With a body full of injuries, aiming for victory with a strong will!

In Sec. 23 of the league, we face Júbilo Iwata away. In the previous match against Urawa, we conceded a goal from a penalty kick and lost, marking eight league matches without a win. During this period, Takahashi, Suzuki, and Hanyu were consecutively injured and left the lineup, leaving the team truly battered and bruised. Even so, Coach Shirofuku said, "Nothing comes from lamenting, and nothing will be given if we just wait," and continued that they want to "turn as much as possible into a positive by their own strength."Iwata currently sits 12th with 27 points. In the league, they have won 3 and lost 1 in the last 4 matches, but including the Nabisco Cup and Emperor's Cup, they have won 4 consecutive matches at Yamaha Stadium, showing strong home form. This match, MF Nasu is suspended, so MF Ueda and Yamamoto will pair up in the defensive midfield. Defensively, sharp movements and reactions to crosses by FW Maeda require careful attention. Coordination and physical commitment in the final moments are necessary, and how to shut down long balls to FW Maeda will be a key point.Tokyo returns Kim Young-gun to the starting lineup after suspension. Tokunaga is positioned at right side back, Morishige at defensive midfield, with Kajiyama and Matsushita serving as two shadows in a 4-1-2-3 formation. Coach Shirofuku said, "The system is not万能, and of course the new formation has both advantages and disadvantages due to unfamiliarity. We want to compare these and bring an overall positive effect." Also, So Yondoku, recently recovered from injury, is on the bench and expected as a new attacking option.The players unanimously say, "We will do anything that benefits the team," and are united and looking forward. The focus will be on how to evade Iwata's intense pressing and create chances. Also, how to steal the ball against their side attacks and turn it into counterattacks. We want to suppress Iwata's side-based attacks and FW Maeda, and snatch victory. The match kicked off at 14:03 at Yamaha Stadium with Iwata starting the game.

Trailing by 2 points, it's a tough situation...

　The match progressed at a high pace from the start. At 6 minutes, Ricardinho cut inside the opponent on the left side and crossed. Matsushita, who advanced to the center of the area, headed the ball but was offside. At 9 minutes, Matsushita moved to the right. From there, Kajiyama brought the ball inside and aimed for the goal, but was blocked, and they suffered a counterattack starting from Iwata FW Maeda. Unable to stop this, a left cross was delivered to FW Elsinho, but Gonda caught it. Both teams fought for the ball, and the game saw frequent changes between offense and defense. At 18 minutes, during a back-and-forth battle, Tokyo’s defense was targeted behind, and a cross was sent to Iwata MF Funatani, who broke through on the left front just onside. Tokyo failed to mark FW Elsinho at the far post, and he scored with his right foot, conceding a goal. Tokyo launched a counterattack. At 20 minutes, Morishige → Ishikawa on the right side sent an early cross back. Kajiyama, running into the center, connected with a header but it went over the goal. At 23 minutes, a ball from Konno to forward Ohguro was blocked by Iwata’s defense, but Ishikawa, who drifted left, picked up the clearance and pushed forward, aiming for the goal. However, he was blocked by Iwata’s quick defensive reaction. At 28 minutes, Ishikawa sent a fast cross from the left side, earning a corner kick. From Matsushita’s left corner, Ricardinho took a shot in the scramble in front of the goal but it hit a defender. Kajiyama’s follow-up shot from the rebound was also blocked and caught by the goalkeeper. They seemed to be gaining momentum, but at 34 minutes, Iwata FW Maeda executed a one-two with DF Komano and moved in front of the goal. With skillful movement, he evaded Tokyo’s defense and scored, giving Iwata a two-goal lead. Facing a tough situation, at 41 minutes, Kim Young-gun, who was injured in the waist, was replaced by Otake. The formation was changed to 4-4-2, aiming for a counterattack. However, the first half ended as it was.

Ishikawa scores his first goal of the season, but it falls short.

