We want to use the momentum from our ACL victory to overcome the challenges in the league.

The J1 Sec. 10 match against Hiroshima will be held on June 15 (Wednesday) due to the impact of the ACL schedule. Therefore, we will first face Shonan Bellmare in Sec. 11.

The match against Binh Duong in the ACL held on the 4th was a tough game in the scorching heat, but Maeda scored two goals. The team secured their first victory in six official matches and advanced to the round of 16 in the ACL. Although they have not yet overcome the difficult situation of four winless matches in the league, they are looking to seize the opportunity to rise based on their united team spirit as they head into this match.

In this match, Takahashi was used in the midfield following the match against Binh Duong. This was his first league start. Although the lineup shows a 4-4-2 formation, Takahashi plays as an anchor in the center, with Yonemoto and Tanabe beside him. On the flanks are Kono and Abe. They will approach the game with a 4-1-4-1 formation, placing Maeda at the top.

Shonan made some changes to the lineup from the previous match, starting MF Masaru HASEGAWA and MF Yamada. The double pivot consists of MF Kikuchi and MF Masaru HASEGAWA. MF Narawa and MF Yamada are positioned on the wings. FW Otsuki leads the front line, with FW Hando and FW Takayama playing as shadows in the formation.

Against Shonan, who are on a two-game winning streak and full of momentum, considering Tokyo's condition, it may not be possible to maintain pressure for the full 90 minutes and keep control of the game. Therefore, this match aims for victory by assessing the flow and outdoing the opponent at key moments.

Although the sun occasionally shines, it is covered by clouds, and as evening approaches, the chill of the wind can also be felt. It started with a kickoff in Tokyo at 16:04.

Evading Shonan's press and launching an attack, Kono scores the opening goal!

From the beginning, they fought with an aggressive attitude in both offense and defense. Actively pressing to win the ball, they further evaded Shonan's press, advanced the ball forward, and created many opportunities for set plays.

3 minutes: With a feed to the front line, the opponent is pushed back, and Yonehito aims for the goal after a clearance by Shonan DF, who competed with Abe, but it goes wide to the left.
9 minutes: A right corner kick is awarded to Shonan, which is connected short by MF Yamada, and MF Narawa crosses. MF Masaru HASEGAWA jumped in at the near post but did not touch the ball, and it went through to the goal area where Tokyo cleared it.
　
17 minutes: Tanabe aimed for the goal and earned a right corner kick. Although they couldn't finish from this corner, they connected the second ball, and Kono delivered a right cross. Abe, positioned right in front of the goal, made a perfect header, but it was blocked by the GK's save... They couldn't fully capitalize on the chances from free kicks and corner kicks, but they attacked mainly from the sides.

20 minutes: Ogawa, who moved slightly towards the center while connecting passes at a good tempo, sent a vertical pass to Tanabe on the left front line. Tanabe delivered a fast cross with his left foot, and Kono, who was closing in at the near post, headed it into the goal! They showed good coordination and took the lead with a goal in the flow of the game. 1-0.

27 minutes: Morishige's short clearance spills to Shonan FW Takayama in the Tokyo area, who makes a move in the right area. It connects to MF Narawa, who attacks the side, resulting in a cross that gives a corner kick, but the right corner kick is cleared by Akimoto with a punch.
There were moments when Shonan had the ball as they launched a counterattack, but Tokyo, in the lead, defended calmly and did not allow them to take a shot.

37 minutes: Yonemoto carried the ball forward and made a through pass to Tokunaga on the right flank. Tokunaga, who caught up, delivered a cross, but Kono in the area couldn't connect. Furthermore, Tanabe followed up and attacked from the left side this time, but was unable to take a shot.

Although they could not score additional points, they maintained a quick transition and continued to actively challenge, finishing the first half with a one-point lead.

Fight with all your heart and achieve two consecutive official match victories

In the second half, Shonan brought in MF Ishikawa to the central defensive midfield. MF Kikuchi and Masaru HASEGAWA moved up one line, and the formation was changed to have central FW Otsuki, MF Yamada on the right, and Takayama on the left, preparing for a counterattack.

53 minutes: From an early cross by Shonan's left back Miyao, FW Otsuki dives in front of the goal. Maruyama closely marked him and prevented a header, but the situation continued with Shonan attacking from the left side.

