Approaching the last away game with only victory in mind

2nd Stage Sec. 16, facing Kashiwa Reysol away.
Defeated by Urawa in the previous round, the possibility of finishing first in the 2nd stage and overall points for the year has disappeared. The overall ranking has also dropped to 4th place. Mori Shige says, "We have a responsibility to continue fighting for victory, believing in the possibility until the end." With only 2 more league matches left this season, this round will be the last away game, but our determination is to fight with the mindset of pursuing victory.

Kashiwa, on the other hand, is currently in 9th place in the annual points. In the 2nd stage, they have had two consecutive wins and have risen to 6th place. Manager Massimo describes Kashiwa as "a team with a high combination of front line and technical team style, but may not have achieved the best results for them." In particular, FW Otsu has been in good form and has scored a total of 8 goals in the last 3 games from the combination with FW Kudo. In order to stop the pass to FW Kudo and to demonstrate coordination, we want to win the midfield battle first and not let the opponent get into rhythm against MF Cristiano, MF Takefu, and MF Otani.

In order to secure a spot in the championship, we were put in a situation where even a single draw was not allowed. However, coach Massimo said, "Right now, the team has the 'right' tension. We want to turn pressure and tension into positive energy," and put all his effort into stopping Kashiwa's fast passing and aiming for victory with our own rhythm.

This round, Hasegawa will be used as an inside half. Up front, Maeda and Higashi will continue from the Urawa game, with Kawano playing as a top midfielder. Kashiwa will have Kudo as the center forward, Otsu on the left, and Cristiano as the right midfielder. In the shadow, Taketomi and Otani will play as midfielders. Akino will be the anchor, and in place of suspended DF Rinko, Fujita will play as the left fullback.

Hitachi Kashiwa Soccer Stadium with calm weather. Even in the away stands, many fans and supporters gathered and cheered as the game kicked off at 2:03 PM in Tokyo.

Kashiwa takes the lead with a PK, without losing their sense of unity

Showed an aggressive attitude on both offense and defense from the start. In the 1st minute, a loose ball was picked up by Kawano on the left and a through pass was sent to Higashi who had broken through the center and behind the opponent, but he was offside at that point. In the 8th minute, Ota made a vertical run and sent a cross, and Higashi, who was set up in the area, headed almost freely, but was blocked by the GK just before the goal. In the 9th minute, Takahashi created an opportunity on the right side and returned it inside, where Takahashi took a ground shot. It seemed that the Kashima GK had touched it with his outstretched hand, but it went outside the frame and became a Kashima goal kick.

Even if Kashiwa holds the ball, they take the second ball from the coordinated press and launch a quick attack. In the 12th minute, Kashiwa FW Erik breaks through on the right side, but Maruyama shows his strength. He persistently takes the ball away. In the 14th minute, Maeda calmly dribbles past the opponent DF in the left area and earns a corner kick. Ota's left corner kick is contested in the center, but the loose ball falls to Hashimoto just outside the right area. Hashimoto takes a step and enters the area. He tries to cut back against the opponent from a volley position, but Kashiwa DF trips him and earns a penalty kick. In the 16th minute, Morishige calmly and powerfully strikes the penalty kick into the top corner of the goal, giving the team the lead!

At 18 minutes, Hashimoto boldly took a middle-right step from a quick restart and took a shot. At 19 minutes, Ota received a long kick from a free kick on the right side of the opponent's field and sent it to the front line. Yamamoto in the center and Hashimoto on the left followed up with shots in succession. Although they were both blocked, they did not let Kashiwa gain momentum and continued to aggressively aim for additional points.

After 30 minutes, Kashiwa sent a long ball to the front line and tried to develop from there. In the 33rd minute, crosses were sent in from both sides of Kashiwa and they were pushed into the goal, but in the end, Takahashi cut off the right cross. Next, from Kashiwa's right corner kick, it was dropped to the left area's DF Eduardo and reacted in the center, flying to the right post just above FW Kudo's head, but just barely missed. In the 42nd minute, Higashi from the left side passed through to Maeda in the center of the front line. It was cut off once, but Maeda tenaciously took the loose ball and turned forward. From there, Hashimoto entered the left area with momentum, and although he fell down, there was no foul from Kashiwa. They couldn't score an additional point, but they continued to show unity and determination, and ended the first half with a 1-point lead.

Demonstrating the Tokyo spirit, we have risen to third place in the annual standings with 3 points!

