Focus on the current match and accumulate points

　Sec. 28 will face Shimizu S-Pulse at home. In the previous match, they showed their strength by securing chances and achieved a 5-game winning streak despite the difficulties. This match is crucial for achieving a 6-game winning streak in J1 for the first time in the team's history. Especially this season, they have not won against Shimizu, including the Nabisco Cup, with 1 draw and 2 losses, so it is also a game they want to take revenge in.

　Shimizu, on the other hand, is currently in 8th place with 37 points. They lost to Kashima in the previous match, but they have not suffered consecutive losses since the 18th round and have been on the rise. Their defense is solid and their ball possession in the midfield is high. In the attacking line, FW Nishizawa is absent, but FW Okazaki is in good form. This round, they formed a two-top with FW Hara and deployed Hyodo as the left MF and Yamamoto Shin as the right MF.

　Tokyo, Bruno QUADROS and Hanyu have left the team again due to injury, but Makoto IMANO and Hirayama return from suspension this round. IMANO, Asari, and Kajiyama form the midfield, with Cabore and Ishikawa on the sides, and Akamine leading the front line. We want to create chances by taking control on the sides, based on the stable defense we have shown recently. Currently, we are 4 points behind the top team, and we can see their back, but we will focus only on winning against Shizuoka in front of us and steadily accumulate points.

　The weather was clear and the temperature rose, attracting 30,410 spectators to Ajinomoto Stadium. The match started with Shimizu's kickoff at 15:04.

Losing rhythm, conceding 3 goals in the first half...

　In the early stages, Shimizu slightly dominated the ball and launched attacks, but it was a back-and-forth battle. In the 6th minute, Kajiyama sent a long pass to the front line, and Akamine broke through on the left side and took a shot inside the area, but it went outside the side net. In the 12th minute, Shimizu forward Hara aimed for the goal from the right side. In the 14th minute, Nagatomo advanced and Ishikawa followed, moving inside and taking a shot. In the 17th minute, from a pass that aimed for the space behind Shimizu's defense by Asari, Ishikawa sprinted into the right area. They earned a corner kick, but they couldn't capitalize on any of the chances.

　At the 20th minute, Tokyo's clearance was connected by Shimizu FW Hara to MF Edamura with a header, and the ball was passed to MF Yamamoto on the right side. Seeing that there was no press from Tokyo, MF Yamamoto boldly took a shot. The accurate shot was sucked into the goal, and we ended up conceding the first goal in a vulnerable position. Taking this opportunity, Shimizu gained momentum and collected long balls to FW Okazaki, picking up second balls and launching secondary attacks. Nevertheless, Tokyo was still looking for chances, and at the 28th minute, Cabore connected a free kick, and Akamine rushed into the penalty area. He was brought down by the opponent's defender, but there was no foul from Shimizu.

　As time passed, Shimizu was pushed back and lost their rhythm. In the 38th minute, Shimizu FW Okazaki was able to break into the area. This was escaped by a corner kick, but in the 39th minute, Shimizu MF Hyodo's sharp right corner kick was out of reach for the jumping Shioda. Shimizu DF Iwashita from the far side was pushed back while tangled with Tokunaga, and they conceded the second goal.

　In the 44th minute, Kajiyama cuts back the opponent's defender and takes a shot, but it goes wide to the left. Immediately after that, they couldn't stop Shimizu's quick attack from the goal kick. Okazaki dribbles up the right side and passes to the center forward Hara. Hara, with his back to the goal, skillfully turns around from the trap and quickly breaks through between Tokunaga and Shigeta, rushing towards the goal. Shioda also bravely came out, but the save rebound rolls into the net. It was a difficult situation to concede a third goal in injury time, and the first half ended.

Emerson, starting from Otake, counterattacks! Although they scored one goal, they suffered a big defeat with 5 goals against...

　In the second half, Ishikawa and Asari were replaced by Emerson and Otake. Shortly after the start, Cabore received a pass from Emerson and broke through the left side, but was blocked just before reaching the goal. In the 49th minute, Otake created a rhythm with a dribble and passed to Cabore on the left. Cabore crossed the ball, but it was caught by the Shizuoka goalkeeper. In the 51st minute, Nagatomo, who had run up the right side, circled around and took a shot. It missed above the frame, but Emerson and Otake created flow with dribbles and fluid movements, and Inomoto and the fullbacks also pushed forward to gain momentum. In the 59th minute, Kajiyama on the right side passed to Emerson, who exchanged passes with Inomoto in front of the goal and entered the right area. Calmly evading the opponent's defender, he took a shot! The ball pierced the net perfectly, and one point was returned.

　In the midst of the increasing mood of counterattack, in the 64th minute, Sasaki jumps into Otake's left corner kick, but the opponent's goalkeeper saves it just in time. In the 67th minute, Akamine, who had drifted to the right, crosses. In response to this, Imakano jumps out in front of the goal freely and takes a header shot! He created a decisive chance, but it was right in front of the goalkeeper... In the 71st minute, Emerson passes to Imakano in the area, and Kabore gets into a shooting position, but is blocked by the Shimizu DF.