59 minutes: Hashimoto was brought into the midfield to replace Kono. Tanabe tried to respond by moving to the right side.

62 minutes: From a one-two between Shonan's MF Masaru HASEGAWA and FW Otsuki, FW Takayama moved into the left area. Furthermore, MF Yamada charged into the center of the area, but the Tokyo defense closed in and prevented a shot. From the loose ball, MF Masaru HASEGAWA just in front of the area aimed for the goal, but this was also blocked.

Shonan gradually gained momentum, but Tokyo showed no signs of defensive cracks. As a result, Shonan was only allowed this one shot. Conversely, there were fewer opportunities to connect in attack, but they fought calmly and tried to exploit the opponent's weaknesses.

74 minutes: Hanyu is brought in to replace Tanabe. Hashimoto moves to the front line to increase the attacking momentum. Immediately after, from the flow of a left corner kick, Ogawa's left cross is blocked again, and Maruyama reacts to the loose ball. He charges into the area and takes a shot, but it goes wide of the goal.

79 minutes: Hashimoto evaded the opposing DF and surged into the right forward line, sending a fast cross. Maeda, marked by an opponent in the left area, moved away from the DF to head the ball, but it went to the Shonan GK.

In the final stages, both teams struggled to maintain possession, leading to rapid changes in attack and defense. Shonan attempted to utilize a third player's movement from a one-two play from the side to the center, but Tokyo solidly defended in front of the goal, preventing any shots. While excelling in the transitions between attack and defense, players like Hanyu, Takahashi, and Morishige were frequently seen vocalizing and giving instructions on the pitch, demonstrating a fighting spirit until the final whistle.

They showed a game strategy focused on the score of "1-0" and achieved a victory without conceding a goal in the league match since the match against Kobe on March 11, marking their second consecutive win in official matches.

[Player Comments]
Kono
"The goal came from a good ball from Tanabe. At first, I thought there would be a cross from the previous play, so I felt like I had entered too far into the goal area. However, Tanabe's cross was fast, so I was able to connect well. I believe that regardless of the system, each person ran hard and worked diligently, which led to our victory. Everyone fought hard until the end."

《Maruyama》
"It was a match against Shonan, but I thought it was more important for the team to win than my personal feelings. Rather than trying to play well, I focused on being gritty and committed to winning. As a center-back, I was particularly aware of the distance between the front and the sides, but I believe we managed to cover for each other whenever someone challenged for the ball throughout the 90 minutes. I want to continue this defense."

【Summary of Coach Hiroshi JOFUKU's Press Conference】
It was a game with the pressure of not being able to lose, which is why we confirmed what is most important to us before entering the match. Under tight conditions, the players performed well. In terms of content, we must aim for higher levels, but the battles we cannot lose continue. We want to accumulate points to meet the expectations of our fans and supporters.
(We changed the system, but what is the difference between ideal football and football that earns points?)
The system does not determine whether we are offensive or defensive, but today I wanted to strengthen the midfield. As a result, we had to reduce the number of players in the front line by one, but to cover for that, both full-backs took on more aggressive positions. We were able to do that in the first half. More than the system, I want to raise the defensive awareness we showed today throughout the season. I believe that ideal football will not be completed in 2-3 months, but rather it is something we will gradually approach over the year. I want to continue the momentum we gained from the ACL Binh Duong match and this match, and prepare for the next game that we cannot afford to lose.

【Shonan - CHO Kwi Jae's Press Conference Summary】
"We wanted to finish the three consecutive GW matches with three wins, but it's disappointing that we couldn't even get one point today. In the early stages of the match, our defensive switch was unclear, and we conceded a goal because of that. After that, the score remained a one-goal difference, but since Tokyo had members who recently played in the ACL, we hoped to score a goal in the final stages of the second half. However, we lacked the power to recover. We changed some members from the previous match and aimed to bring out the team's maximum potential, but both successful and unsuccessful aspects appeared. After playing 11 league matches, the players have gained various experiences. They feel both a sense of achievement and challenges. This world is not easy enough to fight only with a sense of achievement, and it would be a waste to play the league just to fix the challenges. Whether it is correct to say we take today's defeat positively, I don't know, but along with wins and losses, we want to improve the quality of what we lack. I hope we can apply today's reflections to the next match against Fukuoka."