Defeated league leaders Sendai and advanced to the Nabisco Semifinal Round

　The second leg of the Nabisco Cup Quarterfinal Round, held three days after the last league match. The first leg, played away on July 25 against Vegalta Sendai, ended in a draw despite taking a two-goal lead. In this second leg, if the match ends scoreless or in a 1-1 draw, Tokyo will advance to the Semifinal Round on away goals.

　However, Coach Ranko POPOVIC stated, "If there is even a slight feeling of being advantageous or having an advantage, you will lose at that point. It's the same for every match, but you must approach it with the mindset that 'everything will be decided in this one-off match. This is the Final Round.' There are times when the result of the first match can be beneficial after fighting like that, but calculating points will not lead to good results," and emphasized that it is a match aimed simply at victory.

　Sendai, on the other hand, has continued to draw in four matches since Sec. 15 of the league on July 14, but by demonstrating resilience and steadily accumulating points, they have once again taken the top spot in the league. Today, it is a situation for Sendai where they must "score goals" and "win," and they will likely come out aggressively even away from home. In response, Tokyo wants to extend the time without conceding any goals. Furthermore, with support from the stands, they aim to gain a psychological advantage and secure victory in a calm manner.

　Regarding the members, the coach said, "With consecutive matches in the league and the exhaustion from the heat, to be honest, there are players I want to rest," so Kaga and Lucas are on the bench. Meanwhile, Edmilson makes his first start. Similar to the match against Urawa, Takahashi is used as a center-back, Nakamura is the right back, and Makuhara is on the left. On the sides are Ishikawa, and Tanizawa is also included in the starting lineup, with Tanabe playing as an attacking midfielder. It feels cooler at Ajinomoto, which seems to have a break from the extreme heat, and the match started at 19:05 with Sendai's kickoff.

End the first half scoreless with calm ball movement and game management

　Calmly entered the match and tried to circulate the ball effectively to launch an attack. In the process, if there was an opening, they actively aimed for chances. In the 2nd minute, Ishikawa received a large cross from Yonemoto in the right area and sent it directly inside, where Edmilson aimed for the goal. In the 4th minute, Hasegawa in the center moved to the right front line. Edmilson broke free and passed to Ishikawa in the center of the area. In the 7th minute, Edmilson was fouled in the opponent's central area, earning a free kick. Nakamura aimed from a distance and targeted the lower right of the goal, but it was saved by the goalkeeper.

　Edmilson demonstrated his ball retention and work rate, increasing the team's ability to advance by reliably securing the ball in the forward line. However, Sendai, who started slowly, gradually began to counterattack, focusing on set plays. In the 14th minute, Sendai's MF Sekiguchi dribbled up the left side and connected with FW Wilson, who moved into the center, breaking into the left area to take a shot. In the 27th minute, they were unable to stop MF Sekiguchi's dribbling breakthrough, which led to MF Yang following up on the outside, and from the sideline, a sharp left cross was delivered to right MF Ota, who rushed in for a header in front of the goal. They created a decisive opportunity, but all attempts went wide of the target.

　In the 29th minute, Tokyo created a scoring opportunity. Yonemoto switched the play from the center to the left. Mukuara, who overlapped, brought the ball forward and delivered a long cross to the far post. Ishikawa on the right side connected with a direct shot, but the powerful strike hit the crossbar... In the 35th minute, Tanabe maintained possession on the left side and connected with Taniyama in the center, who then passed to Nakamura on the right side, who made a run inside and took a shot on target, but it was caught by the goalkeeper. There were moments when Sendai pressed forward, but without panicking, they transitioned from a resilient defense to attack, looking for opportunities. The defense managed to keep a clean sheet, ending the first half scoreless.

Nao Goal! Watanabe scores the second point, advancing to the Semifinal Round as planned!

　At the start of the second half, they faced consecutive scoring opportunities. In the 48th minute, on the left side, Nagizawa passed to Tanabe, who made a run into the left area and delivered a cutback pass in front of the goal. Hasegawa tried to connect with it, but was blocked by a defender just before. Following that, with quick passing, Nagizawa broke into the left area and found himself one-on-one with the goalkeeper from close range. However, the shot was saved...

　If they miss this chance, Sendai will send a long ball to forward Akamine and will attack from set plays. In response, Tokyo brought in Kajiyama in the 60th minute. In the 70th minute, Ishikawa broke through on the left flank, and the pass to the front of the goal went to Tanizawa in the right area. Although he couldn't take a shot here, he made a good decision to connect to the center, and Kajiyama aimed for the goal but was blocked by the defender.

