Strive for victory with a focus on earning 3 points even as the away team!

　Sec. 28 of the league, we played against Nagoya Grampus away. In the previous match against Iwagin.S, we achieved a dramatic victory with Akamine's goal in injury time. However, Coach Jofuku reflects, "It was a way to win with momentum, but it was not the best way we desired." He continues, "However, we want to think positively that we were able to secure 3 points by sticking to the victory," and vows to continue building on the momentum we have gained while reflecting on the game.

　Nagoya, on the other hand, won a big victory in the previous league match against Kashima and achieved two consecutive wins. In the ACL match held on 9/30, they defeated Kawasaki 3-1. Despite this tough schedule, they have been in excellent form by changing players, such as placing MF Mitsushu in the defensive midfield, and demonstrating the depth of their squad. The most cautious player to watch out for is FW Kennedy, who stands at 194cm tall. With him as the focal point, the attacks from FW Tamada with his finishing ability and the sharp runs from the second row by Maginun are also noteworthy today, and it will be interesting to see how well they can contain their attacks.

　Tokyo will face this round without Bruno QUADROS, who is suspended. Moino will enter as a replacement center-back. Especially in the attack, the key will be how to break Nagoya's solid defense. Kajiyama says, "Nagoya defends with a block, but if we can successfully break through their organized midfield, we can create chances. We want to connect passes and patiently break their block." We also want to break Nagoya's defense from the sides, as they tend to tighten the center. Starting from Hirayama and Akamine, we want to utilize the movements that create space for Suzuki and Ishikawa, and convert them into chances.

　A tough battle is expected against the strong Nagoya team, but we must not be intimidated. We need to assess the situation and seize our chances, maintaining a balanced defense and staying focused for the full 90 minutes. We must not give up and continue to show a determined attitude towards victory, aiming to secure 3 points! The match started at 16:04 with Nagoya's kickoff at Mizuho Athletics Stadium.

Despite conceding the first goal, we turn the game around with goals from Ishikawa and Suzuki

　From the start of the match, Nagoya has been targeting FW Kennedy with long balls, but Konno and Shigeyoshi have not given the opponent any freedom and have shown stable defense. And they turn that ball into an attack. In the 6th minute, after Hanyu's tenacious defense near the center line, Yonehara -> Ishikawa dribbles up from the center outside the area and aims for the goal, but it goes over the bar. In the 10th minute, Kajiyama picks up the loose ball from a corner kick and enters the opponent's goal area while smoothly avoiding the opponent. He shoots inside the area, but it goes wide to the right.

　Suzuki's movement behind the DF and Kajiyama, Yonemoto, and others' attacking movements created chances and seemed to grasp the rhythm. However, in the 18th minute, Nagoya took the lead as DF Yoshida scored a header from FW Kennedy's cross from the left CK. But Tokyo didn't panic and launched a counterattack with their own style of soccer. Then, in the 24th minute, Ishikawa dropped a long feed from Shigeki and passed it to Hirayama. Hirayama dribbled up with the ball and passed it to Ishikawa, who had sprinted up the right side. Without hesitation, Ishikawa evaded the opposing DF and took a left-footed shot! The ball beautifully curved and was sucked into the bottom left corner of the goal, equalizing the score.

　Tokyo, which gained momentum, continued to develop in the 29th minute when Kajiyama picked up a loose ball near the center line and made a big play to the right side. Suzuki followed up with a difficult bounce on the cross raised by Tokunaga, surpassing the opponent's goalkeeper's head in a looping manner and successfully reversing the score. In the 31st minute, Nagoya also had a chance when midfielder Maginun from the left side took a powerful shot from outside the area. Gonda made a good save to prevent it, and Kennedy aimed for the loose ball, but it missed to the right of the goal. However, this seemed to be the only real threat, as Nagoya's energy dropped afterwards and they couldn't create attacking opportunities. As a result, the first half ended with a one-point lead.

Despite Moriba's injury and subsequent exit from the game due to an accident, they managed to hold onto their lead and secure victory.

　From the start of the second half, Nagoya substituted MF Nakamura and MF Bulzanovic for MF Mitoju and MF Maginun. With these two substitutions, they aggressively pressed in the midfield and tried to dominate the ball. While withstanding Nagoya's intense attacks, Tokyo encountered an accident. Shigeki collided with Kennedy and fell to the pitch. He was then substituted by Sasaki. After this incident, Tokyo became more defensive and allowed Nagoya to counterattack.

