A crucial match to prepare for the busy summer schedule

　Sec. 18 of the league will be a match against Mito Hollyhock away. In the previous match, we achieved our first consecutive victory of the season, but including the two consecutive away matches starting today, a total of three matches will be held by next weekend. It will be a tough schedule and we want to start off well for the summer. Coach Okuma says, "In order to score additional points, we need accuracy and we want to increase the depth of our attack. We want to create a numerical advantage situation, including the attacking runs of the fullbacks."

　Mito, who will face them, is currently in 11th place with 4 wins, 4 draws, and 3 losses. Although they suffered a heavy defeat of 0-5 against Tosu in the 14th round, they have since had 2 wins and 1 draw in their last 3 matches without a loss. Under the guidance of coach Tetsuji Hashiratani, who took over this season, young players have emerged, and the team is cohesive and above all, bold. With a formation of 4-4-2, they create a solid defensive block and have a quick transition between offense and defense, making their speedy attacks a characteristic feature.

　Tokyo, as in the previous match, Shioda replaced U-22 Japan representative Kanda, and there were no changes in the starting lineup. Suzuki has also returned from injury and will face the match with a strong attacking lineup. If we challenge aggressively and "do our best" against Mito, we will be forced to struggle if we play defensively. We want to seal Mito's side attacks with a defense that doesn't give them time and space, create rhythm by avoiding pressure, and connect to chances.

　Shioda aims to "bring about a fast change of offense and defense, and engage in a back-and-forth development that becomes Mito's pace. It is expected to be a tough game, but we want to initiate things that the opponent dislikes without being swallowed up by the away atmosphere and take the initiative. We want to bring about a development that makes Mito feel "difficult when passed around...". The match started with Mito's kickoff at 16:04 at K's denki Stadium Mito.

Tokyo Aim To Start Summer Schedule With Win 

For the 18th game of the season, Tokyo made the short trip north to take on Mito Hollyhock. After posting consecutive wins for the first time this year, Tokyo faced two away games in four days, followed by a home game on Saturday, and were keen to begin the demanding summer schedule with another victory. Manager Kiyoshi Okuma commented, "In order to score a second goal, we need greater accuracy and to increase the number of players pushing forward in attack. Including the sidebacks pushing up, we have to create situations where we outnumber the opposition."
Mito lay in 11th place at kick-off with a W4 D4 L3 record. The side suffered a crushing 5-0 home defeat to Tosu in the 14th game but bounced back to be undefeated in three, with two wins and a draw. First-year boss Tetsuji Hashiratani promoted younger players, and his faith had been rewarded by some fine performances. The team favored a 4-4-2 formation, defended stoutly in blocks, and broke at great pace.
Tokyo were unchanged from the previous week, with Shiota continuing in goal. Suzuki returned from injury to take a place on the bench, thus increasing Tokyo's options in attack. The visitors would need to preempt Mito's youthful exuberance, deny them time and space, particularly along the flanks, evade their pressure, and then find a rhythm.
Shiota commented, "If the match develops into an end-to-end free-for-all, that will allow Mito to control the pace. It looks like being a hard game; we've got to overcome the away atmosphere, seize the initiative, and hit them where it hurts. We want them to feel that chasing the ball is grinding them down."
The home side kicked off shortly after 4pm at K's Denki Stadium.

Intense exchange of offense and defense, scoreless at halftime

　In poor pitch conditions, we started off safely and then tried to push the opponent back by targeting their defense. We gradually connected passes to find our rhythm. We looked for opportunities from the sides, and in the 18th minute, Kajiyama showcased his ball control skills near the area and timed it perfectly to send a through pass to Roberto CESAR running into the box from the left, but the goalkeeper caught it.

　In the 25th minute, Tanizawa persevered and passed to Tokunaga, who ran up on the right. From Tokunaga's right cross, Cesar in the center of the area skillfully turned around and tried to aim for the goal, but the opponent's defender blocked it. On the other hand, Mito also quickly switched between offense and defense, held the ball in the front line, and attacked mainly through the right side midfielder Koike. In the 28th minute, they picked up the second ball from a long ball and Koike took it to a shot.

　In the 34th minute, from a low and fast cross from the right side by Tokunaga, Hayabusa ran in near the goal but the shot missed to the right. In the 35th minute, Cesar received a long feed from Imano on the left side and tried a dribble shot from inside, but it went wide. After that, there were scenes where Mito created chances from short counters, and the exchange of offense and defense became intense, but we concentrated on defense and ended the first half with a scoreless draw.

