We cannot afford to lose consecutive games; let's secure points at home!

　Sec. 27 of the league was held. We faced Albirex Niigata at home in Ajinomoto. In the previous match against Sendai, we suffered a painful come-from-behind loss due to consecutive goals conceded near the end. Although we regret not being able to stop Sendai's momentum, we took the lead twice and always played with the advantage. Since the number of chances is increasing, it is necessary to calmly assess the situation and fight through the final stages from here on without losing confidence, and surely convert it into points.For this match, we changed the lineup from previous league games. Kajiyama and Hanyu, while managing their injuries, adjusted their condition and started. Morishige and Konno formed the center-back pairing, Tokunaga and Kajiyama played as defensive midfielders, and Ishikawa and Hanyu took the flanks. Also, Yonemoto, who had been out for a long time, was included on the bench for the first time this season.On the other hand, Niigata currently sits 10th with 38 points. At the end of August, FW Yano transferred to Germany, and since then they have had a series of matches without wins, but in the previous match against Nagoya, MF Marcio Richards returned from injury. He immediately made an impact, scoring 4 goals against the top team for a convincing victory. MF Marcio Richards can break through situations and is also known for his sharp through passes and free kicks. Since he has the individual ability to "decide the match," we must be highly cautious.However, Coach Okuma emphasized the mindset of not being passive, saying, "We need to prepare for Niigata, but first we must think about plays that annoy the opponent ourselves." By initiating plays that bother the opponent, we need to score goals and secure points at home at all costs. The weather was clear at Ajinomoto. The match kicked off at 15:05 with Niigata starting.

Controlling the ball and advancing with an advantage, but chasing a deficit from a free kick...

　They launched a vigorous attack from the early stages, creating decisive chances starting from the flanks. At 2 minutes into the game, Tokunaga sent the ball into space on the right front, Ishikawa chased at high speed and delivered a quick cross inside. Ohguro rushed to the near post, creating a decisive chance, but his header went off target... At 9 minutes, Nakamura advanced from a pass by Hanyu and went for the finish. At 10 minutes, from a cross by Mukuhara, they earned a right corner kick, and Morishige connected perfectly with Ishikawa's kick for a header, but it was stopped by Niigata's goalkeeper with a great save. At 15 minutes, Niigata's MF Marcio Richards held possession in the center and easily passed into space on the left front. The overlapping left side back Sakai sent in a cross, but it drifted to the far post. Even after that, while attacking, the ball was lost and there were moments when Niigata’s sharp counterattacks, their strength, threatened, but focused defense forced mistakes from the opponent and no danger ensued. Tokyo also launched quick transitions in attack, and at 37 minutes, Tokunaga, who had advanced to the front line, dropped a pass from Nakamura, and Ishikawa received it on the left side, cut inside and took a shot, but it went off target. They were controlling the game, but just before halftime at 44 minutes, from Niigata’s left throw-in, the ball was connected inside, and failing to clear it, Tokunaga fouled MF Marcio Richards, who tried to use his speed to enter in front of the goal from the right. This gave Niigata a free kick just to the right of the penalty arc. MF Marcio Richards directly targeted this free kick, and his sharp kick hit the net... From the free kick they had been wary of, Niigata converted one of their few chances, and Tokyo went into the second half trailing by one goal.

Kajiyama equalized with a penalty kick, and Gonda's fine play secured one point.

