Seize the first opportunity to advance to the finals with a strong desire for victory!

　The Emperor's Cup semifinal round will be played against Kashiwa Reysol. In the quarterfinals on the 20th (Sat), they achieved a come-from-behind victory against Shimizu with a calm game plan despite conceding the first goal. Coach Jofuku said, "There is a good sense of tension while being able to relax to some extent. In the middle of the league season, there was a period when the tension became too high and we became rigid. While utilizing that experience, we can compete for the top position in the final stages, and now it has become a natural state to aim for the top and fight." With a strong determination, they want to seize victory in the New Year's Day final battle.

　Kashiwa, who has advanced to the semifinals by defeating Kusatsu, Kyoto, and Hiroshima. They have abundant energy in both offense and defense, and their sharp counterattacks are their strength. Up front, FW Popo and MF Alex reliably create opportunities, and the whole team quickly launches aggressive attacks with the support of MF Kanno, Ota, and others coming from the sides. In response, it is important to match their energy, increase ball possession, and suppress the source of Kashiwa's counterattacks. Additionally, it is crucial to break through Kashiwa's solid defense centered around GK Kanno. We want to take control on the sides and draw out the central defenders, exploiting the empty spaces.

　Tokyo, Moneba is suspended due to accumulated warnings. Fujiyama will team up with Saura. In addition, Ishikawa has fully recovered from his injury and joined the substitute members. "There is no unnecessary tension or pressure now. We have been building up without wavering, both individually and as a team, so we are focused only on showing that. I want to contribute to the team and definitely achieve results, and I have confidence in that," he said with determination. Suzuki, who is on loan from Kashiwa, also said, "Tokyo can take action on their own against Kashiwa's strong soccer, and they can also play reaction soccer. We want to play our soccer as usual and win while accurately reading the flow," emphasizing the importance of fighting with a calm mind.　　

　Coach Shirofuku declared strongly, "Regardless of the outcome, the daily training we have done so far will never be in vain. It is about fighting with a competitive spirit every day for 365 days. We want to see how much of the soccer we have built up can be demonstrated. The players themselves will give us a satisfactory performance." They will show a strong determination surpassing Kashiwa without losing focus, calmly play their own soccer, and aim for victory! The match started at 13:06 with Tokyo's kickoff at the sunny Ecopa Stadium.

Suzuki takes the lead with a middle shot! Ending the first half with a lead

　Both teams were unable to create decisive chances with tough pressing on the ball from the beginning. In the 7th minute, Kabore -> Kajiyama made a through pass to Akamine in the penalty area. It was a great opportunity, but it was offside. In the 9th minute, Kashiwa FW Kanno crossed from the left side. Ota in the center tried to shoot, but it went well over the bar. In the 15th minute, Kashiwa MF Popo crossed and MF Alex ran into the goal area and headed the ball, but Shioda made a fine save and prevented a goal.

　Tokyo, as time passes, starts to control the flow of the game in the midfield. In the 18th minute, Sato dives to head the ball from Kajiyama's liner corner kick, but it hits an opponent player. Tokyo then wins a left corner kick from the loose ball and Suzuki enters the penalty area from a short corner with no angle to shoot. It hits the opponent's defender and the loose ball is connected, with Akamine volleying the ball in the end, but missing the target by a wide margin. On the other hand, Kashiwa also shows resilience and launches attacks with momentum, approaching the goal, but Tokyo counters with focused defense. It becomes a situation where there is no moment to relax.

　At the 31st minute, Tokyo launched a counterattack with Kajiyama passing a through ball to Cabore behind the opponent's defense. Although it was initially cleared, Kajiyama picked up the ball again and Suzuki received it in the center, unleashing a powerful shot. It pierced through the Kashima goal, giving Tokyo the opening goal. Seizing the momentum, Tokyo calmly controlled the game. They formed a solid block, defended well, and launched quick attacks after winning the ball. Towards the end of the first half, Kajiyama unleashed two powerful shots without any danger, and the first half ended smoothly. Leading by one goal, they headed into the second half.

Despite fighting until the end, we suffered a defeat by allowing a comeback in the second half.

　From the start of the second half, Kashiwa put in FW Fransa to go for the win. Tokyo also, as instructed by the coach at halftime, played a cautious game from the start to prevent the opponent from taking control. In the 54th minute, Kabore headed Shioda's goal kick, passed it to Akamine, and took a shot. It missed to the right of the goal. In the 60th minute, from a right free kick, Kabore connected with a loose ball and made a perfect through pass behind the opponent's defense. Hayashi, who ran into the area, reacted but couldn't shoot as he was closed down by the defender. In the 63rd minute, Suzuki broke free on the left side and crossed. Kabore tried to connect with the ball with his left foot but couldn't make good contact and it went over the frame.

