The league has resumed, showing the results of the break period with goals and victories.

After a two-week interval, the league match resumed. Sec. 5 against Nagoya Grampus.
During this break period, Ha DAESUNG, Hashimoto, and Komano have returned from their injuries. Under a new competition, they have been working to improve the team. This is also a match where we want to show the results of our hard work and achieve victory.

Tokyo will make their first appearance since the ACL playoff against Chonburi, with Ha DAESUNG making his first J-League start. Maeda and Higashi will lead the attack as a duo. Abe will be on the left side, while Kono will start on the right.

Nagoya this season has welcomed new coach Ogura and has 2 wins and 2 draws in the league. They are in 4th place without any losses and are in good form. In this match, DF Oman is on the bench and DF Otake is starting as center back. MF Myojin and Taguchi are in a double pivot. MF Nagai and Furubayashi on both sides. FW Simovic and FW Noda are leading the attack as a two-top formation. In order to stop the attack led by the 199cm tall Nagoya FW Simovic, we want to take control and play in our own rhythm.

The game started at 4:03 PM with Nagoya's kickoff under the weather where it's already April but the sun is not out and the cold of winter can still be felt.

Conceded the first goal, but Morishige won a penalty kick

Early in the match: Nagoya was pushed back by the speedy play. However, they were able to respond well to the plays initiated by FW Shimobich and the runs made by MF Nagai, as well as crosses from the sides. Tokyo also gradually started to connect passes at a fast pace and tried to attack.

14 minutes: In the middle, Ha DAESUNG of Nagoya cuts off a pass and East → Abe carries it to the left area. Followed by Yonemoto → Hudson in the center, who passes to East near the right area corner. East cuts back against the opponent and takes one step inside, aiming for a goal but without much momentum.

17 minutes: Nagoya cleared the ball and gave a right corner kick. Nagoya MF Taguchi's corner kick was cleared by Yonemoto with a header in front of the goal, but it went to Nagoya FW Noda. From here, he was feinted and turned back, and a shot was taken. The ball hit the feet of Nagoya DF Takeuchi in the left area and changed course, going into the net. They conceded the first goal from a set piece.

Despite this, they continued to attack without losing their pace, but mistakes kept happening and they were constantly hit by Nagoya's counterattacks.

41 minutes: In the midst of a fierce exchange of offense and defense, a left corner kick situation. Morishige, who tried to advance in the penalty area, was fouled and awarded a penalty kick.

43 minutes: Mori Shige himself calmly kicked the PK to the right and equalized. The game was back to square one and they would face the second half.

Hirayama scores his first goal in 2 seasons! Morishige scores 2 goals and leads the team to a come-from-behind victory.

The second half also continued with a speedy approach towards each other's goal.
58 minutes: As the game drags on, Tokyo substitutes Ha DAESUNG for Hashimoto. They pick up the second ball and take control.

65 minutes: From Abe's side change, Ogawa, who came up from the outside of the left area, sent a short negative pass. Kono broke through and created a scoring opportunity, but the shot went wide.

69 minutes: Hirayama replaces Kono. This immediately proved to be successful.
70 minutes: Ogawa's pass is received by Maeda with one touch, and Abe sends a through pass to Hirayama on the right area. Hirayama, marked by the opposing DF Takeuchi, dribbles inside and shoots with his left foot from the outside, shifting the timing of DF Yano who came to cover. It goes into the bottom left corner! Hirayama scores his first goal since the Sendai match on July 27, 2014, and the team successfully takes the lead!
However, Nagoya does not give up and the game becomes even more open.

76 minutes: Nagoya's right side MF Furukawa allows an overlap from side back Yano, and FW Nagai jumps in to meet the cross from here. The ball is headed from above by Tokyo DF and the floating ball is sucked in just above the bar, resulting in the second goal being lost.

81 minutes: Abe persistently chases after the ball during the side change and earns a left corner kick. From Ogawa's corner kick, Morishige in the center scores a perfect header! The shot is deflected by the opposing GK and Tokyo takes the lead again.

86 minutes: Nagoya advances and midfielder Taguchi tries to dribble from their own zone, but Morishige slides in. This play results in a red card and Morishige is sent off... Tokyo is forced to play with 10 men for the remaining time. Tokyo substitutes Takahashi for Hirayama as center back. Nagoya also brings in forward Gustavo, but Tokyo defends as one unit and holds off Nagoya's counterattack until the final whistle. Despite the struggle, Tokyo manages to secure 3 points through a united effort.

[Player Comments]
"Hirayama"
"As for the goal, I received a pass from Abe and was able to control my body after the first touch. I thought about shooting right away, but I was aiming for a timing where I wouldn't hit the opponent's defender. The team's victory is the most important thing, but it won't mean anything if we can't continue this. As a first step, I am happy to have scored on the pitch of Ajinomoto Stadium and I want to work harder to score goals for the team's victory."

"Ha DAESUNG"
"I am happy to have won my first J-League appearance. To be honest, I still feel like I lack game sense. I made a lot of mistakes overall. If I can eliminate those mistakes and grasp the flow of the game, I believe I can have a better performance both individually and as a team. Japanese football is known for its high pressure in the midfield. Our challenge is to figure out how to get around that and break down the opponent."

[Summary of Manager Hiroshi JOFUKU's Press Conference]
"We conceded a goal in the first restart, but it was a scene that should not have happened considering our goal for this season. The second goal we conceded was also due to our lack of control in the game. We must reflect on this victory and learn from it. We were able to earn 3 points in a tough situation today because the players worked hard. It was great to share the joy with the fans and supporters, but we must use this reflection to improve and continue to the next game with a more mature approach."
(The player substitution worked and the team situation improved, but?)
In a drawn-out situation, it was proven that any player who came on as a substitute could control the game. The challenge is how to avoid conceding goals when the opponent is compact and how to extend our own time. We must keep a clean sheet at least in the first half. How can we control the game and put the opponent in a situation where they are drawn out quickly? In order to score early in the game, we need to improve our skills and decision-making. For that, I think there needs to be a high level of competition within the team."

[Nagoya - Takafumi Ogura Coach's Press Conference Summary]
"Honestly, it's frustrating. In terms of performance, we were able to do what we aimed for and there were moments where we felt confident. We also had scenes where we were able to break down the opponent and fought tenaciously, so it was a disappointing match. It's a challenge for me as a manager that we couldn't win against FC Tokyo with this kind of performance. I told the players that this is not a game where we should hang our heads low."