Fight through until New Year's Day with a good start to the Emperor's Cup

　The Emperor's Cup is being held. In the 4th Round, which is the first match for J1 teams, they will face TDK SC (JFL), the representative team from Akita Prefecture. After suffering a big defeat in the previous league match against Kawasaki, there are concerns about the team's atmosphere. However, the players have already switched their mindset, saying "there is no time to look down." In order to fight through until the final round on New Year's Day, they want to approach each match with importance and make a good start.

　TDK is currently ranked 13th in the JFL. In the Emperor's Cup, they advanced through the prefectural tournament and qualified for the main competition. They defeated Nirasaki Astros and Mitsubishi Motors Mizushima FC, and in the 3rd Round, they overcame Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo in a penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw, and advanced. There is no doubt that they are riding a wave of momentum, and they will surely approach this match with determination to make their mark. It is crucial not to be overwhelmed by their fighting spirit.

　In addition, Masatoshi MATSUDA, who played for Tokyo from 2000 to 2002, is a major source of goals for TDK. One point is to thoroughly control the ball after competing with FW Matsuda, who possesses height and strength, in order to gather the ball to him. On the other hand, TDK solidifies their defense and counterattacks. Breaking down the opponent's defensive strategy is a key point in the attack. We want to take the lead early with a simple and efficient attack, and fight in our own rhythm. We want to demonstrate the difference in quality and aim for victory in the first match.

　The former coach also said, "We will give our best and face it." Today, Asari, Hirayama, and Ishikawa started. TDK approached the game with a formation of 4-4-2, with FW Matsuda and Kinoshita as the two top players, Ikeda and Matsugae as the left and right midfielders, and Takabayashi and Narita as the double defensive midfielders. The match started at exactly 13:00 with TDK's kickoff at Ajinomoto Stadium on a clear autumn day.

Struggled against a defensive approach and ended the first half with no goals

　At the beginning, TDK broke through the left side and MF Ikeda rushed in from outside the left area. Tokyo did not mark him and allowed a shot. The ball curved to the right and avoided conceding a goal, but TDK created a scoring opportunity early on. Tokyo lost their composure in this start and continued to allow TDK to bring the ball into shooting positions in the early stages. However, they escaped the danger with some mistakes and gradually gained control of the ball to launch attacks. In the 7th minute, Kanazawa broke through the defense line on the left side and crossed the ball. In the 8th minute, Lucas headed a shot from Ishikawa's left corner kick, but it went wide. In the 12th minute, Suzuki Nori jumped out behind the opponent's defense line, but it was offside. In the 13th minute, Tokunaga overlapped and crossed from a deep position, but the opponent's defender cut it off.

　Although crosses were sent from both sides, we couldn't create any decisive chances against TDK's solid defense. We kept losing the ball in the center and getting countered repeatedly. In the 20th minute, Tokyo quickly connected inside TDK's territory, and TDK midfielder Matsugae took a shot near the penalty arc. Kanazawa managed to block it and it resulted in a corner kick. In the 28th minute, Hirayama kept the ball up front from Suzuki's feed. Lucas, Ishikawa, Kanazawa, and Imano passed the ball wide, looking for an opportunity, but we couldn't break through TDK's defense and our passes were intercepted, leading to a counterattack.

　And TDK couldn't control the balls thrown into the front line one after another, losing their rhythm. In the 31st minute, they lost the ball due to a midfield pass mistake, and TDK midfielder Takabayashi -> forward Matsuda connected, and forward Kinoshita boldly shot from the right area. He cut to the right, but TDK created an attacking opportunity. However, in the 36th minute, TDK substituted midfielder Sato for left midfielder Ikeda, who injured his waist. Ikeda was a player that coach Hara was cautious of, saying "he has technique and good kicks". Tokyo finally grasped the rhythm and created chances from interceptions by Fujiyama and crosses by Tokunaga, against TDK who was forced to make substitutions.

　38 minutes, Lucas in front of the goal to the right from Tokunaga's right throw-in. Ishikawa, who ran in, shot from an angleless position, but the goalkeeper saved it. Hirayama tried to volley the rebound, but it hit the defender. In the 39th minute, Tokunaga crossed from the right, and Kanazawa and Konno tried to score one after another from the scramble in front of the goal, but they were stopped by the defender. In the 44th minute, Suzuki N. inside the area → Hirayama on the outside brought it forward and took a shot, but it went over the bar. In the end, they couldn't convert their chances and ended the first half scoreless.

Hirayama and Konno score! They add points from a set play and pull away from TDK

　In order to correct the issues in the first half, we switched and approached the second half, taking control from the beginning. In the 48th minute, Hirayama broke through to the right area with a long pass from Ishikawa, and despite being challenged by the opponent's defender, he got into a shooting position. He won a corner kick. In the 51st minute, Lucas made a perfect header from Tokunaga's cross, but it was blocked by the goalkeeper's great save. However, with this, Tokyo won a left corner kick and substituted Kurisawa for Kanazawa, who had injured his leg. In the following play, Suzuki Nori's left corner kick was crossed by Shigenoba from the far side, and Hirayama in the center scored with a header! They took the long-awaited opening goal.

　However, immediately after that, when Tokyo's concentration momentarily broke, TDK advanced to Tokyo's area with quick passing. Unable to stop this, in the end, TDK midfielder Takabayashi took advantage of the loose ball from Shigeno's clearance and passed it to FW Matsuda in the left area. Unable to keep up with the marking here, he was able to score a free shot and quickly equalized.

