A match aiming for four consecutive wins with attractive soccer against Hiroshima, who have not won since 2007.

　The league Sec. 4 is being held. We will face Sanfrecce Hiroshima at home at Ajinomoto. In the previous match against Kobe, we scored two goals from sharp counters and achieved three consecutive wins. No one is satisfied with the content, but even so, we want to stubbornly earn points away and aim to win with attractive soccer at home. In that sense, this match will focus on how well we can win with our own style of soccer throughout the 90 minutes.

　However, Hasegawa is suspended for this match. Kajiyama is also dealing with a calf injury and will be absent. As a result, Tanabe, who is making his first start of the season, will play as a defensive midfielder, and Hanyu will take the position just behind the forwards.

　Hiroshima, on the other hand, currently has 2 wins and 1 loss in the league. They welcomed Hajime MORIYASU as their new manager this season, but they are maintaining good form by utilizing the characteristics of the team from last year. Among them, the quick movements of forward Sato and the fluidity that exploits space require the utmost attention. Young and fresh players like midfielder Ohsaki and Nozuta can become a frightening presence if they gain momentum, making it a situation where one cannot afford to relax for a moment. Therefore, we want to be conscious of pressing the source of passes to prevent good passes into Hiroshima's frontline.

　Kajiyama and Hasegawa, the two players who have been the mainstay so far, are absent, making this a crucial moment. However, under the goal of "playing the same style of football regardless of who is on the field (Coach Popovic)," the team aims for victory by utilizing each player's strengths and playing cohesive football. The match started at 14:03 with Hiroshima's kickoff in strong winds and stormy weather.

Utilizing each other's strengths for quick transitions in offense and defense. However, unable to create scoring opportunities.

　From the start, they adopted an aggressive stance, and in the 2nd minute, Tokunaga took the first shot of the day with a long-range effort. However, Hiroshima also focused on quickly returning to defense to eliminate space, aiming to steal the ball in the midfield and launch a counterattack. Tokyo struggled with this and was unable to effectively switch play from vertical passes.

　In defense, they maintained concentration and did not allow Hiroshima to play freely, but in the 20th minute, Hiroshima's shadow MF Osaki spread the ball to the right. He connected with a cross from right MF Mikic, and forward Sato jumped in the center. Tokyo's defense closed in tightly, preventing a shot, but a shape was created. Conversely, in the 23rd minute, midfielder Tanabe intercepted the ball. He quickly passed it forward, and Hanyu advanced with a dribble and took a shot, but... he was unable to hit the target.

　In the 26th minute, from a left corner kick by Hiroshima, FW Sato aimed for the far post. Although he was not allowed to shoot, the ball was skillfully connected to MF Osaki in the center of the area, creating a decisive opportunity, but the ball grazed the Tokyo defense and went out of bounds. In the 38th minute, Morishige intercepted a ball aimed at Hiroshima's front line, and after clever ball control by Kaga, Hanyu, and Lucas, Tanizawa and Takahashi got involved, passing to Tokunaga on the right. They made successive runs from fluid positions and advanced the ball, but it did not lead to a chance. Despite the quick transitions in attack and defense, no decisive opportunities were created, and the first half ended with both teams having three shots each.

Once again, we allowed a goal from FW Sato... marking our first scoreless game of the season and a loss in the league.

　After the start of the second half, Tokyo tried to find their rhythm. In the 49th minute, Takahashi's switch to the side found Ishikawa in the center, who passed to Ota for a left cross. Lucas headed the ball but it went wide. Immediately after, from the center, Hanyu passed to Lucas, who then set up Hanyu for a through ball to Ishikawa making a run behind. It was a good opportunity, but he was offside... In the 54th minute, Takahashi attempted a long shot to draw out the retreating Hiroshima defense, but it lacked power.

