Approach the milestone game with a winning stance

　J1 League First Stage will temporarily suspend after this round due to the World Cup. Tokyo, who dropped to 8th place after losing in the previous round, desperately wants to win this milestone game and enter the Nabisco Cup in one week and the league matches that will resume in July with a good mindset. The opponent is Sendai, who achieved 5 consecutive wins after being promoted to J1 this season and is currently in 3rd place, bringing a hot wind to J1. The enthusiasm of the local Sendai is tremendous, and the Sendai Stadium is always packed with fans, creating an overheated atmosphere. Their passionate support is already considered one of the best in J1. On this day, Tokyo entered the Sendai Stadium.

　Tokyo made significant changes to their lineup from the previous match, including the forced participation of injured midfielder Kelly and defender Jean. They also started with debutant Kaji at right back, Fujiyama at left back, Hoshi at right midfielder, and Toda at left midfielder. On the other hand, Sendai's ace Marcos is unable to play due to accumulated warnings, but they have fielded a best lineup led by current national team forward Yamashita, along with veteran players Iwamoto, Yamada, Moriyasu, and Komura, all former national team members.

　In the midst of a difficult team situation with a series of injuries, Tokyo is determined to win this match with a total war approach, such as forcing Kelly and Jean, who have not fully recovered from their injuries, to play and not having a goalkeeper on the bench, unprecedentedly fielding all substitutes as field players. The stands at the passionate Sendai Stadium, shaking with the cheers of both teams, Tokyo Eleven fiercely charged into the enemy territory as the kickoff whistle blew.

F.C.TOKYO Ready To Roll 

Following the seventh round of games the J-League takes a two month break for the World Cup. After producing their worst performance of the year last Saturday, falling to 8th in the league, F.C. TOKYO were hoping to bounce back in style ahead of the upcoming Nabisco Cup matches. Today's opponents, Vegalta Sendai, were promoted from J2 last year and have taken J1 by storm, winning their first five matches of the season and currently lie third. The fans have played no small part in this success, packing out Sendai stadium and roaring their team on in exemplary fashion.
TOKYO were able to welcome back Kelly and Jean, while Kaji made his first team debut at right back. Fujiyama started on the left with Hoshi and Toda as side backs. Ace striker Marcos was suspended for Vegalta but Japan forward Yamashita and veteran midfielders Iwamoto, Yamada, Moriyasu and defender Omura (all former internationals) made the starting eleven.
F.C. TOKYO started the game with five outfield players on the bench, an indication of Manager Hara's attacking intentions. A barrage of noise from the sell out crowd greeted the teams as they entered the field.

Attack Soccer in Full Swing! Overwhelming Sendai from the Beginning!

　With the whistle of the kickoff, Toda on the left side chased Sendai's ball fiercely. The ball was pushed from left to right by Toda's force. Toda continued to put pressure on the left side of Sendai, which is the opposite side of his position. While thinking "there's no need to go that far," I realized that this intense pressure from the front line was exactly the kind of soccer Tokyo was trying to play this season. Amalao, Hoshi, Kelly, and Miyazawa charged fiercely at the opponent's ball one after another, as if being pulled by Toda's momentum. Sendai Eleven hesitated, and Tokyo took the ball, attacked sharply, and completely grasped the rhythm from the beginning.

　2 minutes, Kelly broke through from a one-two with Amaral near the penalty area and charged towards the goal, but was cleared by the opponent's defender and resulted in a corner kick. Jean headed the corner kick from the left, but unfortunately missed. In the 8th minute, Star received a pass from Kaji and put in a low cross after breaking through the opponent's defender on the right side, but Amaral's attempt was cleared by the opponent's defender at the last moment. In the 11th minute, Toda aggressively charged and stole the opponent's ball in front of the goal, then charged towards the goal, but his shot was blocked and did not result in a goal. Furthermore, the highlight was in the 12th minute, where Fujiyama sharply broke through a narrow space from an interception and a one-two with Kelly, then dribbled 40 meters and took a powerful left-footed shot. Although it was saved by the goalkeeper and did not result in a goal, this movement proved that Fujiyama had made a comeback, and he continued to create numerous chances with his sharp interceptions and dribbles afterwards.

