Heading towards a perfect victory in the last four matches!

　Since winning the Urawa Reds match on September 29th, FC Tokyo has not won a single game for over a month. On this day, they faced C Osaka, who is on the verge of relegation, at home Tokyo Stadium. C Osaka is facing the possibility of relegation to J2 if they do not achieve a victory with a V-goal in this match, so it was expected that they would launch a desperate all-out attack from the start. On the other hand, Tokyo has the reliable veterans Amaral, who returned from suspension in the previous match, and Miura, who has recovered from injury, back on the pitch, and an intense and exciting game was expected.

　FC Tokyo has lost the goal of winning, but it is important to win this game in order to achieve better results than last year and to aim for the first title in the Emperor's Cup. The stage to demonstrate Tokyo's strength is set. Let's go for it towards "Last 4 games, all wins!"

"Solid defense and fast counterattack" explodes! Continuously gets 2 goals!

　At 4:04 PM, under the intermittent rain at Tokyo Stadium, the whistle announcing the beginning of FC Tokyo's "Last 4 Games, All Wins" challenge resounded loudly.

　The match started with C Osaka launching a total attack regardless of the formation, but FC Tokyo was able to steal the ball with solid defense and create big chances through sharp counterattacks. The first decisive chance for FC Tokyo came in the 9th minute when Yukihiko Sato, who had returned to his own half for defense after cutting off C Osaka's attack, received the ball and passed it to Masamitsu Kobayashi on the left side. Sato then made a fierce dash towards the front line. Kobayashi perfectly timed a through pass behind C Osaka's shallow defensive line, and Sato broke through to face the goalkeeper one-on-one. Sato dribbled past the oncoming goalkeeper but failed to take a shot, and he managed to pass the ball back to Amaral, who had run into the center, but it narrowly missed connecting and was cleared by a defender. Although it didn't result in a goal, it was a big chance created from Sato's excellent situational judgment. Unlike the previous match where they struggled to establish a base in the front line and create a tempo in the midfield, FC Tokyo in this match had Miura, the defensive midfielder, creating a tempo in the midfield and using Amaral and Toda in the front line to create attacking rhythm by expanding to the sides. Amaral provided stability in the front line with consistent post play, and Toda, who made his first start in the second stage, disrupted C Osaka's defensive line with his abundant mobility and aggressive movements. On the right side, Sato created chances with sharp runs into space.

　In the 15th minute, after stealing the ball on the right side, Komine quickly fed it to the front line, where Yukihiko timed his run perfectly and received the ball from the deep right side, crossing it back to Miura who kicked it powerfully with his right foot to take the lead. Tokyo, riding on the momentum, scored another goal in the 19th minute. Once again, Yukihiko broke through on the right side and carried the ball close to the goal before passing it to Amaral in the center with a ground pass. Amaral lifted the ball with one touch and struck a powerful volley with his right foot for the second goal. C Osaka, who had to win, became too aggressive and disrupted the balance between offense and defense, allowing FC Tokyo to exploit the space behind their shallow three-back line, especially targeting Yukihiko on the right side. As a result, FC Tokyo quickly scored two goals in the early stages.

Own goal that decided the match

　C Osaka, who lost two goals from the beginning, immediately took action. In the 21st minute of the first half, when the genius game maker from Korea, Yin, was brought in, C Osaka's attack changed from a monotonous one that rushed vertically to one with thickness that utilized Yin and Morishima's ball control and precise passing. However, Tokyo's defense line on this day had a higher level of concentration than usual, and Sandro, who was the target man, marked FW Okayama thoroughly, while Komine and Fujiyama sealed off FW Oshiba, who entered the side space with speed, with strict checks, preventing them from creating decisive opportunities. In the 30th minute, Yin broke through the back of the right side and FW Okayama jumped in with a header from the cross that went up from there, but Sandro barely cleared it. In the 38th minute, Yin took a powerful shot from the center, but Tsuchi caught it in front. Furthermore, in the closing minutes of injury time, a decisive final pass was made with intricate connections inside the penalty area, but Yamao, who entered the cover a moment earlier, cleared it with a sliding tackle. Tsuchi managed to punch away the shot that was taken immediately after that, but the first half ended with C Osaka's pace in the final stages.

　One minute into the second half, C Osaka kept the ball on the left side and Yoon inserted a wedge pass to the top, but the FC Tokyo defender cut it off. However, the clearance was small, and Yoon picked up the ball again from the center and took a shot, hitting the defender's foot (changing the direction) and scoring a goal. "The next goal is crucial," said Coach Okuma at halftime, so it was a regrettable goal to concede. However, the sadness was short-lived. Recently, Tokyo has been gaining confidence in their ability to recover even if they concede a goal, and they calmly continued to play their own style of soccer without being shaken by the goal. In the 4th minute, Yukihiko cut inside from the right side and Miura timed his run perfectly to get behind the defense, and there, Yukihiko delivered a perfect through pass. Miura crossed the ball back into the center from the edge of the goal line, but it hit the chest of a C Osaka defender and resulted in an own goal. Tokyo was completely relieved by this, but for C Osaka, who had just thought, "Now, it's time to counterattack!" it was an immeasurable shock to tighten their own noose with an own goal.