　In the 56th minute, unable to capitalize on the chance, Hiroshima DF passed to the holding midfielder Aoyama on the right, and MF Mikic advanced on the side with a dribble. Unable to contain this, a high-precision cross was delivered at an early timing. FW Sato, who had made a perfectly timed run behind the Tokyo DF, could not be caught. Hiroshima scored brilliantly with their first shot of the second half... and allowed the opening goal from a situation they were wary of.

　In the 65th minute, Tanizawa was replaced by Watanabe in the front line, and Ohtake, who made his first appearance of the season, was brought in as left midfielder. The aim was to invigorate the attack by making two substitutions at once. In the 73rd minute, the ball was moved quickly, incorporating a switch of sides, and Ohtake on the left side delivered a cross between the GK and DF. The GK's punched clearance almost reached Tanabe in the right area, but was suppressed by the Hiroshima DF.

　In the 74th minute, from a speedy attack, Ishikawa persisted along the left sideline and brought the ball inside. He played a pass to Lucas in the central area, and when it was dropped, Watanabe made a run but was blocked by the defense, resulting in a corner kick. In the 85th minute, Hirayama was brought on to replace Kaga, increasing the height in the front line, but there were few opportunities to deliver crosses, even including the 4 minutes of stoppage time... Despite pushing into the Hiroshima territory, they could not break through the defensive block until the end, suffering their first scoreless match and their first defeat in the league this season.

　[Player Comments] {Tanabe} "First, I was instructed to start with defense and was conscious of maintaining balance. However, we couldn't create a fluid shape in the team's play, and both holding midfielders ended up dropping back to circulate the ball... It became that way. Hiroshima was quick to pull back from the start. In the second half, I was thinking of trying to move the opponent with one-touch passes, but we were completely targeted for vertical passes. We couldn't make plays that would draw in or engage the opponent's holding midfielders, and we kept passing to areas where they were waiting, resulting in turnovers... It was difficult to make effective vertical passes. However, I believe we can't dwell on this defeat. I want to make sure to apply today's reflections in our practice moving forward."

　Ota: "We couldn't really get to the shooting stage. Especially in the first half, there were no passing lanes, and the opponent quickly fell back into a five-man defense, leaving no space. We couldn't face forward and could only play it back. Perhaps we needed a bit more boldness. In the second half, I think we were able to connect to some extent... The issue now is how to break down opponents like this in the future. I want to take the challenges we faced today positively."

　[Summary of Coach Popovic's Press Conference] "Of course, I cannot be satisfied with the result, but I think the performance was not bad. We continued to try to move the ball and take control, while the opponent defended well and aimed for counterattacks by pulling everyone back. Even against such an opponent, I can appreciate that we were trying to do what we needed to do. I can only congratulate Hiroshima for their solid defense with ten men, and their counterattacks were of high quality. Although we were not fortunate with the result, I want to find the issues from today's match and utilize them to play good football and achieve results."

　(What is the impact of the absence of Hasegawa and Kajiyama?) I believe we showed that what we need to do does not change even without the two of them. I am satisfied with that aspect. In the final moments, we kicked the ball away, but that is not our power play. Our power play is about connecting until the end, doing what we have been doing, and doing what we need to do. I want to apply today's experience to the next time.

　[Hiroshima Coach Moriyasu's Press Conference Summary] "I believe the reason for our victory is that the players ran for 90 minutes with the desire to win and fought with discipline in what we needed to do as a team. In the away match against Shimizu two games ago, we made many supporters feel disappointed in the rain. Today, in this rain, it was good that the players ran for the supporters who came to cheer for us and were able to deliver a victory."

　When the ball is retained during an attack, it is part of the concept for MF Mikic and MF Yamagishi to take high positions, which led to scoring opportunities. The goal itself came from bringing the ball out from our own half, with FW Sato moving into the center for the cross. At halftime, I communicated that while there were several crosses in the first half, we lacked enough players in the center, so we needed to ensure we were properly positioned for the crosses. (Was there a long time spent with the ball being held by Tokyo?) We aimed to quickly transition and create a compact block to respond. I instructed the players to keep their distances close and to respond properly when the opponent entered our block.