Match against top-ranked Urawa, utilizing the challenges from the previous match

Sec. 15 of the league is being held. An away match against Urawa Reds. In the previous match against Hiroshima, we conceded a goal from a free kick just before the end. Until then, we had shown strong defensive resilience, so it ended in a shocking defeat. Although we created chances from counterattacks in the offensive phase, the players reflected that they "lacked aggression" and will apply the lessons learned from this bitter defeat in this match.

In this match, Kaga is suspended due to accumulated warnings. Therefore, Hyun Soo JANG will be placed as a center-back, and Takahashi will be positioned as a defensive midfielder. On the other hand, Watanabe has returned from injury and will start. Lucas is on the bench, and Ishikawa has also improved his condition and made it to the bench.

Urawa is currently in 2nd place. They are 3 points behind the leaders and have not lost in their last 6 league matches, including 8 matches in total when counting the Nabisco Cup, so they can be said to be in excellent form. With a 3-6-1 formation, they have FW Kōriki as the lone striker, and with Haraguchi, Kashiwagi, and Marcio Richardes as the two shadows, they have a lineup that can break through both collectively and individually. While their style is similar to Hiroshima's, considering the variety in their attack, it should be harder to defend against them.

It seems that the match will be a tense affair, but we want to maintain our resilience, press from the front, and counter by increasing the time Tokyo has the ball. Urawa, who is in the upper ranks, will challenge the match without fear, even though it is an away game. Even as the sun sets, the humidity at Saitama Stadium is palpable, and the match started at 19:35 with Urawa's kickoff.

Showing an aggressive attitude in both offense and defense, Mita scores his first goal in the league!

Showed an aggressive fight from the start. While applying pressure from the front, they intercepted all vertical passes to Urawa's frontline and connected to quick counterattacks. In the 11th minute, Urawa's right MF Hirakawa's cross was met by MF Kashiwagi running into the center of the area, but Hyun Soo JANG cut it off at his feet. Continuing with that momentum, the pass flowed to the left side, and although it was passed to Urawa, Watanabe intercepted the pass from there. He advanced with the ball and spread it to the right.

Mita received the ball and dribbled into the right corner of the area, aiming for the goal. This brushed past the opposing defender, changing direction and finding the net at the near post. His bold approach paid off, scoring his first league goal and taking the lead!

After that, Urawa tried to break through the center while moving the ball. Tokyo intercepted it and quickly transitioned to an attack, resulting in a captivating back-and-forth. In the 28th minute, Watanabe regained a loose ball in midfield and launched a rapid counterattack. However, the pass to Mita, who had burst out on the right side while keeping an eye on the offside line, was delayed by a beat and did not connect.

After 30 minutes, they were shaken by Urawa's skillful passing, but they did not lose their resilience at the final line. In the 33rd minute, Watanabe picked up a clearance from Urawa's DF on the right side and took a sharp shot, but it was blocked by the goalkeeper's great save. In the 35th minute, from an early cross by Urawa's MF Kashiwagi, FW Koroki headed the ball, but Gonda made the save. In the 42nd minute, during a right corner kick for Urawa, DF Makino changed the course with a header, but it just missed FW Koroki at the far post. They survived the crisis and ended the first half with a one-goal lead.

Hasegawa's goal extended the lead, but they couldn't maintain the two-goal difference...

Tokyo was the first to capitalize on a chance in the second half as well. In the 55th minute, Urawa MF Suzuki was injured, and immediately after, he was substituted by MF Marcio Richardes. In the 56th minute, from a side pass, Watanabe broke through the right front line and passed to Mita, who was making a run into the center. He drew in the opposing DF just before the right area and made a last pass to Hayato HASEGAWA in the left area. Hayato calmly assessed the sliding tackle from the opposing DF and skillfully avoided it to score in the bottom left corner. They successfully secured an additional goal with a coordinated and speedy attack.