　The defense line was also stable. Jean's presence was indeed significant, as he cleared every ball that came in from the sides with his head or feet. What sets him apart from other players is the magnitude of his clearances. For the opponents, every time they tried to attack, it was blocked by Jean, preventing them from launching continuous waves of attacks. His balance with Ito was exquisite, not allowing the opponents to find any openings. Additionally, not only Fujiyama but also Kaji, who made his debut, fully demonstrated their high potential. They showcased their strength in one-on-one situations and frequently joined the attack, making a strong impression.

　On the other hand, Sendai lacked a target in the front line as Marcos was absent and Jean kept a clean sheet in place of FW Fujikichi, resulting in a lack of attacking power. Occasionally, they attempted sharp central breakthroughs through post-play by FW Yamashita via MF Silvinho, but Tokyo's central defense, including Miyazawa and Asari, remained solid and was not easily broken.

TOKYO Take The Initiative 

TOKYO began the game in aggressive fashion with Toda switching sides to harry the Vegalta left back, while the front line closed down their opponents, denying them any time on the ball. Vegalta were forced onto the back foot as the visitors seized control of the midfield and found their rhythm.
In the 2nd minute, Kelly and Amaral played a neat one-two on the edge of the area; a defender cleared the ball for a corner which Jean headed narrowly wide. In the 8th minute, a fine through pass from Kaji put Hoshiin behind the defense but a defender whipped his low cross off Amaral's toe. Three minutes later, Toda robbed a defender and bore down on the goal only to see his shot blocked. In the 12th minute, Fujiyama intercepted a pass, played a sharp one-two with Kelly and embarked on a 40-yard run. His powerful shot failed to beat the keeper but, emboldened, he looked to get forward at every opportunity.
The TOKYO defense held firm: Jean dealt comfortably with everything Vegalta threw at him, while Ito's superb game reading ability allowed him to nip attacks in the bud. Debutant Kaji showed his potential; strong in one-on-one situations and ready to lend his weight to the attack.
With striker Marcos missing and Fujiyoshi effectively shackled by Jean, Vegalta offered little in attack.

Unable to capitalize on fierce attacks, the first half ends with no points scored

　In the first half, Sendai had only one scoring opportunity. In the 23rd minute, Iwamoto from the left side crossed the ball and it was shot freely from the center. The ball bounced back once and almost pushed in, but it went over the bar. Once again, it was a reminder that when given space, Iwamoto can deliver accurate crosses.

　Tokyo continued to attack aggressively. The offense and defense worked well, to the point where it can be said that they were a completely different team from the previous match. Fujiyama's interception was sharp, and after taking the ball, he entrusted it to Kelly, who then approached the goal through one-twos with Amaral and wide plays. Additionally, when passed to the wide-visioned Miyazawa, he repeatedly sent long passes to Toda, who ran behind Sendai's defense. In the 39th minute, after Jan cleared the ball, Hoshi dribbled forward from the right side and made a perfect side change to Amaral, who was running freely on the opposite side. Amaral made a feint and took a shot, but it went straight to the goalkeeper. In the 43rd minute, Kelly received the ball from Amaral, who had picked up the opponent's pass mistake, and passed it to Toda. Toda rushed towards the goal, but his shot was blocked by a tackle just a step too late. The decisive moment came in the 44th minute when Fujiyama intercepted the ball in the midfield and dribbled up the right side. He crossed the ball, and Toda contested and dropped it, then Kelly unleashed a powerful volley shot from the front, but it was saved by Sendai's goalkeeper with a superb save, resulting in a corner kick. Furthermore, Jan perfectly headed the corner kick, but it was also stopped by the goalkeeper. Tokyo had nine shots in the first half, three times more than Sendai, but failed to score and ended the first half without a goal.

