The league match will resume at Ajinomoto Stadium, which gathered the most spectators this season.

After a break of about three weeks, the league resumed with the 32nd round against Albirex Niigata. In the previous round against Nagoya, Muto scored a valuable equalizer, resulting in a draw. However, the team only gained 46 points, widening the gap with the top teams. Even if they win this round, they will not be able to climb to 6th place, and will face the final stretch of the season in a difficult situation, according to coach Massimo. At the same time, during this break, Morishige, Ota, and Muto focused on activities with the Japan national team. As a result, the team only had two days to prepare for the Niigata match. It can be said that there are concerns about the team's overall preparation.

However, Gunta, who missed the previous match due to a neck injury, will also return. Kono will also start for the first time since the October 26th match against G Osaka, and the front line will be led by Edu, Muto, and Kono. In addition, Morishige will achieve his 200th J1 match appearance in today's match.

Niigata, who are currently in 12th place with 41 points, lost to Kashima in the previous round, but before that they had defeated top teams Tosu and Kawasaki. While it cannot be denied that they have been inconsistent, manager Massimo warns, "Niigata plays good football and improves as the game goes on. They are still a good team." In particular, new addition FW Shibushu has fit in well, combining with the height of MF Tanaka to add variety to their attack. In the away game in the first half, Tokyo managed to win with a goal from Muto, but they struggled to contain Niigata's MF Leo Silva and were under pressure for a long time. Tokyo has conceded in their last 5 games, so they want to limit their opponents' chances and play the game at their own pace.

A total of 42,059 people, the highest number this season, came to Ajinomoto Stadium to aggressively fight for victory in this crucial match. As the sun began to set and the weather started to cool down, the game kicked off at 5:04 PM with Niigata's kickoff.

Conceded to Niigata's domination despite taking the lead with Kono's goal...

From the start, both teams actively attacked each other, and the game quickly became lively. In the 7th minute, Tokunaga on the right side passed to Edu on the front line. Edu advanced, circling around to the right area, and dribbled past the opposing Niigata DF, taking one step ahead and sending a ground pass to the front of the goal. Kono met the pass, slipped between two opposing DFs, and pushed it in with his left foot. GOAL!! They successfully scored the opening goal as planned.

It seemed like they were able to settle down and proceed with the game, but from right after the opening goal, Niigata took control. They allowed Niigata to dominate the ball and were constantly under attack from their quick passing and set plays. However, they showed no signs of weakness in defense and were able to concentrate and respond. On the other hand, in the 21st minute, Yonemoto was able to create a chance with a dynamic play starting from Edu. Yonemoto received a drop pass from Edu in the center and switched to the left side. He then ran up to the front line and received a pass from Ota. He entered the left area and tried to shoot after feinting the opposing DF, but... he was slightly late and the shot was blocked. In the 28th minute, Mutoh broke through on the right side. He evaded the opposing DF and sent a minus last pass to the center of the area, but it didn't reach Edu.

In the middle of the first half, Kono moved to the side and tried to hold back Niigata's cross, but couldn't respond well and had to return to the formation. Still unable to change the flow, in the 32nd minute, Niigata quickly countered from Ota's clear from the cross. This was cut off by Hayashi's quick return and escaped to a corner kick, but from this corner kick, Niigata MF Leo Silva took a shot. Here, Tokyo DF blocked it with their bodies, but in the following 33rd minute, from the pass exchange between Niigata MF Leo Silva and MF Kobayashi, MF Tanaka Aya passed through the gap between Morishige and Yoshimoto and sent a through pass behind Tokyo DF. This was followed by FW Shibukusa breaking through and scoring a shot from the right area, equalizing the score...

Muto, who dribbled up the center in the 45th minute, was fouled and earned a free kick from just outside the penalty arc. However, Ota's kick was blocked by the defense. As a result, the only shots in the first half were Kono's goal and Ota's direct free kick attempt. On the other hand, Niigata had 10 shots and the game went into halftime.