　While concentrating on each other, they attacked each other quickly and continued with intense offense and defense. In the 68th minute, Kashiwa's left cross was connected to the center by midfielder Alex from afar, and forward França broke through with an exquisite trap and shot. This went through between the legs of Shibata and scored, equalizing the score. Tokyo, who wanted to counterattack, replaced Hayashi with Emerson immediately after conceding a goal, and substituted Ishikawa for Suzuki in the 73rd minute. It became an intense development where they fought for one point. In the 75th minute, Kajiyama took a middle shot from the ball that spilled outside the area in a melee in front of the goal. This was caught by the Kashiwa goalkeeper in front.

　In the 82nd minute, Kajiyama dribbled in from the right side and passed to Emerson, who was free on the left after attracting the attention of the defenders. He took a shot, but it went over the bar... Unable to capitalize on the chance and score an additional goal. Then, in the 88th minute, Lee, a substitute midfielder for Kashiwa, took advantage of a momentary gap in Tokyo's defense and scored a goal in the upper right corner, allowing Kashiwa to take the lead. Tokyo immediately substituted Kondo for Fujiyama and pushed Sato forward, launching a power play without giving up, but their attacks were repelled by Kashiwa's focused defense, and the game ended. They were unable to reach the finals for the first time and finished in the top 4 of the Emperor's Cup, concluding all the matches of this season.

　【Player Comments】《Suzuki》"Playing against my former team Kashiwa, I tried to approach the game with the same mindset as always, but there was still some awareness. I was happy to score today, as I wanted to contribute to the team's goal. I had been practicing shooting from outside the box since our training in Odaira. It was a good goal, just like in practice. It would have been great if we could have won as a team. But in the end, we lost because something was missing for Tokyo. We need to build on this and make it meaningful. I want to take this opportunity to grow as an individual and as a team. Next season, we will aim for an even higher position in the league and win the Emperor's Cup. We will use today's disappointment as motivation to improve."《Nagatomo》"Not being able to score another goal was the reason we couldn't win. We also couldn't keep up with our marks and there were moments where we could have pressed more. I think that's where we lost the game. It's sad that the soccer season ended in December. We all said we wanted to play soccer together until New Year's Day, so it's disappointing. I experienced a lot this year. Personally, it wasn't always easy, but I think I was able to grow by thinking about various things. I want to contribute more to the team and be able to lead them with my voice. I'm grateful to the supporters for coming this far and buying tickets for New Year's Day. I'm filled with regret. Next year, I want to show the fans that we will fight even harder and play in a way that will make them happy."

　[Summary of Manager Jofuku's Press Conference] "It's very disappointing. We had many supporters come from Tokyo and we approached the match with a strong determination, but it's very unfortunate that we couldn't make it to the finals. I want to congratulate Coach Ishizaki. I don't think we were inferior in terms of content. Our defensive and offensive plans were almost as intended in the first half, and the start of the second half was not bad either. However, we were undone by the player we were most concerned about, FW Fransa, and in the end, the vital area was left open and MF Lee scored a wonderful shot. Of course, there were reasons for that, and we were unable to respond. It's not a chance that comes often, so we wanted to become finalists, but we couldn't. We must use this frustration and the frustration from the final match of the J-League next year, both as individuals and as a team. That's when it becomes an experience. Reysol played a game with a lot of soul. I hope they can win the championship for us." (Regarding the plan after being caught up to the tie?) The positions of Hayashi and Suzuki required a lot of hard work, so the key was how to add accents there. We were caught up to the tie just before putting Emerson in, but I intended to make substitutions whether we were caught up or not. I wanted them to be the accent and create our own time. And when Suzuki started to get tired, I wanted to put Ishikawa in and have a fast attack up front.

　[Summary of Kashiwa Ishizaki's Press Conference] "We won against Hiroshima in the previous extended match and tried to fight in the semifinals with that momentum, but MF Ohtani and MF Sugiyama couldn't play due to injuries. However, the substitute players did their best. It was a very difficult situation to be conceded first, but it was good that we were able to turn the game around in the second half. We allowed a few decisive opportunities, but if we can reduce those, I think we can have a better game. FC Tokyo was truly amazing, and the content of the match could have gone either way. I think the goal scored by MF Li was driven by the desire to win the game. We only have two days of rest, but I want to prepare well and aim for the final. (Why did you put in FW França at the beginning of the second half and FW Li in the middle of the second half?) We wanted to equalize early after being conceded and our attack wasn't finding its rhythm. So, we put in FW França to calm the game down. However, when he comes on, everyone tends to focus on him. MF Li is a player who can surpass FW França and make runs forward. We wanted to create a situation where the ball would go to MF Li when the opponent was focused on FW França. The first goal was scored by FW França and the second goal was scored by MF Li, so it was really good that the two substitutes who came on scored. (A word for the final match) Only two teams in Japan can play on New Year's Day. While savoring this joy, I want to win in the end and share the joy with everyone."