The long-awaited J1 home opening match, facing Nagoya

　The league Sec. 2 will be held, welcoming Nagoya Grampus at Ajinomoto for the home opener. In the previous match, despite losing momentum to Omiya, the team managed to regroup and defended the single goal scored by Lucas. They fought through without showing signs of fatigue from the consecutive matches, and this match will be one where they want to carry the momentum of that victory forward.

　In today's practice, we mainly focused on the formation that worked well in the Omiya match, with Kajiyama playing as an attacking midfielder and Hasegawa in a defensive midfield role. We confirmed our defensive coordination and emphasized the mindset of 'finishing with a shot,' dedicating time to enhance our common understanding. This match, Ishikawa will start, while Tanizawa will begin on the bench. Additionally, Yonemoto will also make his first appearance on the bench this season.

　Nagoya, on the other hand, finished second in the last league. They missed out on the championship by just one point, but they are undoubtedly a dominant team in J1. With high-caliber players like GK Narazaki, DF Tulio, MF Danielson, and FW Tamada, as well as a stable game flow and strong competitiveness, these are certainly Nagoya's strengths. In this match, MF Ogawa, Fujimoto, and Nakamura will be absent, while FW Nagai, known for his speed, will be utilized, and MF Yoshimura will play as a defensive midfielder. Of course, the main attacking force will be FW Kennedy. He has absolute height, and it may be difficult to win in one-on-one situations. Therefore, we want to prevent conceding by not allowing him to receive the ball in a good position.

　In attack, the key point will be how to shake the tall Nagoya defenders and draw them forward. By taking action and minimizing mistakes, we aim to improve precision in both offense and defense, striving for victory. The cold rain that had been falling since the daytime finally began to let up at Ajinomoto. The match started at 19:04 with Nagoya's kickoff.

Unable to grasp the rhythm, allowed Nagoya to attack and conceded a goal...

　From the beginning, Nagoya took control of the rhythm. Tokyo struggled to settle the ball in front of Nagoya's tough defense, losing possession and sending long balls forward, which allowed FW Kennedy to lead the attacks. At 15 minutes, Lucas launched a sharp counterattack and ran forward, while Kajiyama advanced with a dribble, but was thwarted by Nagoya's quick defense. At 20 minutes, after persistently connecting from a right corner kick, Ishikawa passed it into the middle. Kajiyama aimed for the goal from the loose ball but couldn't get a shot off.

　In the 23rd minute, Lucas received a pass from the left side and aimed for a shot from the middle, but it went wide. As a result, the only shot taken in the first half was this one by Lucas. In the 26th minute, after winning a tussle in midfield, Kajiwara passed to Ishikawa, who sprinted down the side and sent a negative pass to the center, but Hasegawa's timing was off as he ran in. In the 28th minute, Ishikawa cut inside and tried to create a chance from a dribble, but there was no path in front of the Nagoya defense, and he couldn't finish.

　During this period, Tokyo attempted to attack from the sides, focusing on Ishikawa's sharp movements, and seemed to be gaining momentum, but there were many mistakes, preventing them from taking full control. In the 36th minute, a pass sent forward by Tokyo lacked precision, allowing a one-touch connection from a Nagoya defender's header. Unable to stop this, Nagoya's midfielder Kennedy made a through pass to the front line. Tamada broke free, and with a well-placed lob shot after dribbling, he scored past goalkeeper Gonda, resulting in a goal conceded...

　Unable to create a real chance, we headed into the second half trailing by one goal.

Nao scored 2 goals, Aria scored a header to turn the game around, achieving 3 goals for a comeback victory!

　However, in the second half, they succeeded in regrouping by being aware of the distance and positioning between players. Gradually, the passes started to flow, and Tokyo began to find their rhythm. In the 57th minute, Ishikawa on the right side passed to Tokunaga, who moved up the middle and made a vertical pass. This was cut off and did not lead to a chance, but immediately after, in the 59th minute, starting from Ota in the left area, a pass was sent to Hanyu in front of the goal, who aimed for the goal as he turned around. The shot was blocked by a defender, but Ishikawa reacted to the ball that spilled into the right area and struck it cleanly with his left foot into the goal! They equalized early in the second half.

