Match against Cerezo Osaka, gathering a crowd of 40,761 at home

Sec. 8 of the league, which comes just two days after the Nabisco Cup. Cerezo Osaka will face them at home. In the Nabisco Kobe match, Muto scored his first professional goal. And Edu and Hirayama, the "players who should score," both scored goals and kept their first clean sheet of the season. Although there is only one day of preparation for this match, the team will aim for victory by building on the momentum and good flow they have gained.

Cerezo Osaka, who they are facing, is currently in 8th place with 3 wins, 2 draws, and 2 losses. As you may know, they have welcomed new coach Ranko POPOVIC this season, as well as new signings FW DERLAN, MF Masaru HASEGAWA, and DF Hayato HASEGAWA. Under coach POPOVIC, they will not only continue their speedy style of play, but also aim to control the ball and extend their time on the field, with the goal of winning the league title.
At the same time, MF Minamino, Hasegawa, and DF Yamashita were selected as candidates for the Japan national team. And with FW Kakitani and MF Yamaguchi, it can be said that they are currently the most attention-grabbing team.

Will Masimo Tokyo try to defend against C Osaka or will they try to bring the game to a shootout? This battle strategy will also be one of the highlights. Tokyo's GK is Kaneda. The DF line will have the same members as the Kobe game. In the midfield, Takahashi will be the anchor, with Yonemoto and Higashi as inside halves, and Edu and Hirayama as the two top players. They will face off with Kono as the top midfielder.

Covered in clouds, the coldness of spring could be felt, but a record-breaking 40,761 people gathered at Ajinomoto Stadium this season.
The league has achieved a total of 5.5 million visitors, and with high expectations for an intense battle, the match started with C Osaka's kickoff.

Intense battles continue on both offense and defense

Both teams attacked each other while utilizing their strengths from the beginning. C Osaka collected the ball in the front and their fullbacks also pushed up high to attack, while Tokyo also had a quick start with a high awareness of pressing and second balls, creating a tense battle. In the midst of the back and forth for the ball, in the 10th minute, Tokunaga picked up the opponent's clearance with persistence and connected with Tokunaga, who took a middle shot. In the 17th minute, Kono's through pass found Hirayama in the left area. In the 20th minute, Edu in the center tried to aim for a shot from Yamamoto's pass, but neither were able to finish.

Gradually allowing the opponent to dominate the ball, in the 24th minute, Cerezo Osaka's right back, Sakamoto, made an early cross and MF Sugimoto headed it in near the goal, but it was saved by GK Gonda and went out for a corner kick. On the other hand, in the 28th minute, Tokyo quickly switched and created a decisive opportunity. Yonemoto → advanced to the right area and Takahashi made a direct pass to the center. Hirayama neatly dropped it and Higashi took a shot from the edge of the area, but it only grazed the GK and the post and resulted in a corner kick. Immediately after, from this Ota's corner kick, Edu tried to head it in but was blocked by the GK.

While both teams showed an aggressive attitude, they did not lose their defensive tenacity. In the first half additional time, they tried to launch a counterattack from Kono's interception, but they were unable to score against Hirayama and instead were hit by a counterattack from C Osaka. FW Forlan made a shot attempt after breaking through the front line, but Yoshimoto blocked it with his body! Although C Osaka had 8 shots compared to Tokyo's 5, they were able to prevent any goals with their passionate play and ended the first half with a scoreless tie.

Turn on the attack switch and grab the victory with Hirayama and Muto's goals.

The second half also continued to be a heated battle from the start. In the 50th minute, Higashi dribbled into the left area. He feinted past the opposing DF, but his shot hit Cerezo Osaka's DF Yamashita and went to the center of the area. Here, Yonemoto ran in and took a decisive shot, but... it went just slightly to the left. In the 55th minute, Yonemoto pressed the opposing DF fiercely, resulting in a throw-in. From here, Edu in the center tried to get into a shooting position, but was blocked... C Osaka countered. FW Kakitani was able to dribble up freely and pass to FW Forlan in the center from the right area, who then passed it back to Kakitani for a header... but it missed the goal and they escaped danger.