Intense First Half Ends Scoreless 

At first Tokyo adopted a risk-free approach due to the poor condition of the pitch, then began to slowly force the hosts back by attempting to break in behind their defence as they found a passing rhythm. In the 18th minute, Kajiyama held the ball up just outside the Mito penalty area before slipping it through towards Cesar as the Brazilian made a darting run into the area on the left. Homma, the Mito keeper, was alert to the danger and beat Cesar to the ball.
Yazawa battled hard to retain possession in the 25th minute before setting Tokunaga free down the right; Tokunaga crossed, Cesar showed his technique in bringing the ball down, turning and shooting only for a defender to block his effort away. Mito showed their pace on the break and managed to hold the ball up in attack, with right winger Koike their main threat. Koike pounced on a loose ball following a long clearance in the 28th minute and fired an attempt on goal.
In the 35th minute, Cesar collected a long ball from Konno on the left, cut inside and let fly. As half time approached, Mito threatened on short counter attacks as possession changed frequently at a vehement pace but the Tokyo defence maintained its concentration and the whistle blew on a scoreless first half.

Despite struggling against Mito's tenacity, they managed to secure 3 points

　The game quickly became lively in the second half. In the 54th minute, Hayu, who was competing for a long ball, was fouled and won a free kick at a position about 25 meters inside the opponent's territory. Nakamura took the kick and Morishige scored a spectacular goal with his right foot! He marked his first goal of the season with a direct free kick and took the lead. In the 59th minute, Nakamura, who had dribbled into the left area, was fouled and won a penalty kick. Kajiyama calmly converted it and scored the long-awaited second goal.

　However, in the 65th minute, Mito's left back, Hosaki, made an attacking run and Takahashi committed a foul inside the area, resulting in a penalty kick for Mito. Mito's defender, Hosaki, took the penalty kick, which was initially saved by Shibata with one hand, but Mito scored on the rebound. In the 71st minute, Ishikawa was substituted for Tanabe. Then, Mito's defender, Okada, received his second yellow card of the day and was sent off. With a numerical advantage, Tokyo took control of the game by circulating the ball.

　In the 79th minute, the ball was passed around in the midfield, and Kajiyama, who had moved forward, created space and passed it to Ishikawa at the perfect timing. Ishikawa used his speed to cut inside and struck the ball with his right foot into the side net!! Ishikawa also scored his first goal of the season, securing the third goal. Mito, who never gave up, scored a goal in the 89th minute with a shot from MF Murata, narrowing the gap to just one goal again. However, no further goals were conceded. Despite the struggle, they emerged victorious with a score of 3-2, achieving their first three consecutive wins of the season.

　【Player Comment】《Morishige》"(Regarding the goal from a free kick) Yu gave me a foul in a good position, so I didn't want to miss this chance. From the beginning, I told Hokuto, 'I'll take it,' and he pretended to take it, but that was a distraction... (laughs). But he became a good decoy, and I was able to score, so I thanked him properly. This season, I have no pain in my legs and my condition is good. I've been practicing free kicks all the time, so I think it's good that it resulted in a goal during the game. As for the goal conceded, we lost the ball while passing it in a low position. If we could have passed it a little earlier, we could have prevented it. We want to discuss that aspect."

　"Ishikawa: "The goal was the shape I had always imagined. I had confidence that I could score if I got into that position. The angle was not great, but I could see the course, so I swung my leg without hesitation. Today, I was thinking about receiving the ball inside... but I decided to stay on the side while considering the overall balance and the opponent. I was aiming for the timing to move inside from there. If I go in too much, there will be no space, so I thought I would go in at the right moment. I went in with the determination and responsibility to shoot or score and finish. I was able to shoot with a good feeling."

　Recently, we have been unable to score additional points and there have been many nerve-wracking moments. Today, it ended up being the same... but it's good to think of the third goal as a positive. However, we need to reflect on how we ended the game. We, the substitute players, were energetic, but we couldn't kick the ball behind and keep possession to create time. We want to use this reflection to take one step forward at a time."

　[Summary of Coach Okuma's Press Conference] "In the first half, we had some difficulty getting used to the pitch, so our touches were frequent and our rhythm was slow. In the second half, we had a numerical advantage, and the ball circulated very well, which was great. We may have been a bit flustered when we conceded a penalty and ultimately self-destructed with a goal at the end, so there is room for reflection. In terms of fighting with 18 players, it is reassuring that the substitute players performed specific tasks. We will analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the team here once again, adjust our condition, and continue to fight carefully in the tight schedule that lies ahead, one game at a time."

