Important Match to Determine the Future

If Sapporo loses the direct confrontation against the current leader (Tokyo) at home, the point difference will be 11, and Sapporo will be in a considerably difficult situation in the league. Moreover, they have already suffered two consecutive defeats in the first half of the season against Tokyo, so they couldn't afford to lose on this day in order to avoid a losing streak against Tokyo this season. Sapporo fans are well aware of this situation, and approximately 17,000 Sapporo fans gathered to witness and passionately support their team in this "biggest challenge". They supported the team with a unique and noisy cheering (by hitting megaphones) even before the match.

On the other hand, Tokyo is currently leading the league, but the point difference with 2nd place Kawasaki Frontale is only "1". The direct confrontation with Kawasaki Frontale is scheduled for next week, and these two matches are very important games that will determine the future. First, we want to win the Sapporo match today and then face Kawasaki Frontale. If we lose, not only is there a possibility of falling to 2nd place, but it could also be an opportunity for Sapporo to make a comeback. Therefore, it was necessary to definitely win this match. Although not as many as Sapporo fans, more than 70 Tokyo fans who came all the way to support warmly and passionately in the "goal end" section, the fierce battle began.

Ouch! Goal conceded just before the end of the first half

When the game started, as expected, a fierce and speedy offense and defense unfolded. In the early stages, Tokyo was unable to create a midfield due to Sapporo's persistent and intense press, and occasionally the right side was opened up by the individual skills of MF Almir and Yukihiko, and DF Umayama in tight situations, but they couldn't create many chances. FW Amaral also struggled against intense man-marking that resembled fouls, and although vertical passes from the defense that bypassed the midfield were made, they were consistently cut off due to monotonous attacks.

On the other hand, Sapporo, who desperately wanted to win on this day, approached the match with an ultra-attacking formation of three forwards, as if setting up a "last stand". The center of their attack was FW Yoshihara. Recognized for his performance in the Olympic preliminary round and hastily selected for the Japanese national team, he is Japan's Cinderella Boy who also participated in the South American Championship. His outstanding speed and technique, which stand out among J2 players, combined with the involvement of midfielders Ashi and powerful forward Fukagawa, created a powerful and relentless attack that repeatedly threatened the Tokyo goal. Although Tokyo was somewhat pushed back, their strong defensive line, with Sandro at the center and two defensive midfielders, remained solid and composed, preventing any decisive scoring opportunities. DF Komine competed evenly with Yoshihara's speed and did an excellent job. As time passed, Tokyo gradually adapted to Sapporo's speed and started to circulate passes in tight spaces, mainly through Almir in the midfield, creating chances by exploiting the shallow defensive line of the opponent. In the 36th minute, Almir received the ball in the center and played a perfect through pass to Wada, who broke through the opponent's defense. Wada had a great chance to go one-on-one with the goalkeeper, but unfortunately, he was blocked by the goalkeeper. In the 40th minute, Almir aggressively chased down the opponent's careless dribble in the midfield and cut off the ball. Amara, who quickly reacted to this and took possession of the ball, competed one-on-one with the opponent's defender and skillfully dribbled past him, then struck a powerful shot with his right foot into the bottom left corner of the goal. Tokyo took the lead, gained momentum, and launched continuous attacks, but they were unable to score another goal. Instead, in the first half stoppage time, Sapporo's tall defender, Nagatsuka, scored a spectacular header from a right corner kick.

4 goals conceded this season, complete defeat...

Tokyo, who conceded at the most crucial time, managed to find a good rhythm from the middle of the first half and continued to attack aggressively in the second half. Almir's aggressive runs behind the opponent's defense, Fujiyama's dribbling from the left back, and combination play with Amaral broke through the defense line, and from the right, Yukihiro and Umeyama created several decisive chances. On the other hand, Sapporo tried to counter with long balls to Yoshihara and Seki, but they were unable to create any clear chances. After this, the game continued at Tokyo's pace and an additional goal was expected, but in the 65th minute, Ashis, who won the battle with Almir in the midfield, surprised everyone with a powerful bullet shot from around 30 meters in front of the central goal. The ball narrowly missed the desperate save of GK Suzuki and pierced the goal net. Sapporo, now full of momentum, launched a fierce attack. In an attempt to equalize, Tokyo substituted FW Enomoto for midfielder Shinjo. However, in the 80th minute, while Tokyo was attacking, their defense became weak and Sapporo took advantage of this, with Kawamura cutting in from the right and scoring a powerful goal that hit the bar and then bounced off GK Suzuki's back into the goal. And to add insult to injury, in stoppage time, Sapporo earned a free kick near the right side of the goal from around 35 meters out, and Ashis surprised everyone again with a direct shot with his left foot! The ball flew over Suzuki's head and then suddenly dropped into the goal. Although it was too late, the goal conceded in stoppage time of the first half (which was also the equalizer) was the turning point of the game. Tokyo must forget about the thought of "what if we had just held on until halftime..." and quickly switch their mindset to prepare for the next match (9/5) against Kawasaki Frontale in the best condition.

"Coach's Comment"

<Coach Okuma>

Sapporo came to win, and it was expected that they would have more opportunities in the first half by targeting the opponent's defense. However, not being able to score more than one goal in some of the chances in the first half was crucial. And conceding a goal at a crucial time was painful. That allowed Sapporo to recover. In the second half, when they changed to a two-top formation, the inability to catch their movements from left to right was the reason for the defeat. I want to quickly switch my mindset and face the next challenge.

<Coach Okada>

In the first half, we endured the pressure well. I want to praise the efforts of the defenders. In the second half, when it became 2-1, I finally felt the strong desire to win from the players. The players really did well. In the previous two matches against Tokyo, Sapporo lost despite dominating, but today Sapporo won despite being dominated. Soccer is a mysterious thing. Also, today's victory is thanks to the supporters. The Atsubetsu supporters are truly warm, and I think the power they give to the players is amazing.