Stop Oita's momentum and break through their solid defense to win at Ajinomoto!

　Sec. 9 will be a match against Oita Trinita, welcoming them at home. In the previous match against Shimizu, we lost with a goal from a set piece. Therefore, this match is an important one where we want to grab a victory at Ajinomoto Stadium without consecutive losses. In the lineup, Shigetani will start for the first time in 5 league matches. Kurisawa will be in the midfield, Kanazawa in the defensive midfield, Kajiyama in the central midfield, and Imano on the right. Manager Jofuku explained, "Conditioning is one of the reasons due to consecutive matches, but I have selected the lineup to win against Oita."

　Oita, on the other hand, currently has 3 wins, 2 draws, and 3 losses. They are in 9th place, but the point difference with Tokyo is 3, so depending on the result of this match, they could be overtaken. Despite missing forwards Takamatsu and Weslley, as well as midfielder Takahashi due to injury, they managed to keep Yokohama FM scoreless and win in the previous match. Manager Jo Fukushita is cautious, saying, "The absence of key players like Takamatsu and Weslley, combined with a sense of crisis and a strong mentality, has led to good results." In particular, their 3-back formation is strong both in height and strength, and they can quickly transition between offense and defense. We want to break through Oita's defense, which is similar to Shimizu in terms of creating a block, and score goals.

　At the same time, if Oita creates a starting point on the side, there may be sharp runs from MF Suzuki's cross to MF Nemoto and FW Kanazaki. In response to this, Tokyo wants to take control on the side. In the first half of the Shimizu match, we were unable to push forward and have the fullbacks attack, but we want to steal the ball with coordinated pressing and launch quick counterattacks. Also, we need to be cautious of the quick attacks where Oita's midfielders Roberto Cesar and Edmilson connect precise passes and launch a sudden attack. FW Matsubashi and the players in the front line have both speed and stamina, so we aim to win with an aggressive fight that surpasses their momentum without losing in terms of stamina.

　The match started at 16:04 in the calm and sunny Ajinomoto Stadium. In the slightly hot weather, you could feel the heat with just a little movement, and it was Tokyo's kickoff.

Sahara drops Kurisawa's corner kick and Akamine scores a spectacular goal to take the lead!

　Both teams entered the game with focus and caution. Tokyo's attack was met with Oita's defensive play, successfully defending in front of the goal. In the 3rd minute, Kurisawa's right corner kick was headed down by Konno in the far area, and a shot was taken from the left area, but it went over the bar. In the 5th minute, a free kick from the left side resulted in a consecutive corner kick, but Oita cleared it. Oita also counterattacked in the 11th minute when Suzuki intercepted a pass from Tokyo's territory. He dribbled up and took a shot, but it missed the target by a wide margin. In the 13th minute, Tokunaga persisted on the right side after a Kajiyama to Cabore play, resulting in a corner kick. In the 14th minute, Kurisawa took this right corner kick and Sato dropped it in front of the goal with a header, which Akamine struck with his left foot directly, scoring a spectacular goal to take the lead!

　Afterwards, they tried to connect passes and take the initiative, but Oita also launched sharp counterattacks from their solid defense, resulting in a back-and-forth battle. In the 25th minute, Kabore dropped a feed from Shiota and exchanged passes with Akamine to break into the area. He collided with the goalkeeper and fell, but there was no foul by Oita. In the 28th minute, a side change from Oita's defender Uemoto reached Suzuki, the left forward, perfectly. Suzuki cut inside past Tokyo's defenders and took a shot. In the 29th minute, Tokyo had a similar opportunity, with Akamine receiving a long pass from Sahara near the left area and taking it to a shot, but both attempts were off target.

　32 minutes, Cabore was fouled on the left side and won a free kick, but Kurizawa's shot hit the bar... Cabore and Kajiyama took shots from the rebound, but were blocked by the Oita defenders. Oita also had a chance in the 33rd minute, as Matsubashi made a decisive shot after a run from the right side, but it missed the target and the danger was averted. Tokyo dominated the ball towards the end of the first half, but in the 44th minute, Akamine's header from Nagatomo's left cross narrowly missed the target. They couldn't score an additional goal and went into the second half with a one-goal lead.

Maintaining composure in a hectic situation, fight through and achieve victory without conceding any goals

　In the second half, they attacked behind the Oita DF. In the 49th minute, Kajiyama aimed for the back of the Oita DF and sent a long pass to the front line. Cabore started running there, but it was cleared by the opponent's quick jump out. In the 53rd minute, Akamine received a wedge, and Imakawa → Nagatomo, who went up on the left, crossed. He sent a low trajectory ball, but the opponent's DF cleared it. In the 55th minute, Akamine, who was in front of Cabore, reacted to the pass Cabore sent with his head. He tried to aim for the goal in one motion, but the ball floated. In the 56th minute, Cabore was fouled in the opponent's central area and got a free kick. Kajiyama aimed directly at it, but it curved to the left.