All Square

In fact, they managed only one serious attempt on goal in the first half; a cross from Iwamoto led to a free shot on goal, and the resulting loose ball was blasted over the bar. TOKYO escaped but the danger posed by Iwamoto's centering ability was clear.
TOKYO continued to attack with abandon, hitting long balls over the Vegalta defense to Toda. In the 39th minute, a quick break from the back saw Hoshi rake a pinpoint cross-field ball to Amaral. The big Brazilian feinted around a defender and fired in a shot but the keeper was equal to the task.
As the half drew to a close, TOKYO turned up the heat—Fujiyama intercepted a loose pass and set off down the wing, his cross aimed at Toda fell invitingly for Kelly whose powerful volley was somehow deflected around the post by the keeper. Jean made solid contact with the resultant corner, but the keeper again denied TOKYO.
The first period ended soon after with TOKYO having outshot the home side by 9 to 3. Unfortunately, they had nothing to show for a commanding performance.

Despite dominating the game, we conceded a goal from just one corner kick.

　Tokyo's momentum did not wane even in the second half. In the middle of the first half, Shimohira, who came on the pitch to replace the injured Asari, created a rhythm with accurate distribution in the midfield. In the 2nd minute, Shimohira broke free from a flowing direct pass from Kelly to Shimohira to Hoshi to Kelly to Shimohira in the narrow space on the right side, and immediately passed vertically to Toda, creating a chance. Furthermore, in the 10th minute, Amaral competed for Kelly's soft cross from the right and dropped it forward, but Toda's shot was too late and blocked by the opposing defender.

　Entering the second half, Sendai also started creating chances from the left with Iwamoto. In the 5th minute, Tokyo's defensive mistake fell to Iwamoto's feet, who then rushed towards the goal. He passed to Silvinho, who broke free from the crowded area and faced GK Doi in a one-on-one situation, but Doi blocked the shot with his foot. Tokyo had been dominating the game, but they started to become vulnerable to Sendai's counterattacks after their continuous attacks. In particular, Iwamoto, who was waiting on the left side, became the starting point. In the 15th minute, a pass reached the free Iwamoto, who sprinted from the left, evaded Kaji, and unleashed a powerful shot. The ball deflected off a defender and changed its course, but Doi managed to touch it and it resulted in a corner kick. However, Sendai's defender Komura scored a header from this corner kick, giving them the lead.

One Corner, One Goal 

Shimotaira had replaced the injured Asari towards the end of the first half and he assumed the role of midfield distributor as TOKYO began the second half where they had left off. Some slick direct passing opened the Vegalta defence twice but Toda was unable to finish off the moves.
From around the 50 minute mark Vegalta started to claw their way back into the match as Iwamoto finally found some room in which to work. He set up Silvinho with a neat through ball but Doi blocked the shot with his feet. In the 60th. minute he received the ball unmarked on the left, beat Kaji and fired in a shot. The ball was deflected by a defender and Doi did well to scramble it around the post. From the corner Omura rose to head Vegalta into the lead.

Kelly's goal was a blow, but Sendai was defeated by the difference in finishing power.

　Tokyo has become even more aggressive. In the 16th minute, a decisive through pass from Miyazawa reached Amaral, but Amaral did not shoot and tried to dribble past, only to be cleared. Amaral, perhaps due to fatigue, clearly felt heavier in the second half compared to the first half, and had the ball taken away by Sendai DF's Komura and Ricardo, missing opportunities.

　30 minutes, Amaral was dispossessed by Ricardo on the left side, and Ricardo immediately passed the ball to Yamashita in the front line. With the whole team pushing forward, the defensive line of Tokyo became shallow. Ricardo made a brilliant decision and passed a perfect ball behind the Tokyo defense, which Yamashita reacted sharply to and broke through towards the goal. From top speed, he unleashed a powerful right-footed shot that shook the net of Tokyo's goal.

