We cannot afford to lose. Welcoming Matsumoto Yamaga to our home stadium, Ajinomoto.

The 12th match of the 2nd stage will be played at home against Matsumoto Yamaga FC. In the previous match, we conceded a goal in the final minutes and were unable to turn the close game in our favor, resulting in our first loss in 7 league matches. The players are determined not to suffer another consecutive loss and this will also be the first match against Matsumoto at Ajinomoto Stadium in the league, making it a battle where we want to utilize the "home advantage" and secure a victory.
However, Takahashi will also be suspended for this round. Therefore, Yonemoto will be used as an anchor for the first time in the midfield. Hayashi and Hashimoto will play as inside halves, Kono will be in the top position, and Maeda and Sandaza will form a two-top line. Sandaza will make his first start since the July 29th Sendai match.

Matsumoto, who is currently in 15th place in the 2nd stage and 16th place overall, will face us. Although they have not been relegated in the last 3 games, they have not been able to escape the relegation zone. However, the teams fighting for survival should come with a strong determination to win. This round, FW Obina will be suspended, but the entire team will work hard and stick to their style of long feeds to the front line and winning second balls. In addition to their strength in set pieces, manager Massimo says that MF Kudo, MF Ando, and MF Kim Bo-kyung, who joined in the middle of the season, have "raised the team's quality." At the same time, he warns, "Matsumoto played well against G Osaka. They were unlucky and were caught up, but they are an aggressive team and we must be careful from the start."

However, in the last three matches, Matsumoto has drawn despite taking the lead, conceding goals in additional time or at the end of the game. In this match, Shiozawa will start in place of suspended FW Obina. MF Iwagami and MF Maeda will play as shadows, while MF Iwama and MF Kim Bogyon will be the central midfielders, and DF Tanaka and Ando will play as the two wingers in a 3-4-2-1 formation. Tokyo will need to play calmly throughout the 90 minutes. They will need to use the lessons and improvements from the previous match and maintain their focus until the end to secure a victory.

The game started at 18:34 with Matsumoto's kickoff, while the cloudy sky and lingering heat of the day remained.

Fought tenaciously and took the lead with Maeda's goal!

In the early stages, Matsumoto aggressively pressed forward and were often pushed back into their own half. However, they patiently fought back. In the 3rd minute, a speedy pass from Matsumoto's MF Kim Bogyon to MF Maeda on the left side, but Yonehara escaped with a sliding tackle. In the 5th minute, Maruyama bounced back a long kick from Matsumoto's GK, giving a throw-in. From Matsumoto's MF Iwagami's long throw, FW Shiozawa headed the ball, but it lacked power and was easily caught by Brada. In the 6th minute, Matsumoto's MF Maeda attacked down the side and crossed to MF Iwagami, who headed the ball, but Tokyo's DF competed for it and the shot went wide.

Defensively, they were able to protect the safety and as a result, gave Matsumoto multiple corner kicks and throw-ins. However, they showed concentration and patience and did not allow any clear chances. On the other hand, they threatened on the counter attack and in the 11th minute, Ota from their own half made a long pass to the left side. The opposing DF couldn't handle it and Sandaza was able to break through to the front line. Kono was also running towards the far side, but Sandaza entered the left area and took a shot from a close distance. However, the angle was too narrow and the GK was able to save it. The ball bounced back and Sandaza tried to shoot again, but this time it was blocked by a sliding Matsumoto DF. The ball then fell to Hashimoto in the center, but he was also tackled by a Matsumoto DF and the shot ended up floating...

Although we couldn't take the lead in this chance, Tokyo gradually started to have more possession of the ball. In the 20th minute, Yonemoto, who had advanced forward, won a corner kick. From there, Ota took the corner kick, which was cleared, but the ball came back to Ota. The low trajectory right cross he sent from there landed perfectly in front of Maeda, who changed the direction of the ball and headed it. The shot was deflected by Matsumoto GK's hand and went to the right, GOAL!! Maeda successfully took advantage of the chance from the set piece and scored the first goal.

Matsumoto continued to aggressively attack the goal without feeling down, but Tokyo, who had taken the lead, remained calm and countered. In the 39th minute, Tokunaga crossed from the right side. Sandaza ran in from the opposite side and tried to score with his feet, but was stopped by the quick cover of the Matsumoto DF. In additional time of the first half, Morishige jumped into the far post after Ota's free kick from the left corner, but his header went wide to the right. They couldn't score an additional goal, but they maintained their lead and ended the first half.