In the midst of a rapid exchange of offense and defense, in the 57th minute, Mutoh came in for Edu. In the 66th minute, after speeding up the attack, Ota once again passed the opposing DF on the left side with a one-two with Mutoh, and broke through to a high position outside the area. From here, a minus pass was made, and Hirayama scored with a direct shot in front of the goal!! With this consecutive goal following his performance against Kobe, Hirayama took the lead.

Immediately after, Mutoh feinted the opponent DF on the left side and broke through vertically. He crossed from a close distance to the goal, and again Hirayama made a direct hit, but... it went to the left. In the 69th minute, Kono broke through to the right area, but instead of shooting, he passed to Yonemoto in the center. However, Yonemoto's return pass did not go through... They missed the chance for an additional goal, but in the 72nd minute, they substituted Mita for Kono and switched to a 4-4-2 formation. Cerezo Osaka also replaced FW Forlan with MF Ogihara in the defensive midfield. MF Hasegawa moved to the side, and MF Sugimoto moved up to the front line.

However, Tokyo further increased the tempo, and in the 77th minute, Muto broke through the line on the left side, using his strength to escape from the opponents who surrounded him. Mita followed up with a one-touch pass to Takahashi, who had advanced outside the left area. Takahashi then made a direct heel pass to Muto, who had entered the area from the inside. Muto calmly aimed and scored a goal by slipping the ball between the goalkeeper's legs! With a flowing combination, Muto scored another consecutive goal and added to the lead.

In the final stages, Cerezo Osaka, who launched a counterattack, allowed an attack from a set piece, but everyone defended with determination and focus, and the time was up. The substitution strategy also worked, scoring two goals and keeping a clean sheet in defense, securing a valuable 3 points in an unbeatable fashion.

[Player Comments]
"Hirayama"
"I think it was a tough game with both teams attacking well. It was good that we ended the first half with a 0-0 score. The goal came from a good ball from Ota. I had a feeling that I could score if I could get in front of the goal. Today was a special game for me. It was a bit of a special feeling to play against people I have learned a lot from. We were able to win, but I think Coach Popovic would say, 'Don't be satisfied here. Keep working harder.' I want to repay him and also live up to the expectations of Coach Massimo. I will continue to work hard to score goals and help the team win in the future."

"Yoshimoto"
"I wanted to win at a time like this when so many people came to watch. Personally, I focused on not making mistakes and playing reliably. As for defense, I think the three of us, the center back and the anchor, were able to work together. Right now, while doing what the team needs to do, I am also trying to show my own strengths. Today's C Osaka had a different type of attacking lineup than before, with many players who could break through the defense. I wanted to contain those different types of players and I had confidence in doing so."

[Summary of Massimo FICCADENTI's press conference]
"It was a passionate game. C Osaka is undoubtedly a top-class team in terms of technique. However, the first and second halves had completely different developments. In the first half, we played compactly, but as time passed, both teams became stretched out and spaces were created. That's when we were able to attack. We scored the first goal, and even got close to scoring a second. The players played wonderfully, and we could see their desire to win. In order to win a game like today's, a good performance is necessary, and the players showed us that."

[Cerezo Osaka - Ranko POPOVIC Press Conference Summary]
"Both teams were waiting for each other's mistakes. We couldn't take advantage of the opponent's mistakes, and we couldn't finish the chances we created by breaking them down. I think we lacked the ability to take advantage of scoring opportunities and mistakes. We need to analyze whether it was due to fatigue from a tight schedule or if there were other problems, but I also felt that our physical sharpness was lacking when we broke down the opponent. The players had a strong desire to win this game, and in the first half, we showed exactly what we wanted, but in the second half, we lost the ball in situations where we shouldn't have, and we conceded from there. There are no excuses, but it is a fact that fatigue is accumulating, and sometimes our accuracy decreases due to a lack of physical sharpness. Despite that, we were able to create scoring opportunities. In order to turn those into results, we need to play more effectively. We need to be more aware of our finishing ability and decision-making in crucial moments and raise the quality of our play. However, I am grateful that both teams' supporters came out and we were able to play in such an amazing atmosphere. I believe it was a game where both teams gave it their all until the very end."