Stick to our soccer and take 3 points

In the 16th round of the league, we will face Albirex Niigata away. In the previous round, we took the lead with two goals from Mita and Hasegawa, but we couldn't regain our rhythm and ended up with a draw due to conceding a goal. Following the Urawa game, we will have back-to-back away games, but coach Popovich said, "We will play as we always do and confidently carry out what we have been working on. We want to achieve a different result by fighting for 90 minutes with a strong determination. We want the whole team to chase after a result-oriented game."

Niigata, on the other hand, is currently in 12th place with 17 points. In this round, left-back DF Kim Chin-su will be suspended, but key DF Kim Geon-hwan and FW Tatsuya Tanaka will return. In the two games since the restart, they have won one and lost one, but their style of pressing from the front and quick movement cannot be underestimated. In particular, their attacks led by MF Tanaka Aya and Naruoka from the sides have been effective, with the FWs working well together and Kawamata scoring in the last two games. They also scored from a free kick in the previous game, so we must be wary of their accurate set pieces.

Tokyo, Kaga, who was suspended in the previous round, returns to the starting lineup. Other than that, they will face the same members as the previous round. With a compact formation, they will take control of the game with a quick switch between offense and defense, and also aim to dominate the ball for a longer period of time as a countermeasure against the heat. Although they have some issues in their game so far, they will not give up until the end and aim to secure 3 points by sticking to their own style of soccer. The match started at 19:03 in Niigata's kickoff at the Tohoku Electric Power Big Swan Stadium.

Takahashi and Watanabe score to lead by 2 points at halftime

Tokyo has been on the offensive since the start of the match. In the 3rd minute, after a persistent defense in the midfield, East receives a long pass and makes a big side change to the left front line. Hasegawa makes a through pass and Ota, who has pushed up, wins a left corner kick. East takes the corner kick and Takahashi jumps in near the goal to head it in, giving us an auspicious first goal. In the 7th minute, the ball flows from the left side to the opposite side. Mita runs in and connects, and Watanabe shoots from the center after receiving a pass from Ota. However, it hits the opponent's defender and becomes a corner kick.

In the 8th minute, after a series of precise passes, East aims for a goal in the area but is blocked by the Niigata DF. However, Mita seizes the loose ball and makes a move, resulting in Hasegawa receiving a foul and earning a penalty kick. Watanabe then confidently kicks it into the bottom left corner, extending the lead to 2 points in the early stages. They continue to skillfully switch up their play in the front line and create chances with precise passes. However, Niigata also quickly moves the ball forward and creates opportunities to bring it to the shooting zone, but Mori Shige calmly responds and handles the situation.

Afterwards, Niigata continues to attack, but Tokyo creates chances from counters. In the 25th minute, after intercepting the ball from Yonemoto, Azuma takes it and cuts through the right side to the center for a final pass. He tries to pass it to Hasegawa, but it's too close to his feet and he can't take a shot. Yonemoto takes the ball back and shoots, but it hits a defender and goes out for a corner kick. On the other hand, in the 36th minute, Niigata's midfielder Tanaka Aya runs freely into the left area and takes a powerful shot, but Gonda saves it with one hand.

In the final stage, Niigata launched a powerful counterattack centered on long balls and dribbles, and Tokyo was pushed back in front of the goal, but they did not allow any goals. Although Niigata had more chances, they managed to hold on and finish the first half.

Team defended against opponent's attack as one unit and won with no goals conceded

Niigata still has momentum in the second half. They are attacking in waves with their high energy. Tokyo continues to struggle as they cannot win the ball in high positions. In the 57th minute, Chang Hyun Soo replaces the injured Yonemoto. And to add more energy, Lucas comes in for the tired Hasegawa. They are trying to break through by bringing in fresh players. In the 71st minute, Chang Hyun Soo quickly closes down on a loose ball in the midfield and passes it to the left side. East takes the ball and shoots from just outside the box, but it narrowly misses to the left.