In the 66th minute, Watanabe applied pressure up front, and the kick from the Urawa goalkeeper hit Watanabe himself and floated high. Higashi controlled it at his feet and sent it to the left area. Hasegawa, who ran into that space, drifted too wide to take a shot but returned it to Higashi. From there, a final pass was sent to the right area, and Watanabe took a decisive shot while free, but it was thwarted by a great save from the goalkeeper...

If this big chance is missed, they will be forced into a defensive position against Urawa, who continuously brought in attacking players. In the 76th minute, Lucas was brought on, but they could no longer connect effectively to the front line. In the 81st minute, Urawa connected directly and vertically, with forward Kojiro getting a one-touch turn in the center of the front line. Hyun Soo JANG was evaded, allowing a free run into the left area, and a shot was easily scored, allowing them to close the gap.

Unable to regain a good rhythm after this goal conceded, we were pushed back by Urawa. In the 86th minute, Urawa's midfielder Haraguchi dribbled and cut back to Takahashi in the center, scoring with a clever control from distance, threading the ball into the bottom right between teammates and Tokyo's defense... In the final stages, Ishikawa and Nemanja VUCICEVIC were brought on, but we couldn't take the lead. We failed to maintain a two-goal lead and ended up drawing.


[Player Comments]
Masaru HASEGAWA
"We scored a goal, but it means nothing if we don't win. After a disappointing match last time, I entered today's game with the determination to do better. Our defense was solid, and in attack, we connected well and pushed forward with momentum. However, we couldn't win. We have repeated these frustrating matches many times, but when I think about the year as a whole, I want to make sure that today's draw leads to something better next time."

Mita
"The goal went in off the opponent, so I think we were lucky. However, I feel really frustrated that I couldn't achieve a victory after being given the chance to start in both the Hiroshima match and today. I think we started the match well. I tried to play aggressively. (Regarding the way we played after leading by 2 goals) I think we might have pulled back too early with about 20 minutes left. It would have been better if we had gone for it again from the front and fought aggressively. We lost our movement up front, and conversely, we couldn't hold our ground and keep it at the back either."


[Summary of Coach Ranko POPOVIC's Press Conference]
"I believe we showed a high-quality match in terms of tactics and play accuracy, and we were able to have a good game, but we must ensure that we win decisively in such situations. This has been a challenge throughout the season. I would like to sincerely congratulate Urawa for catching up, but we allowed them to come back to life. I think it was an interesting match for everyone watching, but we cannot be satisfied with just one point."

Today, we faced the match with a young team whose average age is 24, but our youth showed in the two goals we conceded. Even with a young team, we must understand what we need to do to win and how to fight. Of course, everyone fought to win, but we lacked understanding of what we should not do to win. We were exploited in that area and conceded goals. On the other hand, being a young team means there is plenty of potential from here. I believe we could have shown more today, and I am confident that today's experience will definitely lead to our next steps.

[Summary of the Press Conference by Urawa Coach Zoran PETROVIC]
"After watching the match between Tokyo and Hiroshima in the previous round, I was thinking about what kind of match we should play today. Tokyo approached the game today in the same way as the Hiroshima match. We had to decide whether to play defensively like Tokyo and Hiroshima, pulling back into our own half and countering after regaining possession, or to stick with our usual style of play. I thought about it for a long time. Before the match, we decided to play aggressively as usual, but the opponent, as expected, pulled back deep into their own half, aiming to regain possession and counterattack."

The opponent scored by inducing a mistake as planned. In such consecutive matches and high temperatures, it is more difficult to play an attacking game than a defensive one. Concentration and precision in play are indeed necessary. This is not an easy task. Playing defensively and breaking the opponent's attack is relatively easier. Both teams did not want to play a boring defensive match. Although we fell behind, we took risks and launched dangerous attacks aggressively. As the opponent became fatigued, the center opened up, and by substituting players on both sides, our side attacks became effective.

Even in difficult situations, the players showed a strong determination to turn the game around at all costs. I personally believe that Tokyo is a strong team, both in terms of player ability and as a team. Against such a team, we managed to catch up from a disadvantage, and with just 5 more minutes, we might have been able to turn the game around. We were able to bring the situation to that point. I want to commend the players for their efforts.