　However, without getting discouraged here, Suzuki Nori counterattacked with a lineup where Suzuki played as left fullback and Kurisawa played as left midfielder. Kurisawa got involved with the ball well and dominated the game. In the 63rd minute, Tokunaga's right throw-in was headed inside by Lucas, and then passed to Kurisawa in the left area. It was a decisive chance, but the shot was blocked by the defender and caught by the goalkeeper. In the 70th minute, Tokunaga, who had advanced forward, was fouled and earned a free kick on the right side. From Kurisawa's kick, Lucas attempted a header shot but couldn't find the target.

　TDK also uses substitute players and launches sharp counters from a solid defense. In the 75th minute, TDK's MF Chino, who rushed up to the front line, firmly became a wedge and expanded to the left. FW Togashi, who ran in from behind, created a scoring opportunity from a flowing combination with a shot, but was saved by a mistake. In an attempt to take the lead, in the 76th minute, Akamine was replaced by Asari and Redmine was brought in. Kurizawa aimed for the goal with Lucas supporting the left side as a defensive midfielder. Gradually, a rhythm is born with Tokyo-like attacks starting from the sides, and the game progresses in the TDK territory, but no additional points are scored. In the 79th minute, a shot by Hirayama from a ball contested by Redmine shakes the net, but it's offside...

　The second goal was not taken for a while, but in the 82nd minute, Makoto IMANO scored a splendid header from Kurisawa's free kick on the right side, taking the lead. Despite being troubled by the defensive play, they finally pushed TDK away and won 2-1. They advanced to the 5th round. The next match will be held on December 8th, where they will compete against Sagan Tosu in Marugame.

　【Player Comments】《Imano》"I was only thinking about winning today. As my own challenge, I tried to receive the ball well and break down the opponent. It was difficult to break through and we could only score from set plays. In that sense, it's disappointing. In the first half, we disrupted our own rhythm. I thought we could score without rushing so much, so it would have been better if we could play more calmly. (Regarding the goal), the opponent's marking was confused during the free kick. I thought I could do it and a good ball came, so I was able to score. It was a tough game, but I think winning will lead to the next step."《Hirayama》"Reflecting on the Kawasaki game, I wanted to make use of the chances today. I was thinking about being conscious of scoring goals and using my teammates if they were nearby. (There were some close moments with offside?) I think I'm getting better at plays towards the goal compared to before. We haven't achieved results in the league matches, so I want to continue winning in the Emperor's Cup and prepare to win in the Olympic representative team as well."

　[Summary of Coach Hara's Press Conference] "I watched the TDK JFL match, but the motivation in the Emperor's Cup is different from that of the JFL, so I told the players to focus on the match. However, perhaps due to the heavy defeat of 0-7 in the previous match, the players were stiff and unable to create a rhythmic attack. There are no easy matches in the Emperor's Cup. If we can score 1 or 2 points first, it will become easier, but if we can't score and the opponent creates their rhythm, it will be a tough situation. I told the players that if that happens, they should not panic, as I will bring in energetic players, and they should avoid getting frustrated and playing selfishly. We finally took the lead, but we should have established our rhythm; instead, we stopped playing when we judged the ball had crossed the line, and we were immediately equalized. That caused our rhythm to break again, but Kurizawa and Akamine, who came on as substitutes, did well to pick up the ball and create rhythm again. TDK usually fights in a tough environment, and there are former J-League players and former Tokyo players. We were somewhat pushed back by their momentum. (What about Hirayama's evaluation?) Akamine, who has been used as a starter until now, showed some fatigue, and since Hirayama has been improving his condition with the Olympic qualifiers coming up, I started him. I wanted to use his height for hold-up play for as long as possible against a withdrawn opponent. However, both the ball circulation at the back and Hirayama's movements were slow, and he often took too long to play after receiving the ball. In the second half, it finally started to feel good. I think he could have had a hat trick if there were no offsides. His shooting in those situations is indeed skillful. If he can grasp the way to enter the goal area, the timing, and the interplay, he can become a more dangerous player in the penalty area. (Did you struggle against a withdrawn opponent?) Everyone's play was slow, but from a certain point in the first half, the ball started to circulate, which is our original strength. However, perhaps due to the influence of the Kawasaki match, we were scared and passed the ball back, and then kicked it away immediately. The forwards said the back didn't give them the ball, and the back said the front didn't move, which became a typical situation when things weren't going well. Therefore, at halftime, I instructed them to move the ball one tempo faster and to get it to the two forwards quickly. However, the Emperor's Cup is indeed difficult. The opponents in J2 and JFL are completely different from when we play in J1. That is the difficulty and the interesting part of cup matches. Today's performance was not good, but I want to carry the fact that we won into the next match. Including TDK's part, we will fight hard in each match. Since the league matches are coming up soon, I want to prepare well for that as well."

　[Summary of TDK SC Interim Coach Sasaki's Press Conference] "In this tournament, our goal was to play against J-League clubs, and we were highly motivated to face Sapporo and achieve J1 status. It's regrettable that we couldn't capitalize on the last set piece, but it made us keenly aware of the strength of J1. Today, I wanted everyone to approach the game with the mindset of "we are challengers, so let's give it our all." The players performed well without losing focus, and I want to commend them for that. We expected Lucas and Akamine to start for Tokyo, but Hirayama came in, and we analyzed that they would play a simple game by sending long balls. However, both Lucas and Hirayama found good timing and had many opportunities to shoot, so at halftime, I instructed the midfielders to press them. Towards the end, we were increasingly vulnerable, but until then, we held up well. Ultimately, it's regrettable that we couldn't defend against the set piece by Konno in the end."