73 minutes, Lucas made a low shot from the left area corner, but it was blocked by the GK and went to the left corner kick. Tokyo gradually started to create attacking opportunities, but they lost the ball too easily and the rhythm remained with Niigata. However, the defense stepped up and prevented any goals. In the 81st minute, Ishikawa was substituted for Higashi and Mita moved to the attacking midfield position. They continued to push for another goal on the counter attack.

In the 85th minute, Lucas on the left side made a through pass to Ishikawa, who was trying to break through the opponent's DF. However, the DF managed to cut it off. Then in the 88th minute, Watanabe broke through on the right side from Lucas's pass and sent a ground cross to the center. Lucas, who had made a near run, skillfully shot the ball into the goal net with one touch, scoring the third goal to seal the victory. In stoppage time, Ishikawa broke through on the back and dribbled. He faced the GK one-on-one while carrying the Niigata DF, but his shot lacked power and was saved by the GK.

In the end, the time was up as it was. The time when the opponent was pushed in was long, but we managed to keep a clean sheet and gained valuable 3 points away.

[Player Comments]
"Takahashi"
"(Regarding the first goal) I felt like we were too focused on scoring, and it made us play too stiff. However, in the Shimizu game, our strong desire to score led to a goal. I think it was because we were able to relax and play without pressure, and that mindset helped us score."

(Not only in defense, but also in going forward, there were many instances of PREMIST's play. However, we still have a long way to go. First of all, regarding how we entered the game, we tried to move our feet as much as possible to prepare for Niigata's pressing. In that regard, HASEGAWA and MORIGE were constantly shouting, and I think that contributed to Tokyo's concentration. After leading by two points, especially in the second half, Niigata stepped up their game and the tempo of their ball movement became faster. We tried to fill the vital areas, but we ended up creating openings ourselves, or rather, we gave away too many passes to the opponent. I am not satisfied with our approach in that match."


"Lucas"
"I was able to fight with all my heart. We have always played well but couldn't win, but today we were able to get results. (About the goal) I think it was a goal that ended the game. I was able to score and it was great. (About celebrating 250 games played?) Yesterday I was told that my J-League debut was against Niigata, and it coincided with my 250th game played, so my motivation was even higher. Thank you (laughs)."

250 games is not an easy number for foreign players. I am happy to have achieved it and to have scored goals. It was a substitute appearance, but that is up to the coach. Today, I was conscious not only of going forward, but also of not leaving gaps in defense on the side. I want to continue getting results and work hard to be in the top position again.


[Coach Popovich's Press Conference Summary]
"The most important thing in this match was to secure 3 points. Also, it is important that there are no serious injuries for the next match. As you all know, we played 3 matches in 7 days, but I believe we showed tough and high-quality matches against Hiroshima and Urawa. However, we only gained 1 point in 2 matches. Regarding this match, the quality may have dropped compared to the last 2 matches, but the most important thing is that we were able to secure 3 points. I would like to give credit for that."

Today, both the way we entered the game and the way we finished it were very good, and I am satisfied that we were able to get 3 points without conceding any goals. However, I think we were lucky in between the beginning and the end of the game. There were more mistakes than usual. I want to analyze whether these mistakes were due to fatigue or something else. I want to tell our players that they did well by fighting hard and getting 3 points, and I also want to express my gratitude to the fans and supporters who came to the game despite the bad weather.


[Niigata - Coach Masaaki Yanagishita's Press Conference Summary]
"If we concede such a goal in the first 10 minutes, it's going to be tough. However, we couldn't convert several big chances afterwards, which ultimately led to this result. There were reasons for the two goals we conceded. Even though the game had only been going on for 1 or 2 minutes, there were players drinking water. It's a sign of vulnerability. For the second goal, two players were just playing around with the ball. Unbelievable."

It may seem like a small thing, but it makes a big difference. There is still room for improvement and there is no sense of crisis. There is also a lack of responsibility. Playing games like this, I have to understand for myself what I am lacking and what I cannot do. In the past two games, we have had games like this, so I want to switch my mindset and play without shame."