　As time progressed with a score of 0-0, a draw would still secure advancement to the Semifinal Round, but in the 76th minute, Lucas was brought on to take a gamble. In the 81st minute, on the left side of the opponent's half, Lucas passed to Mukuara, who connected with Yonemoto, who exploited the opponent's defense with a lobbed pass. Ishikawa utilized his speed to run in, competing with the opposing defender Park, and managed to loop the ball over the advancing goalkeeper with his right foot. This gently found the net, marking the long-awaited opening goal with a 'Nao Goal'!

　With this, Sendai needed '2 points', and in the 84th minute, they brought in the tall forward Nakahara, gathering long balls to launch a counterattack. Tokyo also substituted Watanabe for Edmilson in the 84th minute. While concentrating on withstanding Sendai's power play, they did not fall back on defense and instead launched a counterattack from there.

　In stoppage time, with tenacious defense, Yonemoto sent a pass from his own half into the opponent's territory. Watanabe broke free to chase the ball that bounced near the opposing defender, dribbling solo. Although the angle was tight after evading the advancing goalkeeper, he neatly slotted the ball from the right area into the left net, scoring the second goal! With a game plan executed as intended, Yonemoto became the catalyst for two goals while maintaining a clean sheet in defense. They secured victory over Sendai and advanced to the Semifinal Round. In the Semifinal Round, they will face Shimizu S-Pulse.

　[Player Comments] {Ishikawa} "The score was 0-0 for a while, and while a draw would have been acceptable to move forward, I wanted to win decisively. We had been struggling in the league, so I also wanted to build some momentum. Today, we managed to control the game well from the first half, and I think the balance between connecting on the ground and targeting behind was good. In the first half, the opponent's defense was tight, and I thought the key moment would be when they got tired and their movement dropped. It’s important to exploit those gaps. The goal was a result of the awareness of going behind, including the passer, Yonemoto. The pass was a good ball. It stopped a bit, and with that length and speed, the GK would come out. The shot was as intended. From the moment I shot until it went in, I kept thinking 'Get in! Get in!' (laughs)"

　Watanabe: "(Regarding the goal) The goalkeeper came out, so I touched the ball early and tried to move my body in from the left. The ball bounced and the angle was lost, but I'm glad I was able to score in the end. However, scoring an additional goal right before the end doesn't make me that happy. What's important is how we can utilize this next time. I want to prepare and do my best for the league matches ahead."

　[Summary of Coach Popovic's Press Conference] "I am evaluating not only the positive results but also the quality of the match content. The previous league match against Urawa was tough, but today, with just three days in between, we were able to play wisely and simply against Sendai, who are at the top of the league. We were able to take control throughout the 90 minutes, and I think we have shown some stability following the Urawa match. All the players gave their best effort. I don't like to single out individuals for praise, but today, Morishige and Takahashi played exceptionally well. I am also satisfied that we were able to fight patiently, tenaciously, and compactly against the top team, Sendai. As you can see, we were able to play connecting football even on a poor pitch.

　(What is the reason for the stability?) We maintained our focus throughout the 90 minutes and there were no plays that led to conceding goals. In previous matches, we often conceded goals due to our own mistakes or how we lost possession rather than being broken down by the opponent. Today, we were concentrated for the full 90 minutes. (Did Edmilson and Lucas effectively utilize their surroundings, allowing other players to shine?) Individual skills alone are not effective, and results cannot be achieved that way. I believe that good individuals contribute through teamwork, which leads to positive results. If we can play more collectively as part of the team, we will become an even better team from here.

　[Summary of the press conference by Sendai's coach Makoto TEGURAMORI] "It was a disappointing result. Since we drew the first match 2-2, we had to score and win today, and I tried my best believing in that possibility. However, due to a defender getting injured during the match, the game remained 0-0, and our game plan to bring in an attacker was slightly disrupted. Nevertheless, we did our best, and the players gave their all even in the midst of consecutive matches. Although we couldn't advance to the top four, I believe we gained something from this experience. I want to channel that into the remaining league matches. I feel sorry, but I also want to thank the Sendai supporters who believed in us and cheered until the end, even on a weekday night. I hope we can continue to fight together to win the title in the league."