Already a top match. Challenging the in-form Yokohama FM.

After two matches in the Nabisco Cup, the league resumes with a match against Yokohama F. Marinos in Sec. 4. They will face them away. In the Nabisco Cup, they won one and drew one without key players such as Takahashi from the Japan national team and Gonda and Hyun Soo JANG from the South Korea national team. In particular, in the previous match against Kashima, Lee and Higashi scored their first goals and achieved a come-from-behind victory. They aim to continue this momentum and build up their quality and precision in this match.

Yokohama FM, who they are facing, is on a 5-game winning streak in official matches including the Nabisco Cup this season. They are currently in first place in the league and can be considered to be in excellent form. In this match, FW Marquinhos is suspended, but FW Fujita will lead the attack with MF Nakamura in the attacking midfield position and MF Hyodo and rookie Sato on the wings. They will also have DF Amano as their right back.

Yokohama FM's accurate kicks from MF Nakamura and MF Hyodo's runs are their biggest weapons, but the key will be how well they can withstand their opponent's attacks and endure the pressure. They will need to quickly transition between offense and defense, maintain their energy, and control the midfield in order to score.

Tokyo's national team players Takahashi and Gonda are also in the starting lineup. Watanabe is at the top, and Lee is making his first league start in a formation close to a two-top. Hasegawa and Takahashi will form a double pivot as they face the match. The season has just begun, but this round is already a top battle. The match started at 19:04 with Yokohama FM's kickoff at the chilly Nissan Stadium, where it looks like it might start raining any moment.

Concentrating on both offense and defense, Lee scores the first goal of the league match!　

Both teams tried to take control, and in the early stages, there was a back-and-forth battle for the ball. In the 9th and 11th minutes, Takahashi tried to break the deadlock and establish an attacking rhythm with consecutive shots from outside the box. In the 13th minute, Li launched a counter attack and Watanabe, who had stolen the ball from the opposing DF in the left area, attempted a shot with his left foot. However, the ball curved to the right and did not connect with Li, who had made a run into the box.

In the 16th minute, Yokohama MF Nakamura made a through pass to left MF Hattori, but Tokunaga responded perfectly. In the 22nd minute, Yokohama FM MF Nakamura made another long pass to MF Hattori who entered the left area, but Kaga made a sliding tackle and took the ball. With focused defense, they did not allow Yokohama FM to create chances in front of goal. From there, they quickly connected to their attacks.

At the 27th minute, a pass was connected from a left throw-in, and Lucas in the center dropped the ball with a heel to Hasegawa on the left front line. Ota ran there and crossed the ball directly. The ball with momentum was trying to be cleared by the opponent's DF with a header in front of the goal, but Li quickly reacted to the ball that spilled into the right area. He kicked it directly and scored a goal! Li marked his first goal in the league match and took the lead with consecutive goals in the second official match!!

In the 33rd minute, Yokohama FM's first shot was taken by MF Nakamura, but it was saved by Gonda. In the 41st minute, a through pass to Yokohama FM's front line was received by FW Fujita, who broke through to the left area, but the shot was blocked. They maintained their focus on both offense and defense, leading by one point as they headed into the second half.

Watanabe scores the equalizer, but concedes 3 goals in the second half and loses the lead...

In the 48th minute of the second half, Lucas from the center passed to the right and ran into the opponent's DF. From the left side, Kindergarten made a run into the area, but was cut off by the DF just before the final play. In the 58th minute, Kindergarten passed to Lee in the center and moved towards the goal. Lee then passed to the right, and Takahashi, who had moved up to the front line, crossed the ball on the ground. The flow of passes almost led to a goal for Yokohama FM, but Takahashi's final pass to Kindergarten narrowly missed and was caught by the goalkeeper.

Tokyo seemed to have gained momentum by successfully suppressing Yokohama FM's attempts to counterattack, but in the 60th minute, Yokohama FM's FW Fujita was stopped by a foul, giving Tokyo a free kick in the center of their own territory. Yokohama FM's MF Nakamura took a direct shot at the goal, but it hit the wall and changed direction, allowing Konda to take advantage and score on the right side... Tokyo was caught off guard and the game was tied due to the successful free kick.

The match returned to the starting point, and then both teams quickly attacked each other using their respective strengths. However, in the 68th minute, they were caught off guard. From a right throw-in by Yokohama FM, DF Amano broke through Tokyo's defense and crossed the ball from the left side. FW Fujita headed it into the goal, resulting in a goal against them... They allowed the opposing team to take the lead.

Tokyo made a substitution, with Yonehara replacing Li in the defensive midfield. Hasegawa moved to right midfielder and Azuma took on the attacking midfielder role to launch a counterattack. This proved successful, as in the 72nd minute, Lucas on the left side took a decisive shot after some intricate passing, but... it hit the right post. However, in the 82nd minute, amidst a back-and-forth counterattack, Hasegawa showed his strength in winning the ball. He quickly advanced with Azuma on the right and Hasegawa making a run through the center, before passing back to Watanabe who took a shot with his right foot. It deflected off the opponent's defender and into the net! They managed to equalize in the final minutes.

With this, the stands heated up and the comeback mood increased, but they were unable to stop the momentum of Yokohama FM's fierce attack at home. In the 90th minute, they blocked a shot from Yokohama FM's right cross, but it bounced back and was taken away, and Yokohama MF's Hyodo ran to the center after switching from the right, passing to Yokohama FW Fujita who was free in front of the goal. This was stabbed in... Despite taking the lead, they conceded 3 goals in the second half and suffered a comeback loss, making it their second consecutive loss in the league.

[Player Comments]
《MoriShige》"Even though the performance was not bad, we have to firmly accept the fact that we lost twice at this time. That is our current strength. Including the match against C Osaka, it is our own fault that we cannot win in this kind of game. While continuing to do what we have to do, I want to approach practice with the desire to pursue more as individual players. I think it is important to continue doing this throughout the season."

"Ota": "There were chances to win, so it's a shame... that's my impression. (About the assist to player Lee) Hasegawa gave me a good ball, and at that time I could see Lee preparing on the far side. I was able to send a direct cross just as I imagined. However, even though our attacking players scored 2 points, it's disappointing as a defensive player to lose with 3 points."


[Coach's Press Conference Summary]
《Coach Popovich》"I think it was a game where we both put our strength together and were able to entertain the viewers. We ended up losing, but I don't think we are losers. We were able to do what we needed to do and what we have been doing. Yokohama FM is also a great team, and we were able to have a fair fight against such opponents. In soccer, luck also plays a role in the result, but by continuing to play this kind of soccer, there will be days when luck will be on our side. The important thing is to continue doing what we have been doing and to continue to improve the quality of our game."

"Yokohama FM, Manager Higuchi: "I think we played a good game, including the way we won and the results. Tokyo has East player joining the front line this season, and I had the impression that the combination of the third and fourth players was top level. The key was how to break that up, so we had a meeting about the midfield battle before the game. In the first half, the first defender approached and it became a scrum, so we couldn't pick up the second ball and couldn't gain an advantage. As a result, we allowed Tokyo to have their combination."

We conceded a goal, but at halftime I told the players, "We are starting to move the ball well, so it's not a bad performance." If we organize a few points, we can definitely turn the game around. In the second half, the opponent was leading, so we dropped back a bit and looked for counterattacks. On the other hand, we were able to move the ball well and create opportunities between their players, which led to a goal. It was a game we competed in and won, which was not something we did last season. I want to give credit to the players and hope this will give us momentum for future games. That's also a reason to be happy."