　Taking this opportunity, Tokyo launches an all-out offensive. In the 63rd minute, Ishikawa connects with Hanyu with a series of short passes in the front line, and Kajiyama turns and shoots. Following that, Hasegawa in the center makes a surprising pass to Hanyu on the right side. Hanyu receives the ball, turns, and unleashes a powerful shot directly, but it goes wide. Nagoya responds by bringing in DF Daniel in the 64th minute, trying to counter with a formation that moves DF Tulio up one line.

　However, the momentum did not change, and in the 67th minute, from a corner kick by Tokyo, Ishikawa on the right flank connected back to Takahashi in the center, who sent a floating pass to the left area. Kaga carefully headed it back to the center, and Hasegawa, who dove in at the perfect timing from the opposite side, scored with a powerful header into the back of the net! GOAL!! GOAL!! Even after taking the lead, they did not ease their attacking efforts.

　In the 73rd minute, Ota's feed was cleared, and it briefly became Nagoya's ball, but Lucas intercepted it by sandwiching the opponent and passed it to Kajiyama in the center. Kajiyama made a good decision and sent a through pass to the front line. Here, Nao, who ran in from the left, scored with a precise shot, getting the third goal as they pressed on, pulling away from Nagoya.

　Nevertheless, Nagoya persisted, and in the 87th minute, FW Kennedy's shot from a free kick hit the crossbar. The rebound was kicked in by FW Nagai, allowing them to close the gap, and the final stages became frantic. However, in the 90th minute, YoneMoto was brought on for KajiYama to strengthen the front line. YoneMoto, who stepped onto the pitch for the first time in about a year, tried to suppress Nagoya's power play by pressing from the front. During the long 5 minutes of stoppage time, Nagoya DF Danilson received a red card and was sent off.

　The match heated up, but in the 90th minute +7, Hirayama came on. Tokyo calmly held on until the final whistle and achieved a remarkable comeback victory.

　[Player Comments] {Ishikawa} "The team became completely different in the first and second halves. The previous match had a similar development, and while we were able to make adjustments, it's disappointing. However, I want to think positively about being able to win at home, especially with a comeback victory. (Regarding the equalizing goal) We were able to create a good shape on the left side, so I tried to move inside to support. I was careful about my positioning and ran believing that the ball would come here. (Regarding my second goal) I was always conscious of the transition from defense to attack and the timing of my runs. Above all, the atmosphere at Ajinomoto was the best, and being at home was amazing. The supporters fought with us last season, even during tough times. So this season, I want to show that we are getting stronger with each match and give back to them."

　"Hasegawa" "In the first half, there were many passing mistakes, and I caused trouble for the team. So in the second half, I was thinking about how to make up for it. I feel I need to show more of a forward attitude, but I believe that led to the goal. I'm not very good at heading, but being able to get into the opponent's area is also one of my strengths. I have played three official matches so far, and I approached them with the same mindset as always, but home games are indeed great. With so many supporters coming out, the atmosphere was really good. Being able to turn the game around in this way should also be a plus for us."

　【Summary of Coach Popovic's Press Conference】 "The result could not have been better, but why couldn't we play like we did in the second half from the beginning? In the first half, we showed too much respect to our opponents. We couldn't hold back our own strength and do what we needed to do. I knew that if we could show our strength, we could play like we did in the second half, so I personally cannot understand why the first half turned out this way. In the first half, Nagoya had better ball possession and their movements were quicker. However, once we woke up in the second half, we stuck to our style of football and ultimately managed to score more points than our opponents and win. I think it was a spectacular match. It turned into a scoring battle that satisfied our fans and supporters, but the football I aim for is to play attractive football that everyone can enjoy in every match. I believe we were able to show that kind of football today, and I hope everyone was satisfied."

　[Nagoya - Summary of Coach STOJKOVIC's Press Conference] "The obvious thing is that we are not happy. However, in terms of our mindset, I think we were able to play our football. Five goals were scored today, and it must have been amazing for those who came to watch. In the first half, we dominated, and we were able to do what we needed to do in terms of style. However, in the second half, we stopped playing. Tokyo's first goal was a fluke, like a ping-pong goal, but the second and third goals came from our defensive mistakes. When you make mistakes, you must always pay the price. Also, from about the 15th minute of the second half, there were no clear attacks, and we were confused up front. This gave Tokyo the opportunity to counterattack. We must fight until the end with decisiveness and concentration. I believe the situation would have changed if we had scored the second goal, but that was far away."