Despite the bad weather for the away game, aiming for consecutive wins again

As we enter Sec. 11 of the league, we will face Shonan Bellmare. We will be playing away. In the previous match, despite feeling the fatigue from consecutive games, the substitutions worked effectively, showcasing our defensive adjustments and determination, leading to a draw. To endure the long season, it is essential to calmly respond to various situations that arise during matches. We are now entering another series of three consecutive matches, and although this match is an away game in pouring rain, we aim to surpass our opponents with situational judgment and strategy, striving for another consecutive win.

Shonan, who finished 2nd in J2 last season, is facing J1 for the first time since 2010. With injuries to FW Furuhashi and DF Endo, they are currently struggling in the league with 1 win, 3 draws, and 6 losses, sitting at 17th place. Nevertheless, they are determined to maintain their fighting spirit and stick to Shonan's style that utilizes speed to achieve results.

Regarding that opponent, Coach Ranko POPOVIC said, "It is necessary to respect the opponent in every match. This means giving our all. I want to show that respect by focusing on the details and continuing to display our style of football, and I want to surpass the opponent." He aims for victory through a battle where they give their all.

Tokyo's Hyun Soo JANG is in the starting lineup for the first time since Sec. 3. Shonan's forward Kirino has returned and is on the bench. The match started at 17:04 with Shonan's kickoff amidst heavy rain.

Conceded a goal early on, leading to a chase scenario

Home team Shonan launched an aggressive attack from the start. They quickly created several shooting opportunities, but gradually Tokyo began to control the ball. The game developed into a situation where they passed the ball around, looking for chances.

However, in the 11th minute, Shonan launched a speedy attack from their own half. MF Nagaki passed to the center where MF Takayama advanced with a dribble and spread the play to the left flank. The left cross from FW Takefu was deflected by Tokunaga and spilled into the left area, where MF Takayama struck it directly with his left foot from the trap... a sharp shot found the net, allowing the first goal.

Even so, without panicking, they launched a counterattack starting from the side. In the 21st minute, Ota feigned going inside and broke through vertically. Watanabe jumped for the cross sent from here, but... the timing was off. In the 29th minute, Lucas aimed for the rebound from the opponent's goalkeeper's punch after Ota's cross, but was blocked by the Shonan defense.

There were moments when Shonan's counterattacks were a threat, but Tokyo changed their formation to a three-back with Takahashi entering the defensive line. Lucas was positioned at the top. Hasegawa moved to the defensive midfield, and Tokunaga and Ota took high positions to launch a counterattack, but in the 41st minute, from a corner kick situation, Ota's cross was dropped by Morishige, and the shot taken by Watanabe from the center went wide of the goal.

In the 43rd minute, Yonemoto made a move into the left area and spread the play to the side. The left cross sent by Watanabe reached Tokunaga in the right area, but... the shot was blocked. They attacked from the side, but the precision and intensity of the final play were lacking, and they went into halftime trailing by one goal.

Ota scored his first goal, and Watanabe's brilliant shot turned the game around, but...

Ota, who had created several good opportunities since the first half, saw his kicking accuracy come into play early in the second half. After Watanabe was fouled outside the right corner of the area and earned a free kick, Ota's direct shot in the 54th minute slipped between the opponent and his teammate, finding the back of the net at the far post. He marked his first goal in Tokyo, leveling the score.

With this momentum, in the 57th minute, Tokunaga's right throw-in was connected by Lucas and Yonemoto, and Watanabe, near the right corner of the area, turned around and struck a shot with his left foot that beautifully pierced the left side netting. With a relentless attack, they succeeded in turning the game around. It seemed they had completely seized the flow of the match, breaking Shonan's fighting spirit. However, Shonan also launched a counterattack, utilizing the speed of substitute FW Kirino. In the 64th minute, FW Kirino broke through and charged into the left area, but Takahashi slid in to cut it off and escaped the danger.

However, just after that, in the 65th minute, while passing the ball in the defensive line, Takahashi slipped while trying to take the ball, and Shonan forward Baba intercepted it. He advanced centrally and faced the goalkeeper one-on-one. A loop shot went over Gonda's head... After that, Tokyo brought in Ishikawa, Lee, and Hirayama. They regained momentum and pushed Shonan back, but in the 82nd minute, while trying to build up from their own half, Takahashi was pressed by Hasegawa and lost the ball, allowing Shonan midfielder Nagaki to score. They allowed the lead to slip away again.

Still, without giving up, in the 87th minute, Ishikawa dropped a feed to the right front line, and Tokunaga, who moved inside, took a shot. In stoppage time, Lee initiated a play from the center, and Hasegawa persistently connected the loose ball to spread it to the left area. Hirayama turned to evade the opposing defender and aimed for the goal, but could not finish. Although they initially succeeded in turning the game around, a series of mistakes led to conceding two goals in the second half, resulting in a painful defeat...


[Player Comments]
《Ota》
"It's disappointing that it didn't lead to victory. I had an image for the free kick. It was intended to go through the players and into the far side as planned. Before that, we had discussed that if we went from the sides today, we could definitely create chances. I think there were many scenes where we created a 2-on-1 with the forward, Hasegawa, and broke through from the left side. However, it might have been better if we had circulated the ball a bit more simply and created more opportunities to develop from my position."

《Watanabe》
"Shonan's defensive line was high, so we aimed for the spaces behind and in between. I thought that just connecting passes at our feet wouldn't break through Shonan's central block, which is solid, so I was trying to create a point as far forward as possible by getting behind them. The goal was in my preferred style. With my left foot, it went as planned, but..."


【Summary of the Coach's Press Conference】
《Coach Ranko POPOVIC》
"We were unable to start the match as we had hoped and became a bit passive. If we start like that, we can't take control. We give the opponent chances and fall behind. That's just a given. After that, we improved our fighting spirit and managed to equalize and then take the lead, but mistakes can happen to any player or big team. The two mistakes we made were capitalized on by the opponent, and we allowed them to take the lead again.

However, we need to feel something to grow from today's game and apply it to future matches. Instead of showing a fighting spirit only after being challenged by the opponent, we will work together as a team to fight with a mindset that can overwhelm the opponent from the start of the match. After a defeat, the true strength of the team is tested, not just as soccer players but also as human beings. I want to show our strength clearly in the upcoming matches.

《Shonan Coach Cho》
"Today, the support from the fans resonated until the end. The players are doing their best, but there were situations where they faced boos. At that time, I told the players, 'That's a reflection of expectations. We must show the Shonan style whether we win or lose.' The first goal today was in a wonderful form. The second and third goals were also due to the opponent's accidents. We didn't have many situations where we created chances ourselves last season, but FW Baba and MF Nagaki scored. They were great, but it was a victory earned by everyone, including those who couldn't stand on the pitch."

Tokyo excels at moving the ball across the width of the area, and I believed that their ability to break through with pass-and-go is the best in the league. Therefore, even if we were passed around a bit, we had no choice but to be persistent. I think the plan worked well in the first half. In the second half, after we conceded a goal, our reactions and covering were a bit slow, and we were turned around. However, today, regardless of the process, I want to appreciate the feeling of coming back to score two goals from that point. We are not a skilled team, but we must at least show that kind of spirit in J1. Today, seeing the supporters and the players who weren't on the field, as well as the staff, happy made me really feel good.