Sec. 28 Tamagawa Classico at Home

In the previous match against Kashiwa, we lost 0 to 1, marking our second consecutive defeat. We were unable to break the difficult flow at home. However, the players are looking forward, stating, "We want to sincerely acknowledge our current challenges, regain our fighting spirit, and focus on achieving results in any form." However, the current situations of both teams are contrasting. The focus of this match will be on how we can resiliently confront Kawasaki, who has not lost in the last 13 matches and is at the top of the annual standings, and exploit any weaknesses of our opponent.

Muroya and Nakajima will be absent for the Rio Olympics, so Ogawa will be used as the left side back this match. Tokunaga will be on the right side back. Yonemoto and Hashimoto will form a double pivot, with Kono on the right MF and Higashi on the left MF.

Kawasaki is missing Olympic representatives MF Oshima and MF Harakawa, but MF Nakamura has returned from injury. MF Eduardo NET will partner with the defensive midfielder, with FW Yu OKUBO at the forefront, MF Otsuka in the attacking midfield, and FW Kobayashi and MF Hashimoto on the wings in a 4-2-3-1 system.

It was humid during the day, but in the evening, the wind started to blow, making the climate at Todoroki comfortable. The match started at 18:33 with Kawasaki's kickoff.

Without being shaken by the accident, demonstrating patience, and launching a counterattack

From the beginning, we were pushed back by Kawasaki's quick passing and their attack with multiple players in the front line.
4 minutes: Kawasaki was shaken from left to right, and the last pass from the right side hit Ogawa, but the loose ball was connected, and from the right area, MF Otsuka took a shot. This ball went through the space in the front line and hit the left post directly. Nevertheless, it did not become a one-sided defense, and they launched a counterattack from their resilient defense.

9 minutes: Earned a left corner kick. Ogawa's kick resulted in a loose ball, and Yonemoto aims for a long shot.
11 minutes: From Nathan BURNS' interception, a quick attack was launched, and Muriqui was fouled to win a free kick.
15 minutes: MF Hashimoto received a pass from the right in the center, turned around. He took a powerful shot from distance, but it hit the crossbar, avoiding a goal conceded.

21 minutes: After winning the ball in midfield, Higashi initiated an attack starting from Kono, moving from the left to the center, delivering a powerful early cross to the front line. Hashimoto made a run forward to meet it and attempted a diving header, but just barely missed... After that, Kawasaki continued to dominate the game, but the defensive line held firm and showed no cracks. On the other hand, when they regained possession, Nathan BURNS and Muriqui switched on and tried to launch a counterattack, but they struggled with speed and numbers in the front line, leading to continued missed finishing opportunities.

33 minutes: Yonemoto injured his right knee and was forced to make a substitution due to the incident. Therefore, Takahashi came in at 35 minutes. Despite this, they held their ground against Kawasaki's vigorous attacks, maintained their concentration, prevented conceding a goal, and finished the first half scoreless.

Conceded a goal from a set play, suffering a bitter three consecutive losses...

In the second half, Kawasaki continued to seize the rhythm of the attack, while Tokyo launched counterattacks from their resilient defense.
60 minutes: Kawasaki brings in DF Eduardo as a center back. DF Taniguchi moves to the defensive midfielder position, and midfielder Nakamura moves up to the attacking midfielder position, changing the formation to aim for a goal.

65 minutes: Taking advantage of a gap created by the opponent's forward pressure, from a throw-in, Hashimoto sent a vertical pass through the space between the opponent's DF to Takahashi. The opponent's DF couldn't cut it off, and Muriqui broke free to go one-on-one with the GK. He took a decisive shot, but it was blocked by the opponent's GK, and the ball that spilled behind just missed the target... It resulted in a corner kick, and from Kono's left corner, Morishige's header was saved by the GK.

Although they could not capitalize on this scoring opportunity, as time passed, both sides began to launch counterattacks. Kawasaki then made further changes to their formation. Left-side defender Kurumaya and right-side back Elsinho also positioned themselves higher up the field to increase the attacking pressure.
74 minutes: Kawasaki forward Yu OKUBO entered the left area and took a decisive shot, but Akimoto made a great save. They managed to defend and escaped to a corner kick. 78 minutes: As the transition between offense and defense became intense, a free kick was awarded on the left side. From this flow, the ball was passed wide, and finally, Hashimoto, who broke into the goal area to meet the cross, attempted to shoot but was blocked by the Kawasaki defense.

81 minutes: A free kick is awarded to Kawasaki inside their own penalty arc. Nakamura, the MF from Kawasaki, steps over it, and Hashimoto, the MF, takes a lightly lifted shot, but the wall of Tokyo's DF blocks it. However, the cleared ball is picked up by Nakamura from Kawasaki and played out, with DF Kuriyama on the left delivering a sharp left cross. Kobayashi, the FW, dives in between Maruyama and Morishige to score with a header... and finally, the goal has been broken. 0-1.
　
Still, they did not give up and launched a counterattack. In the final stages, Morishige boldly moved forward to aim for a goal. During added time, they tried to create a chance from a cross near the left forward line, with Tanabe connecting the second ball, and Morishige shooting from the center. Furthermore, the loose ball reached Hashimoto in the area, but Kawasaki showed desperate defense, ultimately escaping to a corner kick, leading to the end of the match. They pursued the goal with determination until the end, but ended without scoring, resulting in a defeat... marking a tough three consecutive losses.

[Player Comments]
《Morishige》
"Throughout the match, we were never really bad. We were able to showcase what we had prepared and played the football we aimed for as a team. There was an incident with Yonemoto, but I believe everyone fought through 90 minutes in good condition. Given the situation of three consecutive losses, I feel sorry for the fans and supporters, and it inevitably creates a pessimistic atmosphere, but the team's situation is not bad.
Personally, my play led to the conceding of a goal. My desire to contribute to the team's victory backfired, which is frustrating and regrettable, but I also believe that in today's match, we were able to grasp our direction of fighting together as one.

《Ogawa》
"The organized defense functioned well from the first half. There were many moments when we were shot at by Kawasaki, but there was always someone closing in tightly, making it difficult for Kawasaki. I believe that the preparation we did against Kawasaki, who is at the top and boasts overwhelming attacking power, should give us confidence. It's disappointing and frustrating to have three consecutive losses, but there is no time to look down or feel down. I want to switch gears and do my best to move forward, even if just a little."

【Summary of Coach Hiroshi JOFUKU's Press Conference】
"The players had a strong mindset and approached the game as one team. Even though it was tough today, we all tried to showcase our strengths and worked together as a team until the end. While taking care of Kawasaki's movements that aimed to exploit our weaknesses, we aimed to utilize the speed of our two forwards for counterattacks whenever we regained possession. That was our strategy. Everyone fought with that awareness, and we were able to endure where we needed to, achieving our goals to some extent. The chances we conceded were due to Kawasaki's high skill level. We were able to show the strength we have now, but unfortunately, that effort did not translate into points. I feel really sorry for the fans and supporters. I wanted to share a moment of joy with them after the match."

[Kawasaki - Yahiro KAZAMA's Press Conference Summary]
"From the start, the ball was moving well, but there were moments when we hesitated, and we couldn't find the angles to break through the opponent's defense or enter the areas we needed to. In the second half, we pressed more on those points, but we struggled to score, and it was a tough match. However, even in such a game, we managed to score at the end. There are always one or two critical moments in a match, but our defense, led by goalkeeper Sung Ryong JUNG, held strong. I believe it was a significant match with meaning."