Lost for the first time this season with 3 conceded goals

In the 46th minute of the second half, when they tried to rebuild, Ota crossed and Edu ran in from the far side, trying to hit it with his foot but only getting a throw-in due to being contested. Then, from a pass by Hayashi, they earned a corner kick. From this momentum, Yonemoto took a sharp shot but the goalkeeper punched it away. In the 54th minute, Yonemoto put a wedge in the center of the area for Edu, who then quickly moved to the right side. Hayashi tried to jump in, but was held back by the Niigata defenders. Niigata also had quick transitions between offense and defense, and in the 56th minute, they took a shot from just outside the area through left, center, and right back Koizumi, but Gonda made the save.

Both teams launched speedy attacks against each other. In the 61st minute, a FK from outside the right area. Ota quickly kicked low and Morishige jumped in near, but Niigata escaped with a CK. Yoshimoto's header from here was just to the right. In the 67th minute, Tokunaga cut off Niigata's clearance and passed to Kono in the area. Kono seemed to have fallen under the opponent's fierce defense, but... no whistle. On the contrary, in the 69th minute, from a one-two from Niigata's left side, substitute FW Rafael Silva tried to break through the front line. Yoshimoto seemed to have been pushed, but this play was called a foul, giving Niigata a FK. MF Leo Silva aimed for this FK from just in front of the left area and scored a powerful shot in the upper right corner of the goal... allowing a comeback.

Tokyo made substitutions in the 71st minute, bringing in Higashi and Watanabe in the 75th minute. Watanabe on the right, Muto on the left, and Higashi at the top. They tried to counterattack with Takahashi and Yonemoto as a double pivot in midfield. However, despite their efforts to move forward, Edu and Muto were marked tightly and they couldn't break through Niigata's solid defense. In the 78th minute, Niigata's left back Kawaguchi fed the ball to the right forward Sado, who held it up and passed it through the Tokyo defense to midfielder Tanaka. Yamamoto made a run and tried to intercept the ball, but it fell to Yamamoto again and he scored the third goal in no time.

86 minutes, Matsuda was put in and the formation was changed to 3 back, and they tried to catch up until the end. However, in the 88th minute, Matsuda, who jumped into the area, sent the ball towards the Niigata goal, but it crossed the mouse. In additional time, Watanabe took a volley but it went over the bar, and the time was up. It was the first loss by a margin of 2 or more goals since the Nabisco G Osaka game on May 24th. They also suffered their first comeback loss of the season and dropped to 8th place in the standings.

[Player Comments]
《Kawano》
"(I scored) because I believed Edu would make a vertical breakthrough and went into the goal. It was good that the ball came as expected and I was able to score. After that, Niigata passed the ball around and we became disjointed as a team. We lost our composure. There are only two more games left, but we need to show that we can do more as a team."

"Mori Shige"
"We took the lead and then felt satisfied... We ended up feeling like we could win. We lost miserably today, but it's really important how we approach the next two games. Taking responsibility for each game and aiming to win every game. More than just soccer, there are things we need to reflect on in terms of our attitude."

[Summary of Massimo FICCADENTI's press conference]
"It's clear from the result that it was a difficult game. I think we started the game well, but after scoring a goal, our play stopped a bit. That became the reason for the opponent's dominance and also led to them equalizing before the end of the first half. In the second half, we were able to start relatively well, but after conceding the second goal, we lost our compactness as a team. We kept trying until the end, but the opponent also played well and the game became even more difficult. The three-week break between games may have caused us to lose our rhythm."

[Summary of Masaaki YANAGISHITA's press conference for Niigata]
"It was very good that we were able to play the game in our own style for the full 90 minutes. We conceded a goal early, but the players remained calm and were able to exploit Tokyo's spaces well. We took action ourselves and actively aimed for the goal. Even if we couldn't break through, we kept pushing and trying, which led to our goal. In terms of defense, we were able to switch quickly and although there were a few dangerous situations, we endured patiently. Running for the full 90 minutes is very important for playing Niigata's soccer. It was also a good point that we were able to do that. There are two games left, but we want to continue playing like we did today."