GAME RESULTGame Result

Sec. 1 2018/2/24 (Sat)
Audience 35,951 people 
Weather: Sunny, Low Temperature: 14.1°C, Humidity: 40% 
Referee: Yusuke ARAKI Assistant Referees: Ryo HIRAMA / Tadashi BABA Fourth Official: Futoshi NAKAMURA

J1 Sec. 1

Ajinomoto

HOME

FC Tokyo

1-1

Match Finished

First Half0-0

Second Half1-1

AWAY

Urawa Reds

FC Tokyo Urawa Reds
48' Keigo HIGASHI
Scorer 50' Tomoaki Makino
70' Diego OLIVEIRA → Kensuke NAGAI
72' Ryoichi MAEDA → Takefusa KUBO
84' Kota MORI → Cayman TOGASHI
Player Substitution 64' Kazuki NAGASAWA → Kosuke TAKETOMI
83' Yuki MUTO → Zlatan
6 Shoot 7
0 CK 5
13 FK 13
77' Takuji YONEMOTO
Warning 45' Yosuke KASHIWAGI
Exit
FC Tokyo Starting Lineup
GK 33 Akihiro HAYASHI
DF 6 Kosuke OTA
DF 3 Masato MORISHIGE
DF 48 Hyun Soo JANG
DF 2 Sei MUROYA
MF 38 Keigo HIGASHI
MF 8 Yojiro Takahagi
MF 7 Takashi Yonemoto
MF 39 Kota MORI
FW 9 Diego OLIVEIRA
FW 20 Ryoichi MAEDA
FC TokyoSubstitute
GK 1 Yu OKUBO
DF 5 Yuichi MARUYAMA
DF 25 Ryoya OGAWA
MF 18 Kento HASHIMOTO
MF 11 Kensuke NAGAI
MF 15 Takefusa KUBO
FW 17 Cayman TOGASHI
Urawa Reds Starting Lineup
GK 1 Shusaku NISHIKAWA
DF 6 Endo Wataru
DF 2 Mauricio
DF 5 Makino Tomoaki
DF 3 Ugajin Tomoya
MF 16 Takuya AOKI
MF 11 Martinos
MF 10 Yosuke KASHIWAGI
MF 15 Kazuki NAGASAWA
MF 9 Yuki MUTO
FW 30 Shinzo KOROKI
Urawa RedsSubstitute
GK 25 Tetsuya Enomoto
DF 14 Tadaaki Hirakawa
DF 31 Takuya IWANAMI
MF 7 Kosuke TAKETOMI
MF 22 Yuki Abe
FW 20 Li Zhongcheng
FW 21 Zlatan

[Highlight Video]

[Player/Coach Comments]

《Keigo HIGASHI》

"(About the goal)
I made sure to get in front of the opposing DF first because I received a good pass from Takahagi."
There is also a lucky aspect, but the ball came flowing from the opponent's feet.
It was great to take the lead, but conceding right after was a problem. What a waste.

(There are many intentional passes from Takahagi, right?)
That's something we've been working on since before the start of the season.
Not just for myself, but trying to make it a team effort.

(In the second half, did Urawa MF Martinez change sides?)
Not only that, but we are also constantly discussing with defender Ota and trying to play together, both in attack and defense.
During defense, I was able to defend well because I was called from behind.

(Regarding the scene where a corner kick was given to Urawa)
While it is important to not give Urawa, who specializes in side attacks, any corner kicks, we also managed to escape from many of their crosses by putting our bodies on the line. I think that was not bad.
Isn't it more important not to be beaten by set plays?

On the offensive side, we are also working on putting more power forward as a challenge. Although there are still many things that are not going well, we want to focus on increasing the number of times we do it in practice and pursue it by adding more sharpness..."

"Diego OLIVEIRA"

"It was a tough match against Urawa, a strong team."
Although we took the lead, it felt like we had a good flow, but unfortunately we were caught up.
However, everyone ran well and as a result, I also gave my all and achieved success.
I think it was good, and I want to do my best to win in the next battle.

(There were many scenes where passes did not connect well with the front line?)
Although there were times when passes did not come, there were also many instances where we lost the ball in a battle with the opposing DF on the front line.
I want to make improvements in that area, but the overall flow is not bad.
'There was an opponent', but I think it was a good game.

(Regarding the partnership with player Maeda)
Not only with player Maeda, but I feel that the partnership as a team is improving day by day.
I think it will get better if you spend more time.

(What about the playing time of 70 minutes, which requires defense from the front line?)
Along with player Maeda, we pressed quite a bit and chased after the ball.
However, Urawa's build-up was skillful and the ball couldn't be taken, resulting in a very running development.
"I still gave it my all. I want to become able to take the ball at the FW position."

"Summary of Tokyo - Kenta HASEGAWA's press conference"

"We aimed for victory in the opening game, but unfortunately we were only able to earn 1 point. However, I believe the players fought until the end with the determination to earn 3 points."
We must continue to increase our attacking power and train to secure 3 points at home.
In the first half, there were several scenes where we couldn't move the ball well, just like in the preseason match.
In the second half, the opponent's movement decreased and the midfield was open, so I think it would have been better if we could have moved the ball a little more.
I believe that these are the players who can do it, so there is still a lack of training there.
The way we conceded points was the worst pattern of immediately conceding points after scoring. We are still lacking in that area.
"We want to focus again after the score has moved firmly, and aim to score additional points without letting the opponent do it, and we want to prepare firmly for the next Sendai match."

"Q&A"
Q=What is the purpose of substitution cards?
"First of all, that time zone was the time zone where Urawa had a hard time scoring the final goal, so I wanted to use Nagai's speed on the counter and put him in."
If we can utilize Nagai's speed, I thought Kubo's technical skills would come to life, and he had been playing well in training matches. However, the Urawa players responded well and we were unable to create many chances. So, we brought in Tomogashi who can also put his body on the line up front and make runs for crosses.

Q=What kind of play do you expect from Omori?
"I only told Ohmori, 'Go for it!' so I think he did just that."

Q=What part did you feel the response from?
"I think it's a defensive position."
In the first half, except for the shot by Urawa's FW Kojiro Okazaki, the team, including GK, responded well with concentration.
I have played against Urawa many times during my time at G Osaka, and I have experienced many tough matches. Of course, I think the fact that it was the opening match made it difficult for the opponent, but I think it was very good that we were able to respond without breaking our organization.
The team called Urawa is the champion of last year's ACL and a well-rounded team.
I think we played a very balanced game, even though it was a dangerous 1-1 draw against that kind of team. We will have to work on various things in training from now on.
However, when it comes to offensive power, we have players with weapons, so we need to approach the game in a way that utilizes their strengths.

Q=What are the words spoken to the players before the game?
"Before the opening, I tend to say pretentious words, but I talked about the necessary attitudes, ball control, and switching for the season."
Some players may have put too much effort into it, but I think we were able to show that kind of attitude.
"We want to show a more aggressive attitude without fear of our opponents in order to earn 3 points in our home game."

"Summary of Urawa Takafumi HORI's press conference"

"I think it was a tough game because it was the opening match."
"We want to take a positive approach to the fact that we were able to catch up from a set play despite conceding the first goal, and continue to fight in the rest of the game."

Q=What are the current areas for improvement in terms of attack?
"In the part of the attack that started from the side, there were more advances to deeper positions in the second half."
From there, it's about the quality of crosses. Specifically, I think the improvement points are the timing with the players inside and the accuracy of the player who puts in the crosses."