaki dribbled up the side, beat Tokunaga in a one-on-one, cut inside, and took a shot, but Gonda made a great save to force a corner. At the 40th minute, Hiroshima FW Sato received a wedge pass and, through skillful hold-up play, DF Makino charged into the left area and sent a final pass centrally. It was a decisive moment, but a mistake helped avoid danger. However, from midway through the first half, even when holding the ball, they could not create situations to switch play into dangerous areas. The first half ended goalless.

Unable to create an attacking shape, conceded 2 goals, and suffered a complete defeat...

　From the start of the second half, Otake was brought on for Matsushita to aim for a goal. In the 56th minute, Ishikawa received a right throw-in, turned toward the center, and took a shot. However, that was the only shot in the second half... Immediately after, in the 57th minute, Hiroshima launched a quick counterattack starting from DF Stoyanov. A pass was sent from right MF Moriwaki to the center, which Kim Young-gun failed to clear, and the central MF Takahagi spread the play to the left. Left MF Hattori struck a shot from the area, and the ball went into the net on the opposite side... Once again, they conceded the opening goal. At the 58th minute, Shigematsu was brought on for Hirayama, but they could not change the bad flow. In the 65th minute, from a side change by Hiroshima, left MF Hattori sent a ball to the center, which Mukuhara tried to clear, but it hit his leg and spilled in front of FW Sato who had rushed out from behind, and the shot was surely put in, resulting in a two-goal deficit. Still, at the 66th minute, Ricardinho was brought on for Oguro to launch a counterattack, but the leading Hiroshima firmly solidified their defense. In the 70th minute, Otake tried to break into the area following a pass from Konno to Ishikawa, but was blocked by Hiroshima's DF. After that, Shigematsu and Otake boldly tried to make moves, but inside the area, they were repeatedly blocked by Hiroshima's defense and could not bring the ball to a finish. In the 88th minute, Otake was replaced by Shigematsu who made a move in the area, earning a left corner kick. Otake connected a short pass to Ricardinho, but the pass to Shigematsu did not go through. In the 90th minute, Shigematsu in the right area received a pass from Otake and prepared to shoot, but Hiroshima's defense closed in quickly and blocked it. Throughout the 90 minutes, they could neither find their rhythm nor create attacking opportunities. They conceded two goals in that situation and ended in a complete defeat. 【Player Comments】《Konno》“We tried to play our soccer while nullifying Hiroshima’s strengths, but we couldn’t bring the game to our pace, and the time to endure became long. I wanted to fight aggressively, but the ball was circulated and our pressing didn’t work well. As a team, we considered attacking from the sides, but I don’t think we made effective plays. We couldn’t take the ball from the opponent. Without winning the ball, our attack can’t start. The balance was off. We have to find the trigger to rise ourselves. It’s a tough situation, but we want to overcome it.” 《Mukuhara》“In the first half, we started with defense and I think it wasn’t bad. In the second half, we tried to score but couldn’t create momentum and conceded. When you concede first, a bad image crosses your mind. We wanted to win, but things went in a bad direction. It’s not fun now and it’s tough, but that’s why we have to work hard.” 【Coach Jofuku’s Press Conference Summary】“The players showed a fighting spirit and fought until their stamina lasted. It’s regrettable that the results didn’t follow, but the content also revealed issues and differences with the opponent. For example, the quality of attack. Including decision-making and technique, I think we were a bit lacking. Because of that, we lost the ball and had to use a lot of energy on defense, entering a negative cycle. Despite being tired from consecutive matches, we couldn’t use the remaining energy well. However, since the players worked hard, I strongly reflect on myself. We received boos after the match, but I want to take them all on myself. The players fight on the ground, on the stadium pitch. I want them to focus on the next match. The team desperately needs points now, so I want the players to regain confidence. I want them to stand on the pitch with a mental state and clear mind that can bring out each other’s maximum individual performance. Of course, we must not concede goals, and we must score to get 3 points. First, I think it’s important to stand on the pitch with confidence.” 【Hiroshima Coach PETROVIC’s Press Conference Summary】“Tokyo is a wonderful team. Against them, we controlled the game both offensively and defensively and won. From the outside, it might seem like a great victory, but it was close until the very end. We had a similar game in the previous match against Omiya, but after taking the lead, we were caught up and then reversed by an unfortunate goal. We created many chances but couldn’t score and lost. Today, however, we were able to score. Ideally, if we are a team that can create many chances, we should have won by leading 3 or 4 goals. The fact that we didn’t means there is still room for growth. (Recently, we had been conceding from the right side, but today we defended well.) Today, about 10 crosses came from the right side, but there is no team in the world that can completely prevent crosses. Personally, I think it’s easier to defend if the opponent crosses from near the corner area. The most dangerous and unpleasant things were today’s FW Sato, MF Takahagi, and MF Morisaki’s runs leading directly to goals and the passes that come there. The side is secondary. If you concede from a cross, the talk is about not letting the side be broken, but whether the side was broken or not is not a directly interesting topic in soccer. Even top clubs in the world firmly suppress the middle and the places they hate to be attacked. They place center backs who can clear the ball and defend solidly. After all, soccer is about going toward the goal, so the middle is the most dangerous.”