King is still alive! Amaral achieves his first hat trick of the season, extending the "undefeated myth"

　C Osaka, who was once again two points behind in a shocking time, still had their fighting spirit (=soul) intact. After conceding a goal, they substituted Marcelo, the defensive midfielder, and brought in the attacking midfielder Okubo, who is only 19 years old but has become the team's mainstay in his first year as a professional. C Osaka, who shifted to a more attacking style, launched a thick all-out attack with the combination of Yin, Morishima, and Okubo. In the 7th and 9th minutes, they were hit by mid-range shots, but both times, Toi managed to punch the ball away and FC Tokyo's defenders cleared the ball a moment faster than the opponents. Furthermore, in the 11th minute, Yin's free kick from the front of the goal hit the post. In the 13th minute, Okuyama attempted a jumping volley from Yin's cross from the left, but it went wide. C Osaka's desperate attacks only increased in power, but Tokyo, who had high concentration, calmly waited for the "opportunity to come."

　The long-awaited chance came in the 14th minute. Until then, C Osaka had been showing fierce attacks and had completely pushed forward, including the defenders, both mentally and physically. In the 14th minute, Fujiyama intercepted the ball and passed it to Amaral and Kobayashi, who broke through with a wall pass. FC Tokyo had a numerical advantage inside C Osaka's territory. Kobayashi sent a long pass to Miura, who had run into the space on the right side. Miura passed directly to Amaral, who ran into the center. Miura's movement to the side pulled out the defender, leaving Amaral in a one-on-one situation with the C Osaka defender in the center. Amaral took a big feint to the left and shot with his left foot, bypassing the narrow space on the same side and shaking the goal net with a sharp ground shot. From this point on, Amaral was unstoppable. In the 18th minute, Yukihiro scored a spectacular header, jumping one head above the opponent in front of the goal, from a cross sent by the right side, achieving his first hat-trick of the season. The score was 5-1, greatly distancing C Osaka.

　There was a decisive goal by Amaral, but C Osaka fought back until the end, responding to the passionate support from the supporters. C Osaka created a fresh movement with Okubo and Tokyo's defense, including Shimohira, defended well with high concentration. The intense back and forth battle continued, but in the 41st minute, Morishima dropped the ball floated by Yin from the center onto the post, and Oshiba ran in to score. The match continued with C Osaka showing their determination until the final whistle, but ultimately the game ended like this. At this point, C Osaka's relegation to J2 was decided.

　FC Tokyo tasted their first victory in about a month and took a steady step towards "winning all the last four matches". Although they conceded an unnecessary goal at the end, overall Amaral and Miura returned and the team tightened up significantly compared to the previous match. Moreover, players like Toru Kaburagi who joined the squad from the previous match have raised their level through their experience in actual matches. We are still far from the best lineup, but someone reliable will surely return to the pitch in the next match. With Amaral scoring goals, the "undefeated myth" has extended to 9 wins and 2 draws this season (counting from the 2nd stage of last year, it is 15 wins and 2 draws). With Amaral in great form, this record is reassuring. The next match against Kashima Antlers will be a "big showdown" for both us and the opponents. We will face the reigning champion Kashima in their home ground in order to achieve "winning all the last three matches"!

[Manager Okuma's Comment] Knowing that Kelly is absent and considering the current situation of C Osaka, we knew that the opponent would come to win from the beginning. Today, with Toda's entry, the movement of the front line increased, and we were able to score at a good time by running into the opponent's disliked areas and making effective runs. It became a comfortable development after a long time. If Toda can do this much in matches against other teams, he will be a significant force. We have high expectations and want him to aim higher and work harder.

[Joao CARLOS Coach's Comment] The situation has been tough since before the game, and it was decided that we would be relegated to J2 with this defeat. We had constructed the game properly and scored points. However, FC Tokyo also played a good game and deserved to win. I think it was a good game. The numbers of 2 wins and 8 losses (since I took over) mean that I couldn't change the team. The front office supported me to the fullest, and the players did well too. We had some troubles with injuries, but I don't want to use that as an excuse. The team has many talented players. It's just that I couldn't make a difference. I am a professional and I have responsibilities. I won't run away from this result. I will take responsibility for the team's failure to stay in the league, but as long as I have a contract, I want to keep fighting. The current situation and the situation the players are facing are tough. I know that the players are going through the toughest time. However, for the supporters who cheer us on, for my family and friends, I have to do my best.