No losing streaks allowed, 2nd stage home opener

Facing Ventforet Kofu at Ajinomoto Stadium in the 2nd stage, Sec. 2 at home.
In the previous match against Tosu, we suffered a nightmare-like comeback defeat. However, in order to have a strong start in the 2nd stage, we cannot allow ourselves to have consecutive losses. We must overcome this difficult situation and continue to build upon our strengths and confidence, and aim for victory.

This round, we will start with Muroya, who has returned from injury and extended his playing time in J3, in his first J1 starting lineup. He will be at right back, with Tokunaga moving to left back, and the rest of the team will be the same as last round.

Kofu's 1st stage ended in 17th place with 15 points, and they should also be looking to make a comeback in the 2nd stage. However, FW Cristiano has transferred to Kashiwa. On the other hand, the new addition of FW Dudu has been announced, but he has not completed his registration with the J-League, so he will not be able to play in this round. In addition, FW Chuka will also be absent in this round. Therefore, Japanese players will be lined up, with FW Kawamoto, shadowed by FW Tanaka and FW Fukuda, leading the front line in a 3-4-3 formation.

Caution is necessary for their sharp counterattacks, but it is a game where we aim for 3 points by taking advantage of our home field advantage.
The intense rain in the morning subsided, and before kickoff, the game started at 7:04 PM in Tokyo under a sunset sky. However, with the unstable weather, the game began with some uncertainty.

Seizing the initiative, Morishige takes the lead with a powerful header!

They launched a speedy attack with determination right after the kickoff.
6 minutes: Build-up from their own half. Maruyama → Morishige spreads to the right to Muroya. Muroya tried to aggressively attack the Kofu DF in front of the front line, but the opponent cut the ball with a sliding tackle, and again to the right CK. From here, Morishige jumped in on the kick sent by Kono and stabbed a powerful header into the goal. 1-0. They took advantage of the set piece opportunity and scored the opening goal in the early stages. They continued to dominate the ball and take control of the game.

10 minutes: With quick passing, they approached the Kofu defense and Muriqui was able to finish off the ball that flowed into the Kofu goal, but the previous play was offside.

17 minutes: From the restart scene of Kofu, Muriqui brings the counterattack and connects with Nathan BURNS on the left front line. Nathan BURNS creates a momentary pause while advancing and makes a last pass to Muriqui who enters the area. However, the trap is slightly off... Muriqui and Nathan BURNS aggressively attacked, but they couldn't bring it to a finish for a while.

32 minutes: The second shot of the day finally came at 32 minutes. Yonemoto sent a floating pass to the right area, and Muroya jumped out to the front line and boldly aimed for the goal. It missed to the right, but the momentum is starting to build.

38 minutes: East jumps out to the front line, judging the offside line, in response to Maruyama's long pass. However, the timing is slightly off and he is blocked by Kofu at his feet. Furthermore, Kono steals the second ball and sends a perfect pass to Nathan BURNS, who breaks through on the right front line, but is cut off by the Kofu DF at the timing of his attempt.

43 minutes: Earned a FK in the left area near the hand.
44 minutes: Kono took this FK short, and Higashi crossed to the right area. Morishige took a direct control shot, but it was saved by the GK.

On the other hand, Kofu did not allow any chances. In the additional time of the first half, they picked up a cleared ball from Kofu's FK and had a middle shot by Kofu's MF Inagaki in front of the area, but it went outside the frame. They ended the first half with a one-point lead.

Overcoming accidents, we all stick to our determination and defend until the end.

In the second half, we continued to launch quick attacks from a stable defense and aimed for additional points from the sides.
47 minutes: Muroya on the right front line, followed by Hashimoto breaking through and continuously attacking, but blocked by Kofu in the center and unable to finish the shot.
50 minutes: Restart, connecting the second ball, Tokunaga on the right with a long cross. Maruyama on the far side with a header in front of the goal. It reaches Muriqui just before the right post, who takes a decisive header... but it goes across the goal.
51 minutes: Nathan BURNS takes a shot from the left side with speed, but it goes over the bar.　

