Start of the 2nd stage, approaching the first match with renewed determination!

　After a two-week interval since the end of the 1st stage, the 2nd stage begins. Tokyo struggled in the latter part of the 1st stage, suffering three consecutive losses and unable to produce results. With the aim of turning things around in this stage, they approach this opening match with renewed determination.

　JEF United Ichihara, who will face them, has successfully overcome the 6 matches of the 1st stage with 5 wins and 1 draw, and is maintaining a good condition. It is expected to be a tough battle in the away game, but it is also an important first match to determine the future. We want to somehow achieve victory and build momentum.

F.C.TOKYO Aim For Victory In Second Stage Opener 

The opponents for the opening game of the second stage were JEF United who had finished the first stage strongly with a won 5 drawn 1 record in the final six games. A tough match was expected.

Not allowing a goal even in Ichihara's big chance

　The game started cautiously. Both teams maintained a compact formation and tried to attack from wide positions. In the 5th minute, Tokyo's Jean attempted a header goal from a left corner kick, but the opponent's goalkeeper caught it. In the 6th minute, Chiba's ace player Choi connected a weak clearance ball from Tokyo's defense and took a shot. In the 8th minute, Tokyo's left midfielder Murai cut back the ball from the right side and Muto made a run to shoot from a negative cross. Chiba attacked from both sides, while Tokyo gradually got pushed back. However, led by Toda, Tokyo regained possession with tough checks in the midfield and Jean displayed his aerial strength in front of the goal, preventing any clear chances.

　In the 21st minute, Shigetoshi Mogi received a clearance ball from Ichihara DF and took a shot from the left corner kick, but it went wide. In the 23rd minute, Kelly passed the ball after intercepting it in the midfield, connecting with Miyazawa, and Kelly received the return pass in the center of the penalty area and took a shot, but the goalkeeper caught it.

　Ichihara, who began to take the initiative, had a scene in the 24th minute where Muto, who reacted to a long pass from midfielder Abe, broke through the back of the defense line, but Doi caught it a step ahead. In the 38th minute, Hasebe, who received a throw-in from the right side of Ichihara, passed the ball back to the back, and Abe ran into the right corner of the penalty area and took a powerful shot. However, the ball narrowly missed the left goal, and Tokyo escaped the pinch.

　However, Tokyo's attacks are biased towards the center and are consistently cut off in front of the opponent's goal. In the 43rd minute, Fukuda, Kelly, and Ishikawa launched a quick counterattack, but it was also ineffective as it got caught in the defense's net. On the contrary, in the 44th minute, Ichihara sent a cross from the left short corner towards the far side of the goal, parallel to the goal, with Abe. Doi jumped out to reach it, but couldn't, and the receiving defender Milinovic headed towards the unmanned goal. However, Ito did not give up and returned, clearing it just before it could go in. Although Ito's superb play prevented a goal, the performance of the game lacked brilliance and the second half began.

JEF U Miss A Sitter 

The game kicked off with both sides adopting a compact formation and looking to spread the play wide to the wings. Jean went up for a corner after only 5 minutes and made contact but the keeper held the ball cleanly. A minute later a poor clearance by the TOKYO defence allowed JEF ace striker Choi a shot on goal and in the 8th minute Murai breached the defence again and pulled the ball back for Muto to shoot. The visitors slowly began to exert a grip on the midfield with the terrier-like Toda battling to regain possession and Jean dominating in the air.
In the 21st minute Moniwa latched onto a cleared corner and fired narrowly wide; soon after a midfield interception saw Kelly find Miyazawa whose neat return pass reached Kelly just inside the area but the JEF keeper held his shot.
In response JEF increased the tempo and a long ball over the TOKYO defence from Abe saw Doi race out to deny Muto. In the 38th minute a throw in on the right reached Hasebe just outside the TOKYO area; he slipped the ball inside for Abe to thunder a shot fractionally wide of the left post.
The TOKYO attack had become one-dimensional, straight through the middle, and rarely threatened the JEF goal. With a minute of the first half remaining JEF won a corner, played short to Abe who floated a teasing cross into the TOKYO area. Doi decided to come for the ball but failed to reach it and JEF defender Milinovic seemed certain to score as his header flew towards the unprotected goal. From nowhere Tetsuya Ito appeared to hook the ball clear and save TOKYO's bacon. Thanks to Ito's dramatic goal line clearance the first half ended 0-0.

