J1 Restart! A crucial match aiming for a consecutive victory following the Sendai game

After a break of about two weeks, the J1 League resumed. We reached the 6th round of the 2nd stage and faced Ventforet Kofu away.

During the break period, we participated in friendly matches in Germany and also had training camps and practice matches domestically. It can be said that Mori, Ota, and Yonemoto, who are national team players, spent their time "individually growing (Takahashi)" at the East Asian Cup in their respective locations. Hashimoto said, "In Germany, I felt the strength and accuracy of the opponents, which was a challenge. On the other hand, we were able to score two goals ahead, so I think there were things that worked as a team. Without forgetting those experiences, I want to bring them back to the daily training ground and continue to grow," expressing further enthusiasm. Each player will gather what they have cultivated and challenge the league again.

Tokyo's Gonda and Ota are absent. As a result, Enomoto is starting as the goalkeeper. Hatano (U-18) will be on the bench for the first time. Morishige, Yonemoto, who have just returned from the national team, and Takahashi, who has finished serving his suspension, will return to the starting lineup. In addition, following the Frankfurt match, Matsuda will play as the right full-back, Tokunaga on the left, and Maruyama as the center-back. Takahashi and Yonemoto will form a double pivot in midfield. Up front, Maeda and Nathan Burns will be the two forwards. Hanyu and Higashi will play on the wings in a 4-4-2 formation. Burns will make his first J-League start.

On the other hand, Kofu is currently in 13th place in the 2nd stage. So far, they have 1 win, 2 draws, and 2 losses, with the losses all being by a one-point difference. They have conceded a total of "4" goals, showing a strong defense. In the matches against Tokyo in the 1st stage and Nabisco Cup, Tokyo won by a one-point difference. However, if the game remains 0-0 for a long time, there is a possibility that Kofu will take control of the pace. Especially at Yamanashi Chuo Bank Stadium, they have ended in draws for the past 2 seasons and have not been able to secure a win. To achieve victory, it will be crucial to persistently contain the opponent's counterattacks and score the first goal to gain an advantage.

Kofu starts with FW volley, and FW Takuma ABE also starts. They will take care of the counterattacks and aim to break the opponent's solid defense, seeking another consecutive victory following the Sendai match.

Despite the cloudy sky, the humid heat remains in Kofu, Yamanashi Chuginkan Stadium, and the Tokyo kickoff starts at 19:04 in the evening.

Tokyo dominates the ball and launches bold attacks... but it's still scoreless going into the second half

The match is in the 7th minute of the first half. Hayashi on the right side, followed by Burns and Maeda in the front line, pressurize Kofu one after another. Matsuda, who was pushing up, sends the loose ball to the center, but it doesn't reach Maeda. After that, they were unable to create any chances, but in the 15th minute, Tokunaga makes a move on the left front line. He is surrounded by the opponent's defenders and loses the ball, and Kofu quickly moves from the defensive line to the front line. The ball almost reaches FW Vale, but Maruyama and then Yonemoto press back and show their strength to successfully regain possession.

In the 23rd minute, Yonemoto floated the ball to the front line to Burns. Burns tried to control it and turn around, but was tackled by the Kofu defender and the ball spilled. However, Hayu followed up with a right cross. Takahashi, in the area just outside the center, closed in on the ball that spilled again and hit a low trajectory volley, but it was blocked in the crowded area of the front line.

At the 24th minute, the opponent launched a counterattack. FW Floro ran up front, but there was no support, so they connected again and finally crossed from the right.
Tokyo held back, but there was a collision between Tokunaga and Kofu MF Hashizume in front of the goal, causing pain, and the game was temporarily stopped. Both temporarily left the pitch, but Tokunaga returned without any serious injury. Kofu's MF Hashizume was substituted for FW Ito due to a concussion. 35 minutes have passed, and Tokyo is dominating the ball. They have been taking the initiative and repeating various challenges, but they have not been able to break down Kofu's defense, which has a numerical advantage.

