League Match Resumes, Challenging Difficult Opponent Kashima!

The league match will resume on October 1st, and we will face Kashima Antlers at home in the 2nd stage, Sec. 15.
After the Levain Cup semifinals, intense and hard training was conducted during the interval period. Focusing on continuity and accumulation, we aim for growth and continue to fight with determination in each match.

During the Levain Cup, Morishige and Maruyama, who were participating in the Japan national team's World Cup qualifiers, have returned to the team and will both start. As the team has conceded 11 goals in their last 5 official matches, the focus will be on improving their defense with them at the core. In terms of attack, under the guidance of manager Shinoda, the team has never had a scoreless game and the key will be how they can take the lead in this match. Maeda will start up front, with Hashimoto as the right back. Muroya will start on the left side.

Kashima is 9th in the 2nd stage. In the previous match, they lost 1-3 to Omiya and did not fully demonstrate their true Kashima style. However, it is also a fact that they are in a "must-win" state for both the championship due to winning the 1st stage and improving their overall ranking for the year.
This round, DF Shoji, who has recovered from injury, and MF Endo will start. In addition, MF Fabricio will be used on the side with MF Endo. MF Shibasaki and Nagaki will be deployed as a double pivot, with FW Doi and Kanazaki leading the front line.

Kashima, who also uses cunning as a weapon, will face a tough battle at home and aim to secure victory without hesitation.
The game started at 14:04 with Kashima's kickoff under a cloudy and chilly weather without any sunshine.

Dynamic play on both offense and defense, Kono scores off Nakajima's pass to take the lead!

Showed an aggressive attitude from the start. Kashima also quickly switched gears and both teams showed a strong drive and momentum, resulting in a high-paced game.
4 minutes: Hashimoto creates a combination on the right side after participating in the attack, and advances to the right area corner. While overlapping with Nakajima, Hashimoto takes a shot in response to Kawano's return from the outside.
6 minutes: Kashima quickly launches an attack, with MF Shibasaki sending a long pass to the right side. FW Doi receives the pass and breaks through, but Maruyama makes a sliding tackle to cut him off, leading to a counterattack.
7 minutes: East takes advantage of the opponent's DF and sends a through pass to Kono, who breaks through on the left side. He creates a scoring opportunity, but Kono's shot is saved by the opponent's GK...

14 minutes: Moved forward from the middle, although it was once taken by Kashima, Mori Shige, who pushed up the line against the opponent's DF line → midfield pass, pressed fiercely and connected to Nakajima in front. Nakajima dribbles up from the center to the right and sends a perfect through pass to Kono, who runs into the right area. Kono's shot, which seemed to lightly touch with his left foot, goes over the goalkeeper and into the net! From a speedy counterattack, Kono skillfully takes the lead with a goal.

Afterwards, Tokyo maintained a compact formation and pressed together to steal the ball. They also surpassed their opponents in terms of speed and strength in duels, taking control of the game.
19 minutes: Tokyo's East breaks through the left space in Kashima's defense. However, Kashima GK Sogahata comes out and stops him with a foul, resulting in a FK. Kono sends this FK to the front line, and the opponent's DF heads it towards Kashima's goal, but it is deflected by the GK and results in a left corner kick. However, they were unable to finish it off.

Afterwards, they were able to create numerous set piece opportunities and put pressure on the Kashima goal, despite facing intense defense from the opponent.
35 minutes: An accident occurred where Kono injured his leg during a CK scene, and he was replaced by Mizunuma in the 37th minute.
43 minutes: Still maintaining the rhythm, Maeda receives a foul on the left side of the midfield and earns a free kick. Hashimoto sends it to the left area, where Maeda heads it down, but it narrowly misses Nakajima in front of the goal.

Although we were unable to score any additional points, we were able to defend against Kashima's counterattacks and prevent them from creating any real chances. We ended the first half with a one-point lead.

Maeda scored an additional point with a fighting attitude and got 3 points!