　However, Hirayama, Suzuki presses aggressively from the front line. In the 22nd minute, Hirayama chased the ball all the way to the opponent's goalkeeper, and after Yamamoto picked up the clearance and passed it to Suzuki, he took a one-touch shot. Although they couldn't score an additional goal due to the opponent goalkeeper's excellent save, they didn't let the momentum slip away. In the 23rd minute, Murahara was substituted for Hayashi. He took the position of left midfielder and sealed off the opponent's side attack. In the 31st minute, Tokyo's Tokunaga broke free from a right throw-in and put in a ground cross, but Hirayama failed to hit it.

　In the 38th minute, Fujiyama, who made his first appearance in the league this season, was substituted for Ishikawa. The strategy was to defensively protect the MF on both sides and seal off Nagoya's side attacks in order to escape. There were also moments where it seemed like Nagoya was in a desperate situation with multiple corners and free kicks, including a long 6-minute injury time, but the team defended the goal with persistent and concentrated defense, achieving a consecutive come-from-behind victory in two matches.

【Player Comment】《Tatsuya》"(About the goal scene?) It was a competition and the ball bounced once, so there was no other choice. I thought that what Tokyo should do is to move dynamically, so I was prepared for the overall physical exertion to increase, and I thought that if I could run for everyone, it would be good. I worked hard to increase my physical exertion and actively develop. Also, I think Nagoya had a tough schedule, so I think we were able to reduce the opponent's physical exertion by bringing it to such a dynamic development."

　Nagoya thought that the space behind the side back, who is attacking, would be a point of attack. It's a little disappointing to concede first, but it was a set play and we knew the opponent's height. We were prepared for the one point from the set play, so we were able to quickly switch our mindset. The opponent has many tall players, and if they have a power play at the end, it will be powerful, so we expected that kind of development. It was tough, but I think we were able to defend with concentration. We are still far from the top, so we want to win each game firmly. (What about the Emperor's Cup next?) It's a tournament, so we want to concentrate and advance firmly."

　"I am aiming to score with the thought that if I score, we will be closer to winning. Today, Tatsuya scored the go-ahead goal for us, but I wanted to equalize quickly, so I think it was good that I was able to bring the score level with my own goal early in the game. (What should the team aim for in the remaining games?) There are various challenges, but in today's match, if we lose, it would lead to a situation where we have to win all the remaining matches or strangle ourselves in our pursuit of the top. So, I think it is important to accumulate 3 points for the win."

　(With today's victory, I wonder if I can smoothly join the national team?) I won't know until I try. Especially this year, I think I can do my job both on the side and in the center, but I believe there are areas where I can play like that in the national team and areas where I can't. The way the national team plays and the way the team plays are different. I think we need to add some changes in order to survive.

[Summary of Coach Jofuku's Press Conference] "I think we started well from the beginning of the first half. Our defense was as planned, and I thought we could move the ball more if the game settled down a bit. However, we conceded a goal from a corner kick by the opponent. Of course, it was a great ball and a great cross. Including the fact that it was a corner kick, conceding a goal from the opponent's one chance is a difficult pattern for the game. In the previous match, we also conceded a goal from a corner kick, so I want to reflect on it even more. However, after that, we calmly extended our own time and moved the ball well, and we scored two goals as planned. It can be considered a point of reflection that we should have scored more goals, but it was a big achievement to come from behind."

　The second half wasn't bad either, but due to an accident, we had to substitute the SB, and the opponent became more aggressive, so I think we got a little flustered. I think we had a chance to score a third goal if we could have calmed down a bit and created our own time. However, I think it is proof of everyone's contribution, including the power of the substitutes, that we were able to finish the game with a score of 2-1, and I want to return to Tokyo with pride along with the fans. I think it was a game that showed that we haven't given up on anything until the final match."

　[Nagoya Stojkovic coach's press conference summary] "Today's game was a very easy game for the opponent. I think it was a very disappointing game for the fans who came and for the home game. However, maybe they were tired. It was very unfortunate that we were overturned in the tight schedule of the next 3-4 days."

　(I think there are many games where we take the lead but end up being overturned) Today, we got off to a good start, but the opponent scored from a good combination. Our defense was really bad. We played too kindly to the opponent. We weren't strong enough. We couldn't stop where we should have stopped, even if it was a foul, and how many yellow cards were shown today. Where did the aggressiveness show? Today, the opponent had freshness, but we came here regardless, so I was disappointed with that."