Achieved a record high of 56 points with a clean sheet victory

In the second half, Matsumoto created a chance at the start. In the 46th minute, they received a counterattack from Tokyo's kickoff, and Ando from the opposite side jumped in to meet the right cross, but managed to escape with a corner kick just before. This left corner kick was almost heel-flicked into the near post, but it grazed the post and avoided danger. In the 50th minute, Hashimoto pushed forward on the right side and made it to the goal line, then sent a low cross into the right area. Sandaza jumped in, but was a step too late and was held off by Matsumoto.

After that, in the 56th minute, East was substituted for Kono and put on the side. The formation was changed to a 4-4-2 with Yonemoto and Hashimoto as double volantes. Immediately after, Sandaza jumped in to head the ball sent into the area by Ota from a right side free kick, but it went straight to the goalkeeper. In the 60th minute, Nathan Burns was brought on. In the 62nd minute, Maeda broke through to the left front line and crossed. Hashimoto ran in from behind Nathan Burns in the center of the goal, jumped and tried to hit it with his right foot, but it was offside before that.

70 minutes, Matsushita DF made a control mistake from their own zone. Nathan BURNS from the right front line took it and took a shot in the area, but... it was blocked by Matsushita GK's great save. In the 79th minute, they got a FK just outside the left area corner, and Ota sent a soft kick to the front of the goal. Hasegawa jumped in perfectly, but... the shot narrowly missed to the right...

Tokyo, who had grasped the rhythm, could not score any additional points, including the chance of FK. In the end, it became a counterattack battle, but in the second half additional time, Yoshimoto was substituted for Hashimoto and entered the center of the DF. As a 5-back, they defended well against Matsumoto's counterattack and kept a clean sheet to secure victory. As a result, with 5 games remaining, they have accumulated 56 points, surpassing their previous record of 55 points in 2008.

[Player Comments]
"Maeda"
"I am most happy to have won 3 points. (About scoring) I always think about how to match the good ball that comes from player Ota. Today, it was a flow from a corner kick, but I thought it would be a chance if I could put it near like that. I was conscious of my movement and was able to match it well. I want to make sure to score when the chance comes. I want to continue to do my best to make that happen."

"Ota"
"In the scoring situation, I was free and nervous, but there were a lot of people on the far side and I could see the movement of Maeda, the player in the near side. I was able to calmly send a cross. Last week, I was disappointed and felt sorry for the fans and supporters. I think we were able to make up for that today at home and we won't give up on the championship as long as there is a possibility. We have difficult games coming up, but we want to make good preparations to keep winning."

[Summary of Massimo FICCADENTI's press conference]
"It was the start we expected. We knew the opponent would come out strong from the kick-off, and in the first 15 minutes, they threw a lot of balls into our goal area. But gradually, we created our own time zone and had a chance to score a second goal after taking the lead. The players did well from every aspect. It's a positive result as it's the highest number of points in FC Tokyo's history. Matsumoto was strong in one-on-one situations and used his physicality, but we were able to deal with him carefully and systematically. There are some issues with players being suspended, but the substitutes have been producing results. Today, Yonemoto did well as an anchor, and Hanyu, Hashimoto, and Azuma, who came on as a substitute, were also good. Everyone is fighting with a strong mentality. It wasn't an easy game, but it's a sign of maturity that we were able to get a result against a lower-ranked team in a game where we had to win under pressure. From now on, every game will bring different challenges. The other teams competing for the championship have already won it in the past. It's important for us to keep up with them and give our all in every game."

[Summary of Matsumoto - Yasuharu Sorimachi's Press Conference]
"Although the result was disappointing, I want to thank the players who fought until the end in this three-game series. On the other hand, we are a team that can easily be taken advantage of if we give our opponents any openings. The scenes where we conceded goals were exactly like that. We are training to not give any openings, but it's not going well and as the one in charge of the team, I am angry with myself. But we have to keep moving forward in this situation. We want to fight until the very end and come back to Ajinomoto for the final round of the Emperor's Cup and be able to greet everyone. "