　[Summary of Mito - Tetsuji HASHIRATANI's press conference] "We had a good understanding of FC Tokyo's individual skills and passing ability, and I think we were able to play the soccer we aimed for in the first half. Unfortunately, we conceded a goal and had a player sent off. Despite the player being sent off, the players managed to run and bring the score from 3-1 to 3-2. I think it's inevitable that we lost, as there was a difference in strength, but in terms of the players giving their all and playing to their fullest, I think they did well, so we want to prepare ourselves for the next Verdy match."

Tokyo Hold Off Late Surge To Earn The Points 

The game exploded into life in the 54th minute. Hanyu was fouled as he jumped for a long ball some 25 meters from goal. Nakamura dummied the resulting free kick and Morishige stroked a sumptuous right-footed strike over the wall and past Homma to give Tokyo the lead. Five minutes later Tokyo doubled their lead as Nakamura went down under a heavy challenge inside the Mito area and Kajiyama coolly dispatched the penalty.
Mito gained a toehold in the game in the 65th minute as Takahashi was judged to have fouled Hozaki as the side back burst into the Tokyo area. Hozaki himself took the penalty, which Shiota stopped with a flying one-handed save, but the Tokyo keeper was helpless as Hozaki bundled the loose ball over the line. Tokyo responded by replacing Tanabe with Ishikawa, then received a boost as Mito defender Okada earned a second yellow card and was dismissed. Tokyo made their man advantage count by dominating possession and playing the ball around.
In the 79th minute Kajiyama split the Mito defense wide open with a superbly weighted through ball that met Ishikawa's darting run perfectly. Ishikawa raced clear, cut inside and drove a right-footed shot across Homma and into the side netting. Ishikawa's first goal of the season had restored Tokyo's two-goal lead. Mito battled tenaciously and pulled a goal back in the 89th minute as midfielder Murata thumped a fierce drive past Shiota from the edge of the area. That was the end of the scoring as Tokyo held off Mito's late surge to earn a hard-fought 3-2 victory and extend the winning streak to three games.


Players' comments
Takahashi
"Hanyu won the free kick in a great position and we were determined not to waste it. I told Hokuto (Nakamura) I was going to take the free kick and he kind of got in the way but it was a great dummy. After it went in I thanked him properly of course. My leg is pain-free this season and I feel in good condition. I practice free kicks endlessly in training so I'm delighted to make a contribution to us getting a result. The goals we conceded happened because we were passing the ball around too deeply and we lost possession. If we play slightly further forward we won't put ourselves in that position. It's something we have to talk about".

Ishikawa
"The goal came in a way that I've always visualized and if I get the ball in that position I feel confident I can put it away. The angle was tight but I could see exactly where to put the ball and I didn't hesitate, I just hit it. Today I was concentrating on sticking to the wing and making a move inside at the right time. I had to bide my time as coming inside too far would have denied me space to run into. I was ready to take the ball on and finish the move with an attempt on goal or a goal itself. I put a lot of emotion into the shot. We've struggled to score a second goal recently and that's resulted in some nervy endings to games. Today's game finished the same way but at least we scored three and that has to be seen as a plus. We scored a third goal but we have to look at the way we finished the game; we substitutes are fresh but can't seem to take the ball behind the opposition's defence and hold it up. We want to reflect on that then utilise it in the next game as we take one step forward at a time".

FC Tokyo manager Kiyoshi Okuma
"It took us a while to get used to the pitch in the first half so we were taking too many touches and couldn't settle into a rhythm. In the second half when we gained the numerical superiority we moved the ball around exceptionally well and that was very pleasing. After they scored the penalty we became a little flustered and then gave away another goal at the end through our negligence. If you consider that the team consists of 18 players then it's reassuring that the substitutes can make tangible contributions to the game. Once again we have to look at what we're doing right, what's lacking in the team and how we can raise our condition at the same time. We have to treat each game carefully as it comes in this tight schedule".


Mito Hollyhock manager Tetsuji Hashiratani
"To some extent we understood the quality of Tokyo's individual players and their passing ability and were able to play our own game in the first half. Unfortunately we then conceded and had a player sent off. Even though we were down to ten men the team never stopped working and we managed to pull it back to 3-2. Losing today is just one of those things, I think. Of course there is a difference in quality but our lads gave it their all today and played well, I felt. We now have to go off and prepare the team for the Verdy game on Wednesday evening".