　In the second half, chances were created again through the defensive midfielders pushing forward. At the 47th minute, Tokunaga advanced to the left flank and passed to the center. Hirayama laid it off, and from a pass by Kajiyama behind, Ishikawa, who was free in the right area, struck with his right foot, but it went wide... After that, Niigata connected passes and almost gained momentum, but the midfield and DF line coordinated to regain possession and prevented them from finishing. At the 60th minute, Hirayama received a pass from Tokunaga inside the area, was fouled, and earned a penalty kick. Kajiyama calmly struck a powerful kick to the lower left corner of the goal, leveling the score.Amid the rising mood of counterattack at home, the team launched a speedy attack toward Niigata’s goal. At the 71st minute, Kajiyama sent a lob behind the opposing DF, and Daikoku in the right area took a direct shot on the bounce, but it went across the goal. At the 76th minute, from Nakamura’s left throw-in, Ricardinho passed to Kajiyama in the center, who took a step forward and prepared to shoot but was blocked. However, Hirayama ran in to the ball that spilled to the right area and took a decisive shot, but the GK saved it. Also at the 76th minute, from a cross by Mukuhara, Daikoku attempted a diving header but could not hit the target.As the counterattacks exchanged, the team failed to convert key chances, and time passed. Even during 3 minutes of stoppage time, they pushed forward aiming to secure 3 points, but at 90+3 minutes, Gonda’s goal kick was intercepted in the opponent’s half, and Niigata MF MARCINHO launched it into Tokyo’s territory. The clearance failed, and Niigata’s right side back Nishi aggressively entered the area. Substitute Ricardinho fouled from behind, conceding a penalty. Ricardinho received his second caution for this play and was sent off.In the final moments, an absolute crisis was faced, but the penalty kick taken by Niigata MF MARCINHO was saved by Gonda in the lower right corner!!! Thanks to Gonda’s fine play, defeat was avoided, but despite taking more than twice as many shots as Niigata, the team only managed one goal from the penalty and earned just 1 point.Player CommentsGonda: “Regarding Niigata’s penalty, if I move early it becomes a gamble, so I calmly watched MF MARCINHO’s kick and judged. That is something I always keep in mind. However, including the previous goal kick, there are things to reflect on, and I can’t say I’m fully satisfied just because I saved the penalty. It’s important to make this 1 point meaningful going forward.”Kajiyama: “We won the ball well from tough defense and aimed for an additional goal until the end. I wasn’t thinking about a draw. I focused on going forward and playing up front, and the feeling wasn’t bad... For the penalty, I aimed left since I kicked right in the Liga de Quito match. The GK dived after I kicked, so I didn’t think it could be saved. I want to keep winning by continuing to play matches like this.”Coach Okuma’s Press Conference Summary“There were some self-inflicted mistakes like careless passes that somewhat strangled us, but overall the amount of running has been sustained for 90 minutes in both offense and defense. The conceded goal was not due to being broken down near the area or attacking third, but rather self-inflicted. We want to confirm that as a team. The players are working hard. As I said before, I want to approach every match as if it’s a tournament. (Regarding issues and future efforts) I think the amount of running has increased the individual traits and the work that annoys the opponent. The issue with finishing chances is something we see as a team problem, and we want to continue working hard in both offense and defense. We will fight the remaining matches with the mindset of creating goals together.(About the intention behind bringing in Matsushita) It wasn’t because Ishikawa’s running or shooting chances were a problem, but also to raise the overall strength of the 18 registered players. We wanted to add pressure through Matsushita’s accurate crosses by bringing in a fresh player. There was criticism that the flow stopped, but we can’t fight the remaining matches with just 11 players, so we want to evaluate substitutes and strengthen the team despite limited time. (Regarding Hirayama dropping back at times) There is a dilemma there. The number of times he receives the ball should have increased compared to before. Also, with Kajiyama coming in, the number of passes connecting increased. However, since passing causes the opponent to pull back, we need to review high balls and vertical passes as well. Also, not only in heading situations but also when isolated, we want to avoid spending too much time there. We want to thoroughly do the unpleasant work for the opponent, especially in front of the goal.”Niigata Coach Kurosaki’s Press Conference Summary“We knew it would be a difficult match for us at FC Tokyo’s home. We thought Tokyo would come forward at the start, but in the first half they sat back and aimed for counterattacks. We had some opportunities to connect passes, but in slow attacks the passes were intercepted, and there were several dangerous moments in the first half. On the other hand, when we won the ball well and launched counters, we didn’t speed up. If MF Cho Yong-chul and others had been able to run behind at top speed, chances would have increased. We took the lead with a free kick by MF MARCINHO, but gave away a penalty in the second half due to a careless foul. Regarding the last penalty, we trust MF MARCINHO, so it’s unfortunate he missed. Overall, the players fought aggressively, and many supporters came, so I think we were able to play a Niigata-style match.”