Tokyo Amaral's active attitude sparks a sudden surge!

　Immediately after the start of the second half, Ichihara's Choi headed a cross from the left. It was a tense moment early on, but Doi made a save and nothing came of it. Then, in the 52nd minute, Ishikawa forcefully attacked the center after receiving a pass from Kelly, who had drifted to the right side. Tokyo began to show an aggressive attitude towards the goal. And in the 55th minute, Amaral was substituted for Fukuda. This decision was a brilliant one, and the team became energized.

　In the 56th minute, Kelly passed the ball from the right side to Ishikawa in the center, who then connected the pass to Toda on the left side. Toda entered the penalty area and sent a final pass in front of the goal. Kelly and Amaral both tried to reach the ball, but narrowly missed. In the 57th minute, a long pass reached Toda, who had run behind the defense line, but his trap was not successful for a shot. In the 58th minute, Kelly received a pass from Amaral and quickly sent it to the center. Toda, who had made a run, temporarily attracted the defense and passed to the left side. Ishikawa ran freely and took a shot. The ball had too much power and missed above the goal, but Tokyo created consecutive chances.

The Right Stuff 

JEF began the second half aggressively with Choi powering a header wide soon after the restart. TOKYO were on the back foot and only Doi was keeping them in the game. A surging run from Ishikawa in the 52nd. minute relieved the pressure, as did the introduction of Amaral for Fukuda soon after. The complexion of the game changed almost immediately; a sparkling move that began with Kelly in midfield saw Toda bursting into the area and crossing.
TOKYO players were queuing up for the ball but in their eagerness none managed to make contact. A minute later a pin point pass over the JEF defence found Toda but poor control let him down. In the 58th. minute Kelly and Amaral combined to present Ishikawa with a clear shot on goal but he fired over the bar.
TOKYO were creating chances almost at will.

Kelly's opening goal was defended as a team, leading to a victory in the opening game!!

　By keeping the ball up front, Amaral enables Toda and Ishikawa to make penetrating runs for Tokyo. In the 60th minute, Toda makes a close offside run from a through pass by Miyazawa. In the 61st minute, Amaraol connects with Ishikawa, who has changed positions to the left side, and Kelly takes a shot. In response to Tokyo's movements, Ichihara has made substitutions, replacing left midfielder Murai with Hayashi in the 67th minute, and replacing Muto with Morafchik, an attacking player, in the 69th minute.

　However, Tokyo's momentum continues without interruption, and in the 71st minute, Shimohira made a long pass to Kaji, who ran up the right side. Ishikawa followed and cut deep into the end line, sending a cross. Unfortunately, it was cut off by the defender, but Tokyo showed a good attacking shape, starting from the side.

　And in the 76th minute, Kelly, who was keeping the ball on the right side of the midfield, dashed towards the goal as he passed the ball to Ishikawa near the penalty arc. Ishikawa, who received the ball, carefully observed Kelly's movement and made a perfect timed header pass into the right penalty area. Kelly, who made a run, spectacularly struck the ball into the goal net, and Tokyo scored a long-awaited goal!

　Afterwards, Tokyo substituted Kaji with Komine, who made his first appearance since April in the 78th minute. In the 80th minute, Toda was replaced by Baba. Komine showed aggressive defense on the right side, while Baba demonstrated fresh play and resilience to recover when the ball was taken away, becoming a significant accent.

