The biggest match of the season awaits us at home, in the best atmosphere.

Sec. 15 of the 2nd stage, which will be the second home game in a row, will be played at Ajinomoto Stadium against Urawa Reds.
Shonan lost the lead and was defeated in the competition, dropping to 5th place in the 2nd stage. However, they maintained 3rd place in the annual points. They are now 6 points behind 1st place, but still have a chance at the title as they enter the final 3 games.

In this round, the "direct confrontation" with Urawa, who is in second place in the annual points, is considered a big match. The players express their strong desire to win, saying, "We are happy to be able to fight against Urawa at this time and in this situation. That's why we absolutely have to win." Coach Massimo also calmly states, "This one game will not end anything or achieve anything. All three games are important. Every opponent is a good team, and we will fight as one of them." He also added, "In order to win, it will be necessary for the team to come together and fight beyond their limits." In particular, in the first stage match, they suffered a complete defeat away. In order to get revenge and show their growth, this will be an important match.

Urawa, on the other hand, finished 6th in the 2nd stage with the same 24 points as Tokyo. They are currently in 2nd place in the overall standings and are also in a situation where they cannot afford to lose a single game. Although they lost to G Osaka in the previous round and may not have the same momentum as in the 1st stage, under the guidance of coach Zoran PETROVIC, the team has matured. Each player has strong finishing abilities, so Tokyo will need to maintain their focus for the full 90 minutes. However, Urawa also has a tendency to attack from their defensive line, so if Tokyo can quickly transition to the attack, they should be able to exploit the spaces. As always, they want to take advantage of their opponent's weaknesses and win this "top match".

Tokyo will have Kono returning to the top as an attacking midfielder after missing the previous match. Hayabusa will be used as an inside half. Morishige, who was substituted due to injury in the Shonan match, will also be in the starting lineup. In addition, Hayashi will make a comeback to the squad for the first time since the June 7th Matsumoto match and will be on the bench.

Urawa will use FW Zlatan at the forefront. FW Okazaki and MF Muto will serve as shadows. Against Urawa's attacking lineup with height and speed, we must endure the time we should endure and aim for victory by exerting our maximum strength.

On a beautiful autumn day, under perfect weather conditions for watching, 38,952 spectators gathered in the stands and a choreography was also performed during the player entrance. The big game, welcomed in the best atmosphere, kicked off at 2:02 PM in Tokyo.

Unable to show Tokyo's uniqueness. Higashi scored two consecutive goals, but...

Connected the ball with momentum from the kickoff, passed through Ota and Takahashi, and Tokyo entered the left area. In the midst of a struggle with the Urawa DF, they were unable to stand up and the game was stopped, but they quickly returned. The decision was that there was no foul by Urawa. In the 3rd minute, Urawa's central MF Kashiwagi → left area's MF Mutoh made a through pass into the area. FW Zlatan ran into the center of the area and behind the DF, but the Tokyo DF took care of it and the ball went to Brada.

Until then, there seemed to be no pinch, but gradually Urawa held the ball and in the 11th minute, Urawa left DF Makino made a long feed to the front line. Left MF Ugajin followed this and was released to the front line, and a short cross was put in from the goal line to the center. Morishige and Maruyama were also covering in front of the goal, but Brada touched the ball with his left hand and it spilled. Urawa MF Kashiwagi ran in front and was left free, and easily closed in... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...

This first goal puts Urawa on a roll. In the following 14 minutes, Urawa's right MF Sekine dribbles vertically. MF Kashiwagi, who has moved up the center, brings the ball inside and spreads it to the left. MF Muto, who has moved up from the left area, is able to control the shot from in front of Tokunaga and quickly scores the second goal.

Still 16 minutes, Tokunaga on the right → Kimimoto in the center with a long ground pass to the front line. Higashi skillfully maneuvers with the opposing DF and breaks through to the right area. Then calmly avoids the sliding of Urawa DF Makino, fakes a cross and shoots past the near side of Urawa GK, GOAL!! Tokyo also scores their first shot with determination and shows a passionate attitude.

However, in the 27th minute, Urawa's left MF Muto dribbled inside. Unable to stop this, he connected with MF Sekine, who had gone up freely on the right side. The shot from the right area hit Maruyama and Urawa FW Koroki in front of the goal and bounced off, but the ball became loose between Ota and Maruyama, and MF Sekine reacted immediately... Maruyama made a sliding tackle, but the controlled shot was scored, and they lost their third goal.

However, without losing their momentum, in the 39th minute, Hayashi → Ota overlapped. Takahashi in the center then switched to the right. Tokunaga, who had moved up to the right front, attempted a direct volley from a chest trap, but it went wide. In the 43rd minute, Yonemoto showed his strength in the center. Despite being surrounded by opponents, he kept the ball and Maeda, who followed him, took a step forward and made a through pass to the front line. Kono then made a run, but was narrowly offside.

In the first half, Urawa had 5 shots while Tokyo had 3. Although Tokyo marked 2 consecutive goals, they were not constantly forced into a disadvantage. However, they were unable to display their usual strong defense at crucial moments. They were outplayed in terms of finishing and quickness, and went into the second half with a 2-point deficit.

Takahashi scores 2 goals! However, the fierce comeback effort was not successful.

Tokyo also changed their formation in response to Urawa's 3-6-1, as they were creating opportunities from the sides. Takahashi covered the DF line and formed a 3-back defense, with Yonemoto and Hayashi as a double pivot. In the first minute of the second half, Kono made a long pass to the right front line, and then passed to Higashi in the left area. Higashi took a well-aimed shot, but it went wide to the right. In the 52nd minute, Nakajima was substituted for Kono, and in the 60th minute, Matsuda was substituted for Hayashi on the right wing. Takahashi moved up to the midfield, with Tokunaga in the DF position, Morishige in the center, and Maruyama on the left. They increased their attacking rhythm from the sides and prepared for a counterattack.