Kashima brought in speedy MF Suzuki to replace MF Endo in the second half and launched a counterattack, but Tokyo aggressively defended and took the ball, launching their own counterattacks.
47 minutes: Matsumiya steals the ball on the left side and dribbles up. Mizunuma was running up freely on the right side, but Matsumiya didn't change sides and tried to break through with a combination with Maeda in front. However, the pass to the left front line was slightly too long and Matsumiya couldn't catch up.

51 minutes: Kashima FW Kanazaki brings the ball into the area and creates an opportunity, but perseveres and steals the ball, and Nakajima dribbles up into the opponent's territory. In the end, he tried to send a final pass to Mizunuma, who went up on the right, but it was cut off by Kashima DF.
52 minutes: East receives a right cross in the center, last pass to the right area. Mizunuma runs in and makes a direct shot.
54 minutes: Mizunuma's right cross drifted to the far side, but Tanabe followed up and passed it to Nakajima in the center. Nakajima turned and aimed for a shot, but both attempts missed the goal.

Unable to score additional points, Kashima also approached the Tokyo goal through crosses and set plays, gradually gaining momentum for a counterattack.
66 minutes: A header from DF Fan Sohoko is made from a free kick on the right side by MF Shibasaki.
74 minutes: FW Doi was pressed by the left CK clearance of Kashima and was shot with a ground shot, but was blocked in front of the goal. Furthermore, the loose ball was connected and a heading was shot by DF Masuko in front of the far post from the right cross, but it narrowly missed the frame and escaped danger.

84 minutes: In the midst of a tense battle, Tohoku receives a foul and earns a FK from the left corner. Mizunuma takes the shot directly and fires a sharp shot. Just before the goal, Maeda runs near and stretches his leg to take the shot, but it is blocked by the Kashima GK and DF. However, Morishige takes the rebound and shoots, but it is saved by the opposing GK. Maeda reacts quickly and takes a direct shot from the left area, scoring a valuable additional point and extending the lead to 2-0.

Immediately after entering additional time, Kashima, who did not give up the counterattack, sent a throw-in to the right area, and MF Suzuki received it and turned around. He then crossed it to DF Yamamoto at the far post, who headed it in. The ball bounced off and was saved by Akimoto...but it was ruled a goal. They conceded one point, but they calmly created their own time and the game ended.

With determination at the forefront, we ran until the end and achieved a victory for the first time in 8 years in the league with a united battle since 2008.

[Player Comments]
"Kono"
"I was able to score as I imagined. There was space in front of me, and when Shoya NAKAJIMA looked up, our eyes met. I am grateful for the good pass he sent me. I only played for a short time, but today everyone was moving well and I think we ran more than the opponent. We were able to connect passes and had momentum. We were able to win and it was very good. My left ankle, which was injured, still hurts, but I want to recover for the next match."

"Maeda"
"Morishige's shot fell in a good spot. I've always wanted to contribute to the team by scoring, so I'm glad I was able to do it. There were tough times today, but we were able to run more than the opponent. I think it's the result of our practice. It's important to continue fighting like we did today. I want to continue to do my best so we can keep it up."

[Summary of Coach Yoshiyuki SHINODA's Press Conference]
"It was a good game from the start. We played against the strong team Kashima, and didn't give them any space. Everyone worked hard and pressed from the front. As a result, we were able to earn 3 points. Our plan to counterattack after stealing the ball also worked well. We had a strong motivation to beat Kashima, and we were able to train well until the league resumed, which led to this result. Of course, it would have been better to end the game with a 2-0 or 3-0 score, but there were still some mistakes. We have areas to improve, such as how to finish the game, so we will prepare and work towards the next game."

[Kashima - Masatada ISHII Coach's Press Conference Summary]
"Today, over 37,000 soccer fans gathered at Ajinomoto Stadium. We also held a public viewing at Kashima Stadium, and many Kashima fans were watching as well. We talked about having a good game with the players. However, Tokyo was very aggressive on both offense and defense. They were able to outperform us with their pressing and quick ball movement in our opponent's half, resulting in this defeat."