　Playing away and trailing by two goals with only 15 minutes remaining, it was certainly tough for Tokyo Eleven. In the 32nd minute, Jean seemed to score with a header from a left corner kick, but once again, it was thwarted by Sendai GK Kobari's miraculous super save. However, in the 39th minute of the second half, Fujiyama dribbled into the left side of the penalty area and heel-kicked it to Kelly, who came to support from behind. Kelly powerfully swung his right foot while running and the ball went past Kobari's saving, resulting in a long-awaited goal.

　The remaining time is 6 minutes, and with added stoppage time, there is about 10 minutes left. It was possible to catch up to a tie score. However, just after thinking that, in the 41st minute, once again allowing a breakthrough from the left side by Iwamoto, Yamashita jumped in on a sharp cross and scored the third goal without any resistance. In stoppage time, Amaral headed the ball floated by Kelly forward, and Fukuda further passed it to the back, where Jean ran in and took a volley shot, but it went over the bar. In the end, the game ended like this, and Tokyo cried over the lack of finishing power while playing a wonderful soccer game that was close to the best of the season, losing an important milestone game.

　There were some dark stories such as Asari getting injured after losing the match, but there was also some good news. Fujiyama's comeback. His attacking participation from that sharp intercept will definitely become a big weapon in the future. The Nabisco Cup is coming up in a week, but what is required of the current team is to produce results no matter what. Tokyo will enter the battle of Golden Week, aiming to advance in the Nabisco Cup qualifying league.

[Summary of the press conference with Coach Hara] Today's game was one that we really wanted to win, so we used Kelly and Jean, who are not fully recovered, and we intentionally did not put a substitute goalkeeper on the bench. It's very disappointing that we couldn't win with an all-out attack. There are many challenges, but I think today's performance was much better compared to the previous match. After all, even if we create such good opportunities, we can't win if we can't score. On the other hand, we were scored against by the opponent with few chances, despite taking care of defense. In the future, we need to improve our accuracy in various aspects in order to win important matches. We have many injured players and many challenges, but we want to prepare sufficiently for the Nabisco Cup and the resumption of the league after the World Cup break.

Kelly Pulls One Back 

F.C.TOKYO poured forward in search of an equaliser, but Amaral was guilty of over elaboration after a superb through ball from Miyazawa had sent him clear of the defence, and the chance was lost. Amaral seemed to be tiring following his first half exertions and the Vegalta defensive pair of Omura and Ricardo stole the ball from him repeatedly. In the 75th minute, Ricardo robbed Amaral on the left and placed a perfectly timed ball into the path of Yamashita as he sped through the TOKYO back
line. Yamashita lashed the ball past Doi for a 2-0 lead.
F.C.TOKYO were down but not out, and nearly pulled a goal back two minutes later but Jean's powerful header from a right side corner was again miraculously stopped by the Sendai keeper. TOKYO were not to be denied however and in the 84th minute, Fujiyama burst into the penalty area, backheeled the ball to Kelly and Kobari was beaten at last.
With about 10 minutes remaining, TOKYO felt they were back in the match but only two minutes later that hope was extinguished. Once again Iwamoto was the instigator as he raced clear down the left wing and Yamashita flung himself forward to turn in a hard, low cross at the far post. Jean nearly made it 3-2 in the dying seconds with a close range volley, but fired over the bar. The final whistle blew and TOKYO had lost a game they dominated for nearly the entire 90 minutes. A lack of accuracy in front of goal let them down.
Despite the loss and the injury to Asari, something positive can be taken from the game: the excellent performance of Fujiyama. The qualifying group league stage of the Nabisco Cup starts next week; hopefully TOKYO can build on the improvement they showed here and post some positive results.

Manager Hara: "Today was a game we wanted to win at any cost - I didn't even name a goalkeeper on the bench. We played well so it's very disappointing. The performance was far better than last week, which is an improvement, but we didn't make the most of our chances and they did. We have many injuries and other things to deal with but we're looking forward to the Nabisco Cup games and the resumption of the J-League."