However, in the 62nd minute, from a pass in the middle of the field by Urawa, DF Makino advanced and passed to MF Muto in front. From there, FW Zlatan dropped a pass vertically and DF Makino scored a precise shot to the upper left corner of the goal. Tokyo conceded their fourth goal, taking advantage of player substitutions and a momentary pause in their defense.

But we never gave up on victory. In the 64th minute, Erik from the left area chest-trapped and shot. He created a scoring opportunity, but the shot went just to the right. In the 73rd minute, Maeda skillfully expanded to the left area from the right side, and Nakajima ran in for a shot, but it was blocked a beat too late. Then Nakajima took a middle shot. Maeda, Erik, and Nakajima created a rhythm on the front line and threatened the Urawa goal. In the 73rd minute, we launched an attack from the right side, and after receiving a side change, Erik kept the ball in the left area. He calmly passed it back, and Ota sent a cross. Takahashi jumped in front of Maeda, who was waiting in the center of the area, and scored a spectacular header GOAL!

Trailing by one point, Lin was substituted for Tokunaga in the 82nd minute and formed a two-top with Maeda. Nakajima and Higashi were on both sides. Matsuda covered the right side back and tried to score a goal with an all-out effort. As the momentum of the comeback increased, they aggressively attacked and in the 83rd minute, Nakajima aimed for a shot from the middle range, which was saved by the Urawa GK. However, they earned a corner kick. In the 84th minute, Takahashi headed the right corner kick and the opponent's GK jumped to compete for it, but the ball slipped from his hands and Takahashi kicked it in with his right foot for a GOAL!

The unity with the stands heats up even more. In the 88th minute, Ota's left cross was aimed perfectly by Higashi from the far side, but it hit the GK in the face and was called offside. In the 89th minute, Matsuda, who had connected from a left throw-in, took a shot with momentum after advancing from the right. In the 90th minute, Maruyama jumped in the center to meet Nakajima's right cross, but Hayashi tried to finish it with his feet... only to be saved by a last-minute CK. Nakajima persistently chased after the clearance from the CK and managed to steal the ball. It seemed like he was fouled in the right area, but there was no call from Urawa. Shortly after, Higashi's decisive shot from the left area was blocked by the GK... and Nakajima's shot from the right area was also saved by the GK, and time was up.

Despite not giving up until the end and showing a fierce comeback with determination... the 4 goals conceded proved costly, resulting in a home defeat. As for the 2nd stage, the gap with league leaders Hiroshima is now 10 points, effectively ending any chance of winning the title.

[Player Comments]
"Mori Shige"
"Urawa tried to go above what we had prepared and hit us back. That's their characteristic, but we couldn't catch their movements and conceded a goal in a chaotic manner. After that, we responded by making our marks clearer and created many chances in the second half, resulting in 3 goals. However, there were our own mistakes among the 4 goals conceded. In such an important match, mistakes can determine the outcome. I don't have the impression that we couldn't stand up to Urawa today. But we need to improve our ability to make and stop decisions in crucial moments. We lost two games in a row, but it's not over yet. We need to switch to the next two games and go for a win together as a team."

"East"
"It was a game that we absolutely had to win. The atmosphere in the stadium was amazing, and as a player, it was a joy to be able to play in such an environment. I am grateful for that. That's why we had to win at home. However, we conceded a goal from a mistake and gave away the second goal, which made it difficult for us to find our rhythm. In the first half, we played a game that was not like Tokyo. We fought with the desire to win no matter what, and we approached the game with 120% of our strength... Everyone wanted to win and change history in Tokyo, and we fought until today, so today's defeat is very frustrating. But we have to hold on and win the remaining two games."

[Summary of Massimo FICCADENTI's press conference]
"Our start to the game was bad, and the result was even worse. We conceded a goal from our own mistake in the early stages, and the game became more open. In the beginning, we couldn't position ourselves well around the midfield, and we couldn't respond well to the opponent's attacks. Urawa's second goal was a great shot, but when we concede first, it becomes a difficult situation. Our team's condition was good, but we broke the game with our mistakes. After that, we changed our system and ended up with a 4-forward formation. We needed to adapt to the flow of the game. The last 30 minutes were similar to the Shonan game, but this time we scored and never gave up until the very end. Even though it was 1-4, most teams would give up, but we never did. I am especially satisfied with the players' performance in the last 30 minutes. This type of game is not my preference, but in Japan, these types of games are considered fun. Urawa is a strong team competing for the championship and they played a great game today. They attacked with great combinations. We also have to move forward. In the last two games, we have to look forward and aim for victory."

[Urawa Petrovic Manager's Press Conference Summary]
"It was a spectacular game with 7 goals scored in one match, and I'm sure the spectators who came to watch were satisfied. It was a great game for both teams. It's rare for both teams to score 7 goals in a game, and both teams gave it their all. I think those who watched should simply enjoy it. We had a good performance and showed good plays until the 75th minute. We were able to adapt to Tokyo's system changes and control the game. However, after the second goal, our energy dropped and the players became more defensive, and we stopped connecting passes. We started playing more long balls out of fear, which is something Tokyo is good at. As a result, we created more time for them to push us back. In Japan, when we have a 4-1 lead, our attacking mentality tends to weaken. But when we have control, we should go all out and beat them. Of course, it's satisfying to beat a strong FC Tokyo team. However, we need to reflect on our mistakes today and think about how we will approach the next game against Kawasaki. Even if we have the most points in the season, we won't be champions, but we have already secured a spot in the championship, so I told the players not to feel unnecessary pressure and to play their own soccer. I think this was a game where we were able to express that mindset."