Stop the losing streak at home and finish the first round of the league with a victory

　As a conclusion to the first round of league matches, Sec. 17 will be held, facing Gamba Osaka at home. In the previous match, they were outplayed by Iwata both offensively and defensively, suffering their second consecutive defeat. They are in a difficult situation without results, but they want to stop the losing streak with their own style and direction of play. They are determined to secure 3 points at home.

　G Osaka, currently with 13 points, is in 16th place. After replacing coach Matsunami at the beginning of the season, they were trying to regroup and had begun to find a way to rise, but in the last match against Kashiwa, they suffered a defeat with 6 goals conceded. At the same time, DF Nakazawa and PAULINHO have been injured and are out, so it can be said that their difficult situation continues.

　However, the individual abilities of G Osaka's players are recognized by everyone. That is why, if they can fully utilize the playmaking ability of MF Endo, the wide defensive range of DF Konno, and the quick pressure forward, Tokyo will struggle. This match will inevitably draw attention to the matchup with G Osaka's DF Konno and the showdown against Lucas's former club, but what will be tested is the team's strength. We want to aim for victory by working together as a whole and taking control in both offense and defense.

　In Tokyo, with Hyun Soo JANG absent due to his activities with the Korea national team for the London Olympics, and Hashimoto away for the U-19 Japan national team activities, Nakamura was used as the left back for his first start of the season. HASEGAWA moved to the left side, and Tanabe played as an attacking midfielder. At the start of the game, the rain temporarily weakened, but it occasionally fell heavily, and under unstable weather conditions, the match kicked off at 18:35 with G Osaka's kickoff.

Nakamura, making his first start, scores the opening goal right after the start! Lucas marks a brilliant two goals!!

　Tokyo showed an aggressive attitude from the start, demonstrating momentum forward. In the 3rd minute, Nakamura on the left side initiated a dribble after a series of passes in midfield and attempted to finish from the left area. This was initially blocked by G Osaka, but he persistently pressed the opposing defense to regain the ball, broke through, and shot with his right foot, slipping it under the opposing goalkeeper! Nakamura capitalized on his chance to start for the first time this season, scoring an early goal!

　However, G Osaka did not look down and in the 9th minute, FW Abe took a shot. In the 10th minute, FW Sato broke free on the left flank and carried the ball into the area unmarked. In the 12th minute, a left cross almost reached FW Sato at the far post, but they maintained their concentration and managed to stop it. Then, in the 17th minute, Lucas received a pass from Takahashi in midfield after connecting from the defensive line, exchanged passes with Nakamura on the left side. Seeing that there was no pressure, he boldly aimed for a long shot from slightly left in the opponent's half! The no-spin shot dropped just before the goal and hit the net! They scored an additional goal at a good time.

　Tokyo has seized the flow of the match. In the 24th minute, Takahashi made a side change to Hasegawa, who was advancing up the right side. He carried the ball into the right area, but just before the shot, it was deflected for a corner kick. In the 30th minute, Hasegawa took a shot from a free kick situation. However, after missing that chance, immediately afterward, G Osaka MF Nikawa sent a pass to FW Abe, who broke into the area. Gonda was judged to have committed a foul against him, resulting in a penalty kick being awarded. In the 31st minute, this penalty kick was calmly converted by G Osaka MF Endo, allowing them to close the gap.

　However, without allowing the opponent to find their rhythm, Tokyo initiates their own style of football. In the 37th minute, they cut off the opponent's ball and launched a counterattack. Hasegawa passed to Lucas on the right side, who directed the ball to Taniyama making a run inside, resulting in a decisive shot. Although this went wide, they scored an additional goal just before the end of the first half in the 44th minute.

　Kaga from his own half passes to Takahashi, and Tanabe near the center circle sends a lob pass to Lucas, who tries to break through the opponent's DF. Showing excellent coordination, he evades the G Osaka DF with a trap, carefully assesses the GK, and smoothly slots in a soft shot for a GOAL!! Lucas scores his second goal of the day with a clever finish, pulling ahead of G Osaka as they head into the second half.

Although we conceded the second goal and allowed G Osaka to close the gap, we won with three goals.

