League matches resume, aiming for a decisive victory

The league matches have resumed, and Sec. 23 is being held. We will face Vissel Kobe at home. In the 4th Round of the Emperor's Cup, we lost due to poor timing of conceding goals and losing possession of the ball. As a result, the only remaining competition this season is the league matches. Additionally, the official unbeaten record was broken at 10 matches, which has undoubtedly left some damage to the team. However, the players are looking forward, stating, "If we can't switch gears from here, there will be no growth."

Coach Massimo emphasized, "Rather than starting from the recent results of '2 draws and 1 loss', I want to enhance the team's strength based on the accumulation of the past few months and continue to grow towards victory."

Kobe is currently in 5th place with 35 points. They have a strong attacking lineup and utilize pressing and high work rate as their weapons. The key point of the match will be how to withstand their momentum from the start and extend the period of time to minimize goal difference. This is especially important in a home game. We want to evade Kobe's press, maintain possession for a longer time, and convert that into goals. Additionally, we aim to surpass Kobe in fighting spirit and strive for a "victory."

Tokyo's Nozawa and Nakajima left the team for activities with the U-21 Japan national team, but Morishige, who just returned from the Japan national team, Muto, and Ota, who missed the Emperor's Cup, are all in the starting lineup. On the other hand, Kobe is missing U-21 Japan national team DF Iwanami. In defense, Kawamoto is included, and FW Tashiro is starting, forming a two-top formation with FW Marquinhos. They are approaching the match with MF Morioka and Edamura on both sides.

The harsh late summer heat during the day settled down in the evening at Ajinomoto. The match started at 18:34 with a kickoff from Kobe.

Although they were dominated by Kobe throughout, they endured patiently.

In the first minute, Kobe's left back Hashimoto made an early cross, which was met by central midfielder Morioka, and the ball hit his chest and headed towards Gonda's advancing goal. Morishige, who was contesting for the ball, cleared it just in time, escaping the danger with a corner kick. However, this would lead to a period of "Kobe's time." In the 12th minute, Tokyo's Kono skillfully trapped a long feed from his own half and passed it to the left to Muto. Muto attempted to return it to Kono with a direct pass, but it was intercepted by Kobe.

In the 15th minute, Hanyu's right early cross was dropped by Edu in the area, and Muuto ran in, but he couldn't take a shot due to Kobe's quick pressure. Up to this point, it was back and forth, but gradually Kobe created opportunities from long balls, picking up second balls and passing around. Therefore, Takahashi was positioned in the central defense to increase the number of players in the defensive line to counter this. However, even when they regained possession in their own half, mistakes occurred in the buildup, leading to a difficult situation.

In the 38th minute, Yonehara, who was on the right side after regaining possession in his own half, made a long feed to the front. Muto made a run but was caught by the opposing GK first. In the 42nd minute, Ota, who overlapped, was fouled and won a free kick just outside the left corner of the penalty area. Ota sent this free kick into the goal area, but it was passed to Takahashi at the far post after going through a scramble in the center, but it was offside.

While patiently enduring the opponent's time, and due to Kobe's lack of precision in the final play, they did not allow any goals, but they were unable to advance in their attack. Tokyo ended the first half with zero shots, resulting in a scoreless draw.

Change the flow and take the lead with Edu's penalty! However, we conceded a goal immediately after...

In the second half, they tried to regroup by stealing the ball from the front line and creating rhythm. In the 48th minute, from a right cross by Kobe, MF Simplisio, who was free in front of the goal, made a perfect header but hit the post. After escaping the danger, Tokyo also tried to create chances by attacking from the sides. In the 54th minute, they stole the ball from Kobe, and quickly transitioning, Yonemoto advanced up the right side with a long cross. Ota on the opposite side brought it forward and delivered a low, fast ground cross in front of the goal. Here, Muto jumped in but just missed the timing...

Around the 60th minute, Edu, Muto, Ota, and Hanyu advanced into the area, and finally, Muto passed vertically to Kono, who dropped it for Edu, but it was cleared by the determined Kobe defender. In the 61st minute, a pass from Yonemoto was intercepted, leading to a counterattack from Kobe. They quickly connected vertically, and a decisive shot was taken by midfielder Morioka just before the area, but Gonda made the save! Both teams attacked with momentum, and in the 63rd minute, Edu took a shot from distance. In the 64th minute, Yonemoto took consecutive shots, increasing the scenes in front of the goal.

In the 68th minute, Muto received a pass from Ota and sprinted down the left side. He entered the left area, drew in the DF, and made a last pass to the free Edu in the center. Edu's shot aimed at the goal was blocked by the opposing DF Masukawa's hand... resulting in a penalty kick. Edu scored the goal with a powerful kick that deflected off the opposing goalkeeper's hands!

In the midst of a tough match, we scored the opening goal as planned. However, immediately after this, from Kobe's kickoff, the ball was passed to FW Marquinhos on the right flank. In response, Ota and Kono tried to defend, but this resulted in a right corner kick for Kobe. From the corner taken by MF Chung Woo-young, DF Masukawa scored with a high header over Morishige. The ball that fell in front was headed in by FW Marquinhos, who had darted in to swap places with Yonemoto... Following the Emperor's Cup match against Shimizu, we once again allowed a goal immediately after scoring...

In the final stages, both teams stretched their lines, creating space for counterattacks. Tokyo launched quick attacks centered around Muuto. In the 90th minute, Muuto broke through on the left side and delivered a perfect last pass to Edu in the center, but Edu's trap was slightly off, preventing a finish. In the 90th minute +2, Kajiyama came on for Hanyu, and shortly after, Watanabe replaced Kono. They aimed to take the lead until the end, but in stoppage time, Muuto was fouled, earning a free kick just in front of the penalty arc. However, Ota's kick went over the bar, and the match ended. Despite changing the flow and taking the lead, they ended up drawing for the third consecutive league match after being caught up by Kobe.

[Player Comments]
《Edu》
"I can't be satisfied with just one point at home, but Kobe is a strong team. It's the bare minimum, but I think it wasn't a bad result. The penalty kick didn't go as planned, but I imagined kicking it strongly, and I think that helped me score. However, there was a moment afterward when my trap went off, and I couldn't take the shot. I need to improve on those finer plays myself."

Hanyu
"We should have finished it at 1-0. The fact that we conceded a goal there shows our immaturity. We couldn't show the attitude to push forward again. Personally, there were things I couldn't express as an experienced player. That is very disappointing. We needed to work more carefully."

【Summary of Massimo FICCADENTI's Press Conference】
"In the first half, we struggled with ball possession and it was very difficult. I didn't have the impression that Kobe completely dominated us, but we were able to approach the second half in a completely different way. Not only in terms of mentality, but also by being aggressive from the front, we didn't allow the opponent to play freely. Kobe had a decisive chance with midfielder Simplício, but we also had many opportunities. I told the players that 'the second half was good.' I am proud that the players gave their all in the second half and showed their mental strength.
It was a performance worthy of a win, but the result did not go as hoped. However, I am satisfied with the players.

【Kobe - Ryo ADACHI's press conference summary】
"In the end, it feels like we only managed to earn 1 point. It's frustrating. Overall, we were able to do what we wanted in both the first and second halves, but it's disappointing that we conceded the first goal. However, we were able to equalize, so it would have been great if we could have scored the second goal. We lacked precision, ideas, and power in our efforts to secure that second goal. It was a very disappointing match."