League Restart! A New Start

After a break of over a month, the league will resume. Sec. 14 will see a match against Sanfrecce Hiroshima at home. During this break, we have diligently worked on improving our physical condition and addressing the issues that arose in the first half of the league. On the other hand, Takahashi and Gonda have been participating in activities with the Japan national team for a long period of time. Additionally, Lee and Tanabe will be leaving the team, marking a new start for Tokyo.

In this match, top scorer Watanabe injured his left foot and will be absent. As a result, Lucas will be placed as the top striker, with Higashi playing behind him. On the wings, Hasegawa and Mita, who will make his first league start, will be playing. In the double pivot, Yamamoto will be joined by Hyun Soo JANG. On the bench, Muto, who has just joined the team as a "JFA・J League designated player," will also be present to face the match.

Hiroshima, on the other hand, is currently in 5th place with 24 points. In the quarterfinals of the Nabisco Cup held on June 23 and 30, they faced off against Kashiwa. While they did not make it to the semifinals, they should have regained their game sense and become accustomed to actual matches. Above all, FW Sato's scoring ability, his movements to utilize space, and the attacks led by MF Takahagi and Mikic have caused us to taste bitter defeat many times before. In addition, their strong point is not only the high positioning of both wide players in a 3-6-1 formation, but also the unexpected attacking from the defensive line.

If we concede first, we will only be able to defend against Hiroshima, so we need to keep the score at 0-0 for as long as possible and aim for the first goal to secure victory in a Tokyo-like style. The match started at 6:34 pm at Ajinomoto Stadium, which had been the hottest day of the year so far but had cooled down a bit by evening.

High defensive awareness, connecting chances from counter attacks

Hiroshima displayed their usual passing game from the start and dominated possession. They also had a strong focus on shooting and created some chances through aggressive finishes. However, Tokyo remained calm and organized, creating a defensive block and looking to counterattack.

At 23 minutes, from a cut by their own defense, Hyun Soo JANG dribbles up the center and launches a powerful counterattack. In the opponent's territory, he connects with Mita who has moved up on the left, and sends a ground cross in front of the goal. Here, Lucas and Higashi make a decisive move, but... in a collision with the opponent's DF, neither Lucas nor Higashi can make the connection. At 29 minutes, they pass the ball around in the opponent's territory, and JANG sends a pass to the left front line. Although it was initially blocked by the Hiroshima DF, Ota manages to snatch the rebound and takes a direct shot. However, it is saved by the GK.

Counterattacks and quick switches of attack posed a threat to Hiroshima, and in the 39th minute, the whole team pushed up, with Morishige passing to Mita on the left, who then passed to Lucas in the center. They made a one-two and charged into the area. They created a big chance and took a shot, but it was saved by the GK and resulted in a corner kick......

In the first half stoppage time, Mita pressed and dribbled towards the goal after stealing the ball in the Hiroshima team's territory. He managed to evade two Hiroshima defenders and headed towards the penalty area. Although he couldn't take a shot, he was fouled just outside the area and earned a free kick. However, Mita's direct attempt was blocked by the wall and resulted in a left corner kick. This corner kick was also cleared and no goal was scored. Mita showed a proactive attitude and created opportunities, but the first half ended scoreless.

In the midst of a tense attack and defense, we conceded a goal from a free kick just before the end...

In the second half, the speed of passing and movement increased, and Tokyo took control of the rhythm in the early stages. In the 51st minute, they moved forward while spreading out to the left and right, and Mita → East in the center of the midfield turned around and took a shot. In the 53rd minute, Ota on the left quickly crossed while bypassing the opponent's DF vertically. Lucas slid in near the goal, but couldn't make the shot and it went wide.

Hiroshima also had a chance in the 59th minute, with MF Mikic breaking through on the right side and crossing the ball. The ball found MF Takahagi, who was free in the left area, but his shot was blocked by the persistent Tokyo DF and went back to Hiroshima FW Sato in the center. Even here, Tokunaga closed in and prevented a finish.