　In the second half, Tokyo evaded Iwata's press and connected passes, gradually gaining control of the pace. At the 58th minute, from a large side change by Morishige, Matsushita on the left side delivered a liner-type cross. Okuro tried to connect with it but was tightly marked by the opposing DF and couldn't shoot as he wanted. After that, a pass mistake in midfield led to a sharp counterattack from Iwata, creating a dangerous moment, but Gonda and the team responded tenaciously and did not concede any additional goals. At the 60th minute, Okuro and Kajiyama chased the ball in midfield, and Ishikawa stole a loose ball from the opposing DF on the right side, brought it inside, and boldly aimed for a middle-range shot. His powerful shot shook the net and scored a goal! This was Nao's first goal of the season, narrowing the gap to one point and raising the mood for a comeback. At the 70th minute, Hirayama was brought on to replace Okuro. Immediately after, during a right corner kick, Morishige took a shot from the rebound after a contest with Hirayama, but it was blocked by the post. At the 74th minute, Ricardinho was replaced by Maeda, who made his first league appearance since transferring, to push the attack. After that, Iwata kept two forwards and pulled back to their own half, aiming for counters from a solid defense. In the final stages, Konno was moved up to defensive midfield to approach Iwata's goal, but the overall stamina gradually dropped, and despite sending long balls to the front and trying to create decisive chances starting from Hirayama, they could not do so. Ultimately, the match ended 1-2, marking their second consecutive league defeat. 【Player Comments】 《Ishikawa》"Each player is working hard and fighting with strong determination. However, we haven't been able to turn that strength into something bigger as a team. That is frustrating... (Today, the formation was changed from 4-4-2 to 4-1-2-3?) All of us players trust the coach and play united under his plan. From the outside, it might seem like the system is to blame, but that is not the cause of the defeat. If we get results with this, people will say the formation was good. (About the goal) It was from a distance, but I aimed because I could see the goal. I think there were other choices more typical of my style to break through, but I thought scoring one goal would give us momentum and a chance to turn the game around, so I took a bold shot. I believe it was a goal scored with heart. However, it's disappointing that despite practicing and shooting every day, this was my first goal today. I can't let it end here; I want to show the results of my training more on the pitch and win. Today, the supporters gave us such loud cheers, and I want to respond to that somehow. Of course, I have a strong desire to win and to score goals, but maybe we also need the mindset to support each other and enjoy playing football. Anyway, I want to keep going without getting discouraged and fight together with the supporters." 《Konno》"One of the reasons for the defeat was that we couldn't keep compact overall. The distance between each player was too far, and the balance was poor. At first, we couldn't mark Iwata's sides well, and maybe our desire to score was too strong. Iwata took advantage of that. We tried to use the three forwards wide, but Iwata's defensive organization was also high quality. They were well aware of cutting off each passing lane, and when the ball was switched to the opposite side, everyone repositioned well, so we couldn't use the front effectively. But even if we are defended like that, we have to overcome it. We need to be creative, like skipping a player with a pass or making big side changes. That is still an area where the team needs improvement. (Was it more stable with double defensive midfielders?) With two defensive midfielders, the roles become clearer, but that was the result of trying the one defensive midfielder formation as a challenge. It's not that one system is better than the other; we want to analyze the points to reflect on and improve next time. We can't afford to look down and stop moving now." 【Coach Shirofuku's Press Conference Summary】"First, I want to sincerely thank the fans. I felt once again that they are Tokyo's treasure. I want to repay their feelings. From the previous match to today, we tried something that the players haven't been doing continuously with this team. To raise this team one level or to avoid the realistic threat of relegation battles, we have been thinking together with the players about what to do with this team, always keeping those two things in mind. However, in the first half, the new attempts went awry. I take responsibility for making that happen. After returning to the original system, we scored, but if we keep playing games where conceding a third or fourth goal is possible, the situation will become more precarious. We will once again prepare carefully with the players about what we should do now. (Why was Young Gwon KIM substituted?) Due to injury. It's his back, but we haven't received an official diagnosis from the doctor yet. It is probably a slipped disc." 【Iwata Coach Yanagishita's Press Conference Summary】"In the first half, both the ball and players moved well, and we played with a good feeling. Our defense was also fairly stable, so I think it was good. In the second half, the opponent changed their system, and we were unsure about who should mark Ishikawa, Otake, or their defensive midfielders, or whether our defensive midfielders should move forward or not. This indecision created space in midfield, and we were pressed, but we stayed focused and tenacious until the end and earned 3 points, which I think was very good. Throughout the game, after going 2-0 up, we had several chances to score a third goal, and if we had finished those chances, the game would have been easier. Tough games will continue from now on, so we want to make sure to convert every chance reliably."