Substituted Nakajima for Kono at 60 minutes. Maeda and Nakajima as the two top players. Hashimoto and Higashi as side half. Double volante formation. At 65 minutes, Cristiano, the Kashiwa MF, tried to launch a quick attack by picking up a loose ball in the midfield, but Yonemoto showed his strength. He completely took the ball and launched a counterattack. Yonemoto → Higashi entered the left area. Higashi shifted the timing and made a last pass to the center. It didn't work for Nakajima near the goal, Maeda far away, and Yonemoto who moved up in the center, but Hashimoto followed from the right and took a shot. However, it didn't hit well and was blocked. At 68 minutes, they tried another counterattack with depth, and Hashimoto aimed from the right area with speed, but it went slightly to the left.

Kashiwa did not give up and launched a counterattack, and in the 63rd minute, they showed their typical passing play and connected a direct pass in the center, but MF Cristiano was stopped by a foul from Yonemoto. They were given a free kick just outside the penalty area. This free kick was aimed directly at Kashiwa's MF Akiyano, but it went over the bar. In the 76th minute, Takahashi stole the ball from the opponent in their own right corner, connected with Yonemoto in the center, and launched a beautiful counterattack. Yonemoto then sent it to Maeda on the right front line, and Takahashi brought it to the right area, and sent a last pass to Higashi in the left area. It seemed that the ball that Kashiwa's DF slid in just before that shook the net, but it was judged offside...

Mita replaces Higashi in the 78th minute. Kashiwa also made two substitutions and launched a power play. Under their pressure, in the 81st minute, Brada caught Kashiwa's powerful free kick, but collided with an opponent player. Both were hurt, but quickly returned to the game. However, in the final minutes, Kashiwa continued to push forward. In the 5 minutes of additional time, Kashiwa's substitute FW Ederson took a shot from a right cross. Kudo jumped in at the left post, but narrowly missed and the danger was averted. In the last moments, Maeda and Mita persistently kept the corner kick, and the time was up! They defended Mori's penalty kick with all their might and secured the victory.
As a result, we accumulated 62 points and rose to 3rd place in the annual points standings once again.

[Player Comments]
《Mori Shige》
"Recently we have been conceding a lot of goals, so I was conscious of keeping a clean sheet first. By limiting the number of goals we concede, I believed that we would have more chances to counter attack, and that's exactly what happened. It would have been even better if we could have scored more goals, but I think it was a result that we aimed for. As for the penalty kick, I just focused on kicking the ball."

"Hashimoto"
"Today, everyone on the team naturally had a lot of energy. We were able to start the game well and earn a PK, which allowed us to take the lead. I think we were able to take the lead at a good time in order to play the game at our own pace. In the situation that led to the PK, we were instructed that the ball would definitely come loose, and that's exactly what happened. I tried to shoot it as it was, but the opponent was in front of me, so I tried to cut back and was fouled. There were also moments where Kashiwa pushed us back, but everyone fought with all their might and we were able to create chances on the counter. If I had better accuracy with my shots, I think I could have scored another two goals. That's something I need to work on and improve, so that I can score in the next game."

[Summary of Massimo FICCADENTI's press conference]
"The way we entered the game was good, and we created dangerous scenes besides the goal scenes. However, we couldn't score an additional goal and were troubled by Kashiwa. We were expecting such a time period, but we couldn't endure it. As for the scene where the goal was not allowed due to an offside decision, I haven't been able to review it yet, so I can't say anything. Today, only victory was required, and we were able to achieve it. After the defeat in the previous match, we immediately united for today's game and were able to play a good game. Our players are truly amazing. We still have a chance to achieve our goal of winning the championship on our own, and I am proud of our players and that feeling will continue until the very end. I would also like to thank all the fans and supporters who came to the away game. Finally, I would like to praise Kashiwa's quality."

[Kashiwa - Tatsuma YOSHIDA Press Conference Summary]
"In the first half, we gave space in the midfield and created a numerical disadvantage, but overall it was a game where both our build-up and Tokyo's high-quality press and counter were displayed. During the time period before and after the conceded goal, we gave the opponent a corner kick at a point where we should have simply cleared the ball. It was an unnecessary goal to concede, but they were able to capitalize on it. Tokyo was able to withstand the pressure we put on them. There were moments where we were close to scoring, but ultimately we couldn't find the back of the net. It may have seemed like we had control of the game, but maybe it was different. However, our attitude in the second half was very passionate. Many supporters cheered us on for the goal and for the win, and the players showed a fighting spirit to win as Kashima players, even though it wasn't a title-deciding game. I felt their increased determination through their communication on the pitch. We couldn't celebrate, as we lost, but I believe playing with that attitude will enrich their careers as players. In the remaining weeks, I want to improve the team's quality by controlling the flow of the game and staying calm in front of goal. We want to work towards being able to hold onto the lead and win, like we did today."