　In the early stages of the second half, Tokyo launched an aggressive attack. In the 49th minute, they executed a powerful counterattack, with HASEGAWA dribbling forward. He drew the opposing defender near the edge of the area and sent a final pass to the unmarked Tanizawa in the right area. Tanizawa aimed for the goal with a looping shot, but it was saved by the goalkeeper... In the 57th minute, HASEGAWA brought the ball into a high position on the left side of the area and sent a final pass to Tanabe, who was closing in on the near post, but he was pressured by G Osaka defender Konno, and the shot could not be taken.

　Unable to capitalize on the chance, in the 62nd minute, G Osaka's left-back Fujiharu advanced, and after some persistence in the front line, a left corner kick was awarded. This corner was connected with a short pass, and after exchanging passes with midfielder Endo, Fujiharu dribbled to gauge the distance and easily delivered a cross. Tokyo could not clear this, and the ball fell to Morishige's feet, where it was met by G Osaka forward Sato behind him... This led to the second goal conceded due to a lapse in concentration.

　After once again falling behind by one goal, we were dominated by G Osaka, facing a fierce counterattack. In the 79th minute, a long ball from G Osaka exploited the space behind Tokyo's side, allowing MF Endo to break into a high position in the area. We couldn't catch this, creating a decisive opportunity for them, but in the end, Tokunaga managed to slide and escape to a corner kick. In the 88th minute, we tried to cut G Osaka's passing play, but we couldn't take the ball, and it was passed to G Osaka MF Myojin, who aimed for a shot just before the right area, but it went over the bar.

　In stoppage time, a free kick was awarded to G Osaka, and a kick sent forward by MF Endo from the left side was punched away by Gonda. The loose ball reached G Osaka FW Sato in the left area, but he missed the shot... In the final stages, the team lost rhythm and struggled to connect passes, resulting in being pushed back, but they did not allow a goal in the end. They scored 3 goals for the first time since the match against Tosu on May 20, achieving victory after 3 matches. They secured 3 points at home.

　[Player Comments]《Lucas》"My first goal was from a distance that is within my shooting range, and I made a good impact. The second goal came from a really good pass from Tanabe. My important first touch went well, and after that, I was able to calmly finish. I prefer the second goal because it involved everyone's efforts. It was a goal that came from everyone's involvement in the passing, so I'm happy. We are aiming for the top. Today, regardless of the opponent, I had the feeling that we absolutely cannot lose if we want to stay competitive for the top positions from here."

　Nakamura: "It was my first start of the season, but mentally I was the same as always, standing on the pitch with the feeling of wanting the team to win first and foremost. The opening goal had some luck to it, but I think it was good that I was able to get up there and take a shot. However, I believe that producing results means keeping a clean sheet. Especially in the second half, I wanted to connect a bit more, but G Osaka's midfield was skillful, and their full-backs positioned themselves high, making it difficult to build up. There are many points for reflection."

　【Summary of Coach Popovic's Press Conference】 "Considering the current situation of the team, we must be satisfied with obtaining 3 points today. I believe we were in control for most of the match, but after taking the lead, we let our guard down and created a situation where we suffered ourselves. Of course, we have respect for G Osaka, but we became the most dangerous presence for ourselves. In the second half, there were parts where we were afraid to connect as we had been doing, and there were moments when we easily kicked the ball away."

　Of course, G Osaka has many wonderful players and is a high-quality team, but we have not been able to do what we have been working on until now, and we have not done it. We ended up helping G Osaka. In the case of a certain player, they ran into individual play without understanding team play. We must understand that showing gaps with lazy play can turn a two-goal lead into something that makes us suffer. Because we are leading, I want them to tighten up and learn to do it for the team, and if they can't do that, it will be difficult to rise up for a long time. I would like to confirm the penalty kick again, but I wonder how it was... that's how I feel.

　[G Osaka - Coach Matsunami's Press Conference Summary] "In the last match, we conceded too many goals, so this week we focused on defense in training. At the start, there was a general awareness of that, but we fell behind due to a single play. In the second half, I think there was a feeling that if we could score, we could somehow turn the game around. However, when we concede easily like the first and third goals, it takes power to turn things around. We need to improve the quality of both individual and group defense, such as closing down on opponents. While we have attacking power as a weapon, I felt that we cannot achieve results unless we score while maintaining a balance in defense. Good defense is necessary to create a good rhythm in attack. If we cannot control the beginning and the end of the match, I think we will continue to face tough battles."