56 minutes: Tokyo receives a counter from Kofu from the corner kick situation, but Muroya cuts off the central dribble with a sliding tackle. Prevents a dangerous situation.
57 minutes: A long ball from Kofu DF Arai was dropped to FW Kawamoto on the front line, and then passed to left side MF Inagaki from the midfield. From there, a final pass was made to the center, and FW Tanaka entered the area, but Tokunaga chased and closed in tightly, preventing a shot.

64 minutes: Replaced Kono with Hayu. Kofu also substitutes FW Mori at 65 minutes.
66 minutes: Nathan BURNS makes a move on the left front line and crosses into the area. Hanyu runs in from the opposite side to try and finish, but the shot is not successful and afterwards, Kofu gains control of the rhythm and begins to counterattack.
72 minutes: From a long cross by Kofu's right SH Hashizume, FW Kawamoto runs in near the goal line and aims for a volley.
74 minutes: Kofu FW Mori took a shot, but Akimoto caught it in front. They didn't allow a goal, but in the 75th minute, Morishige injured his leg and was forced to be substituted, causing an unexpected incident. As a result, Yoshimoto came in at the 79th minute.

88 minutes: Maeda replaces Muriqui. Immediately after, a decisive scene was created for Kofu. MF Inagaki jumped into the front line to meet Kofu's right cross and headed the ball. The ball hit the crossbar directly. Inagaki reacted to the rebound and took a volley, but missed and the ball drifted to the right. FW Mori ran into this and brought it to a shot, but... Akimoto kicked it out with his foot and cleared it. They survived the pinch, fought through the 6 minutes of additional time without losing focus, and the time was up. They showed their determination to win, protected the 1 point scored by Morishige in the first half, and grabbed their first victory in the 2nd half.

[Player Comments]
"Muroya"
"In the previous match, the team had a frustrating loss, so I tried to fight when I stepped onto the pitch. It was a tough game, but it was good that we were able to get 3 points in the end. I was originally told to "play freely, in the way I wanted to". As a result, the other players were able to adapt to my style. I was really helped by everyone. Standing on the pitch at Ajinomoto Stadium, I feel like I have truly become a part of the team. However, I also feel like I only fought today. I want to work hard to improve the quality of my play and make more crosses."

"Yoshimoto"
"I always try to play more simply, bigger, and more clearly."
　There were dangerous scenes, but we helped each other and communicated to defend. Of course, the ideal is to connect the ball and create our own time, but Kofu is also a good team and had the momentum and sharpness to move forward. So I thought my role was to endure. Today, the result was more important than the content."

[Summary of Manager Hiroshi JOFUKU's Press Conference]
"If we had scored the decisive goal, the game might have been a little easier. However, considering the situation we were in and the players' mindset, it was expected that the game would end in a tense manner. There were scenes where we wanted to go for the ball more, but I understand the mindset of wanting to defend the goal. It was expected to have that kind of mindset. We didn't predict the late game situation. We were able to get three points by showing a fighting attitude, such as being tough in the duels until the end. I want to praise the players and continue to show our style from here on out. It was great to be able to celebrate the victory with the fans and supporters today."

[Summary of Kofu's Satoru Sakuma's post-match interview]
"Despite having injured players and players in unfamiliar positions, we tried to do what we could. However, that attempt ultimately led to the team's instability. Our foundation is defense, and in order to survive in J1, we have to consider our own abilities. In the midst of that, we must continue to exploit our opponents' weaknesses. Unfortunately, we conceded early in the game today and were put in a situation where we had to do something that we are not good at. In the past few games, we have been conceding a lot of goals, so today we approached the game with the goal of bringing stability at all costs."
However, it was Morishige who I was most careful of and he ended up scoring. I thought it would be a difficult task to score a goal against Tokyo, but today we were able to maintain our balance even after conceding and persistently fight while looking for opportunities in the second half. In the end, it may have been a matter of not having enough strength. I am grateful to all the fans and supporters who came to support us, but I feel sorry that we couldn't share the moment of joy together. Nevertheless, I want to fight without looking down and regain stability. I want to grit my teeth and move forward."