At 60 minutes, Hasegawa changed the ball from the fast attack of Tokyo to the space on the right front line. Mita ran in and vertically passed the opponent in the right area, and shot with his right foot, but the ball hit the far post... In the 74th minute, from Chang Hyun Soo's vertical pass, Mita passed to Lucas in front with one touch and turned forward. He received the return and shot with his left foot, but it went over the bar.

Hiroshima also attacked from the right MF Mikicchi as a starting point, and in the 74th minute, FW Sato was momentarily free from an early cross in front of the goal. He was headed, but narrowly cut to the left and avoided danger. In the 78th minute, Tokyo made a move and earned their first CK of the second half. Mita's quick kick was headed by Hyun Soo JANG, but narrowly to the left... Both teams continued to attack and the tense battle continued.

In the latter half, Hiroshima was pushed back for a long time, but on the contrary, they took advantage of the opponent's gap, shook them up in stoppage time, and East in the center of the area took a shot. It was blocked, but Yonemoto followed up on the ball that spilled to the left and aimed for the goal, but it went wide...

Immediately after that, Hiroshima did not give up and FW Notsuda passed through the center from the right side. And against FW Ishihara who received it from behind, Tokunaga was judged to have held him back with a foul from behind, giving Hiroshima a penalty from the center of the penalty area. This was directly aimed at Hiroshima MF Pak Hyon-jin and scored in the upper left corner... There was no time left for a counterattack, and it was time up. The introduction of Nemanja Vucicevic and Muto, who made his professional debut, did not bear fruit. The first game after the restart ended in a bitter defeat.


[Player Comments]
"Mita"
"We wanted to at least get 1 point today, but we want to aim for "3" from here on out. Personally, since I played in the Nabisco Cup, I wasn't nervous. I think we had a good game with our defense working well, but it's really frustrating that the outcome was decided by one play. There were parts where I felt like I could do it and it would work, but there were also small mistakes. I lost the ball 2-3 times in places where I shouldn't have. If I can fix that, I think my play will expand even more. Also, I couldn't score in the shooting opportunities, so it's frustrating, but also a time for reflection and improvement. I want to continue to strive for perfection and work hard from practice."

"Ota"
"Both in the first half and the second half, we had a strong defensive mindset. I think we were able to defend well against Hiroshima's front line of five players with a back four. We wanted to win the ball in a high position, but we were able to block and keep the first half at 0-0, so we felt like we could do well in the second half. We were able to speed up by hitting vertical passes. Players like Higashi and Mita were key players and we were able to create chances. We need to increase the time we have possession of the ball and when we bring it up to a high position, we need to have a common understanding of how to break through, not just pass it around."


[Coach Ranko POPOVIC's Press Conference Summary]
「非常に難しい試合だった。互いに戦術的に相手の良さを消しあう試合運びをし、その中でしっかりと守備をして相手のミスを誘って攻撃を仕掛けるという狙いがあったと思う。我々の選手は、公式戦から時間が空いていたというのもあるかもしれないが、立ち上がりから少し堅さが目立つ部分もあった。

There were places where we could have moved the ball quickly and fluidly as originally intended. It was a close game, but I think we had more decisive chances. If we had been able to finish them, the result might have been different. In the end, we conceded a goal in that way and ended up losing. It's just part of the world of soccer, a reality. The important thing is not to dwell on it and to move on to the next game together."


[Hiroshima Moriho Coach's Press Conference Summary]
"It was good that the players persevered and fought until the end with patience, and were able to earn 3 points in a difficult away game. In the first half, we moved the ball and played the way we wanted to, attacking from the sides according to our team concept. And Tokyo countered by taking our ball. Both teams had prepared tactics for this game and executed them throughout the first half and 90 minutes. In that sense, we were able to maintain a high level of concentration and show an interesting tactical game."

Both teams created chances, but until the very end it was 0-0. Neither team played passively, but rather worked hard under solid tactics. For us, there were a few close calls as we were countered, but the players persevered and kept the score at 0. I think that's what led to MF Park's free kick and our victory. Compared to previous games, the temperature and humidity were high, so the players must have felt fatigued, but they kept running until the end thanks to the support of the fans who came to Ajinomoto Stadium. It was great to win a tough game and deliver 3 points to the supporters."