　In the 84th minute, Ichihara substituted the speedy forward Lin for the midfielder Hasebe in an attempt to launch a counterattack until the end, but the Tokyo defense remained focused and responded accordingly. They successfully defended the opening goal scored by Kelly and held on until the final whistle. They showed great effort in securing 3 points away from home and made a promising start towards winning the 2nd stage.

[Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference] "In the first stage, we had a pattern of taking the lead in the first half and then being reversed in the second half, so today we tried to be cautious in the first half. However, we became too cautious and ended up not attacking and defending halfway. But we managed to overcome the difficulties in our own way, so I told the players not to be afraid and keep going. From the second half, we were able to attack well while using the fullbacks as a starting point. Amaral's condition was not 100%, so I was thinking about when to bring him in. I thought that if we tired out the opponent and then brought him in at a crucial moment, the rhythm would change, and it turned out as planned. He was able to keep the ball in the front line and it became easier to push up. It wasn't a performance that could be praised, but we managed to overcome the time we had been conceding goals and thanks to Amaral's entry, Kelly scored at a good time. If we had taken the lead, we could have also brought in Kominato, who is a defensive specialist, to strengthen our defense. Winning this start will give the players confidence. If we can become more relaxed and play freely, of course we want to attack, but when we need to be cautious, we will be able to make strategic moves and play mind games during the match."

[Summary of Manager VENGLOS' Press Conference in Ichihara] "The first half was a decent development, and I think both teams played a good game. However, in the second half, we couldn't move actively like in the first half, and our positioning was not good. Even when we had possession of the ball in the second half, we didn't have the movement to go forward. If we had scored in the 1 or 2 chances in the first half, it would have been a different game. We played a different game in the first half and the second half."

Kelly Bags The Winner 

With Amaral maintaining possession upfield, Toda and Ishikawa were able to attack the space in the JEF defense. The chances continued, and a very close offside decision against Miyazawa in the 60th minute saved JEF again. A sharp passing movement involving Ishikawa and Amaral set up Kelly for another effort soon after. JEF responded by replacing Murai and Muto with Hanyu and Moravcik respectively, as they sought to stem the tide by switching to a more attacking formation. TOKYO were not to be denied, however, and a typical move saw Kaji's long ball pick out Shimotaira on the right. Shimotaira fed Ishikawa on the overlap, but the JEF defense scrambled to clear his cross.
The goal that TOKYO had been threatening for so long finally arrived in the 76th minute. Kelly, on the right side of midfield, played a pass through to Ishikawa on the edge of the JEF area and set off on a fierce run at the heart of the JEF defense. Ishikawa, with perfect timing, rolled the ball into Kelly's path, and a superb first-time shot sent the ball hurtling into the net. In the 78th minute, Komine replaced Kaji for his first appearance in nearly 4 months, and soon after, Baba replaced Toda. The aggressive defensive qualities of Komine on the right and the fresh legs of Baba in midfield effectively preempted the expected JEF bombardment of the TOKYO goal as full time loomed. Defensive midfielder Hasebe was replaced by speedy forward Hayashi as a last throw of the dice, but the TOKYO defense held firm, and Kelly's strike proved decisive as TOKYO held on to collect the win and a well-deserved three points.

Manager Hara:
"Well, after the first stage where we often took an early lead only to fall behind later in the game, I told the players to be careful today. Unfortunately they were too careful and we couldn't really create much going forward, but in the second half we brought our wing backs into play and attacked well. Amaral wasn't 100% today and I was concerned about when to bring him on so I decided to wait until our opponents began to show signs of tiredness, and I think that it worked out very well. He was able to hold the ball up, we didn't concede a goal and Kelly scored at an opportune time. Our defensive specialist Komine came on and performed well. This result will boost the players confidence. Of course we would like to attack more but we must be pragmatic and use our cunning ".

JEF U Manager Venglos:
" Both teams played well in the first half, but our movement and positioning were not good after the break. If we had only been able to take advantage of one or two of the chances we created in the first half it would have been a completely different game".