　Although the movement has improved, there was a continuous period where we couldn't bring the ball to a shot in front of Oita's solid defense. In the 59th minute, we substituted Otake for Kurisawa and aimed for the second goal. However, gradually the lines of both teams stretched out and there was intense exchange between offense and defense. In the 62nd minute, Kanazawa → Cabore sprinted through the center with a dribble. He was fouled just outside the area and won a free kick. Tokunaga took a direct shot, but it was blocked by Oita's defense. In the 67th minute, Maeda, who came on as a substitute, jumped into Suzuki's early cross from Oita's midfield, but narrowly missed. Then, they launched a quick counterattack and forward Kanazaki took a shot from the middle. It was powerful, but it hit the crossbar. Although helped by Oita's mistakes, neither team allowed the other to create scoring opportunities.

　71 minutes, Oita's pass in the midfield was intercepted by Otake, who then made a through pass to the front line. Cabore, who broke free with his speed, faced a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper, but the shot was saved by Oita's goalkeeper with one foot... Both teams launched quick attacks with long balls, creating a hectic development. In the 72nd minute, Asari was substituted for Kanazawa and placed in the bottom of the midfield, with Kajiyama on the right and Konno on the left. With this, Tokyo regained composure and responded firmly to Oita's counterattacks. In the 83rd minute, Oita also substituted DF Uemoto for FW Ichihara, aiming to strengthen the front line and score an equalizer. Shortly after the substitution, FW Ichihara received a pass from MF Roberto on the left side, cut into the area, and took a shot, but Shioda made the save.

　In the 87th minute, Cabore advanced with speed after intercepting Inamoto's pass, but was brought down just outside the penalty area. Oita's defender Morishige received his second yellow card for this play, reducing Oita to 10 men. However, Asano's direct free kick attempt was blocked by the defensive wall. Ashikari connected with the loose ball and passed it to Asano on the right. In response to Tokunaga's cross, Inamoto attempted a header but hit the post... Although they couldn't score a second goal, in stoppage time Oita's forward Maeda received his second yellow card for a rough play. Despite being reduced to 9 men, Oita fought calmly and shut down the counterattacks. They won the match 1-0.

　【Player Comments】《Akamine》"I absolutely didn't want to lose again. I'm most happy that I scored a goal and the team won. It's great that we got results at home. The ball came to me perfectly from player Sahara. I didn't think about the direction, I just wanted to kick it with all my might. If we had scored a second goal today, it would have been easier for the team. We need to concentrate a little more to score. I think if I don't get results in the playing opportunities, there won't be another chance. The competition among the forwards in the team is intense, so I will do my best in daily practice to win that competition."《Motoniwa》"Since it was a chance to play that I received with great effort, I entered the game with the determination to make it count. Keeping a clean sheet gives confidence to both myself and the team. Oita's attacks have their own strengths no matter who comes out, so I think we were able to defend as a team and not let them show it. There were some dangerous scenes in the first half, but I discussed with player Sahara and made adjustments for the second half. We understood each other's characteristics with player Sahara, and our combination worked well. Until last year, I think Tokyo often had good games against top teams but lost to lower-ranked teams. In the future, I think we can't continue to fight in our current position unless we have good games against top teams and don't miss opportunities against lower-ranked teams. I received courage and motivation from the Motoniwa chants of the supporters. I want to repay their support by leaving solid results on the pitch."

　[Summary of Manager Shirotoku's Press Conference] "I thought it would be difficult to score against Oita because their defense is tenacious and strong. In the first half, we set up the midfield wide to spread the opponent, but either because we were too conscious of that or the distance between players was too far, the ball didn't move much. Our defense wasn't compromised, but it would have been better if the players at the back pushed forward when the opponent had the ball to apply more pressure. Because of that and the distance between midfield players, the ball didn't circulate, so in the second half, we made adjustments and brought the distance between players closer to pass the ball. We also emphasized supporting the ball when it reached the top so that it could be dropped with one touch and then switched. The challenge was that there were only a few scenes where the switch was made and we could go for a shot or almost go for a shot. However, keeping a clean sheet is an achievement. We want to continue with focused defense. (Regarding Akamine) I don't think it was an easy goal. He reacted well and hit the ball solidly. However, it's not just him, but when we transitioned from opponent's ball to our ball, there should have been the most space. However, there were control mistakes and passing mistakes to Kabore and Akamine, so there were many times when we couldn't establish a rhythm. That is a challenge for him personally and for the team."

　[Summary of Oita Shamska's press conference] "In the previous match, we had a good result and wanted to ride this wave. We went away aiming for consecutive wins, but the opposing team was strong and things didn't go well. As a team policy, we always aim to win every game. However, it was not an effective game. We couldn't keep the ball in the front line and couldn't create effective attacks with ball circulation. It became a game that was far from the level we have been playing so far. Also, the scene of conceding a goal was from a set piece. Unfortunately, the defense didn't function well in that stage of the game today. I think that made the difference in the outcome. Also, after falling behind, we were counterattacked instead of being able to do the counterattacks we wanted to do. The opponent once pulled back and effectively exploited the space behind our defense. When we are behind, that's the situation we end up in."