　In the 75th minute, Hiraoka was substituted for Kabore. He sent crosses from the side to aim for an additional goal. In the 76th minute, Emerson switched from the right to the left and made a wide attack, but Emerson's final cross did not reach Hiraoka. On the contrary, Shimizu introduced defensive players such as MF Marcos Paulo and DF Ichikawa to strengthen their defense. However, in the 78th minute, just after DF Ichikawa came on as a substitute, he was dispossessed of the ball in the midfield by DF Ichikawa. Shimizu FW Hara rushed towards the goal. Attracted Tokyo DF and passed to FW Okazaki from the left. FW Okazaki was marked by Nagatomo, but he was hit by a powerful shot and the fourth goal was scored.

　However, they continued to attack until the end and approached the Shimizu goal. In the 79th minute, Hirayama's header from Tokunaga's cross hit the bar. In the 86th minute, Tokunaga again advanced to a high position and crossed from the left. Hirayama from the far post hit a powerful header, and Akamine was also there to follow up on the goalkeeper's rebound, but they couldn't break through the defense. They launched a fierce attack even in the 3 minutes of injury time, but they couldn't break through Shimizu's solid defense. On the contrary, towards the end of the game, Okazaki broke through into the area from a long pass to Shimizu's front line. Shigeki tried to hold him back, but he was given a negative pass in the midfield. At that moment, Shimizu's substitute forward Toda ran in, and Tokyo couldn't catch up to him, allowing an easy goal, and all hope was lost... They couldn't achieve their 6th consecutive victory and suffered a tough defeat with a large goal difference.

　【Player Comment】《Emerson》"We conceded 3 goals in the first half and it became a tough game. In the second half, we found our rhythm and tried to equalize, but we couldn't achieve it. The goal was scored by exchanging passes with player Imakawa, receiving the return pass, and calmly entering the area. (Wasn't I a starter?) Not only me, but even if I am a substitute, I always try to contribute to the team with my best play. I gave my all... However, today doesn't mean the end of the league. It's a disappointing result, but even after the game, I could hear the strong support from the supporters. I want to receive their strength and achieve good results in the next game."《Imakawa》"The team was in a good flow, so I had a strong desire not to lose when I returned. I entered the game with that feeling, but I couldn't play well at the beginning. I'm really frustrated with this result. In the second half, I just tried to move the ball forward and I think I was able to do it without fear... If I had scored my header shot, I think the flow of the game would have been more in favor of Tokyo. Lately, our start hasn't been good. We want to bring the game to our pace right from the beginning and improve our game throughout the 90 minutes. Today, many fans came and supported us, and I'm sorry for the big defeat. Nevertheless, I'm really happy that they supported us until the end. We have to do our best."

　[Summary of Manager Jofuku's Press Conference] "The players stepped onto the pitch with determination, but unfortunately, we couldn't meet everyone's expectations. In the first half, Shimizu aimed for simplicity and picked up second balls. We needed to possess the ball a bit more when it became ours, while patiently enduring their approach. However, it turned into a bit of a back-and-forth battle. It would have been good if we could have kept the score at zero or minimized it. We conceded three goals, including one just before halftime, and I think the biggest factor in our defeat was that everyone became unsettled. In the second half, we had no choice but to attack and tried to establish our own pace by settling the ball and reaching the opponent's attacking third. The players showed determination as they moved towards the goal, but despite their passion, we couldn't take that final step and conceding the fourth goal was decisive. We want to reflect on our technical and tactical aspects thoroughly. (This season, we couldn't beat Shimizu. Do you have a mental block against them?) Even if it's said that way in hindsight, I don't think we have a mental block. Personally, I approached this game while reflecting on the previous three matches, but perhaps our analysis was lacking or the players and our efforts were lacking... We want to reflect on it again and make adjustments for the next game. Among them, after the game, the supporters kept singing, teaching us that we must not give up. From here on, it will be a tournament situation, but listening to the songs from the stands after the game, we have once again resolved to win all six matches."

　[Summary of Shimizu and Hasegawa's press conference] "It was an amazingly wonderful result. We lost to Kashima in the previous match, but we learned a lot from that game and the players were able to switch well and show the parts that they couldn't in the previous match. We were able to score at a good time and although we were pushed back in the second half, we were able to keep it to one goal. Also, the fact that we were able to score additional points during that time was a very significant point in today's match. If Imano's header had been successful, I don't know what would have happened, but in the end, there was a big difference in the result, but it was by no means an easy game. From the content, it was a development where either team could have won. (The aim of changing the lineup a little from the previous match) FC Tokyo had also changed the composition of the midfield. That was a choice based on the analysis of each other as opponents. It was a big deal that we were able to win against the team that is currently doing well and close off the busy September with victories, including the Nabisco Cup. After the break, we will continue to play against the top teams, so we want to prepare well and strive for a higher position."