In the 38th minute, they didn't miss a mistake by Kofu in their own territory and launched a counterattack. Higashi passed to Nathan BURNS, who then passed to the left to Takahashi. While putting pressure on the front line with multiple players, Hayu got up to speed and crossed from the right, but the ball missed the frame.

As time passed, Tokyo dominated the ball and made various challenges towards the goal. However, they were unable to break through Yamanashi's solid defense. Towards the end of the first half, Yamanashi also launched a powerful attack, but Tokyo calmly repelled it, and the score remained 0-0 going into the second half.

Defend Takahashi's goal, focusing on Enomoto!

Entering the second half, 54 minutes. Nathan BURNS creates space near the right corner area, then cuts inside and delivers a sharp liner-like cross. East heads the ball just past the far post... but it's blocked by the bar. In the following 59th minute, Maeda in the center exchanges passes with Burns in front, then switches play to the right, and finally Matsuda delivers a cross from the right. Despite multiple players in the box, Maeda, Burns, Takahashi, and East all make attempts to connect, but they couldn't convert...

In the 62nd minute, attacking from the side and putting numbers in the area. In the midst of the scramble, Hayashi in the center of the area tries to shoot, but is blocked by Kofu... However, Takahashi, who followed up on this loose ball, drives it into the goal and scores with a controlled shot, GOAL!!
In the 71st minute, Burns, who broke through the opponent's defense, received a feed. Nathan Burns broke through to the right area and took a precise shot towards the far post, but... it was slightly touched by the Kofu goalkeeper and resulted in a corner kick to the left...

80 minutes have passed and Kofu, who is looking to strengthen their attack, makes a player substitution. On the other hand, Tokyo is being pushed back. Without relying too much on defense, they aim to counterattack by exploiting the opponent's weaknesses. In the 83rd minute, Kofu's forward, Takuma ABE, makes a move and enters the left area. Matsumoto confronts him, followed by a sliding tackle from substitute player Hashimoto, but the ball slips away and ends up in front of Kofu's forward, Takuma ABE, again. From a close distance in the left area, he takes a decisive shot, but Enomoto saves it with one hand!! Afterwards, they are repeatedly threatened with goals from corner kicks and other opportunities, but they manage to defend as a team.

Kofu struggled against a solid defense, but they continued to challenge and Takahashi scored the opening goal in the 62nd minute. In the final stages, Kofu used attacking player substitutions to increase their attacking power and were often pushed back, but they held on without losing focus, thanks to GK Enomoto, and the game ended. They secured a valuable away victory as a team and achieved back-to-back wins following the Sendai match.

[Player Comments]
"Takahashi"
"We were able to play our game by exploiting the weaknesses of the opponent. In the second half, when the opponent's legs started to slow down, we were able to move forward and launch our attacks."
(It looked like a goal that was born from many people running into the goal...?)
Matsumoto and Higashi are good at crosses, so before the game, I talked with Hanyu and Yonemoto about how to pick up the second ball against opponents who are wary of Maeda as the target. My shooting scene was also aimed at, just like Hanyu was closing in on the previous play.
(He ran to the supporters beyond the signboard?)
Actually, when the Frankfurt match was held, my child was born, and I was talking with everyone that we would celebrate if I scored a goal, but Maeda forgot about it (laughs), so I was aiming for a goal in the Kofu match too. I was happy this time because everyone celebrated with me."

《Enomoto》
"(When there are occasional pinches when the opponent's number of shots is low, is it difficult to respond?)
It's difficult to grasp my own rhythm when the ball isn't coming, but I always try to be prepared to handle any situation. In fact, it's better for the team if there are fewer shots, so today, while communicating with the defense line, we were able to thoroughly manage the risk. We were able to defend well, including the midfield players, in situations where we could have been countered.
(Regarding the play of deflecting the shot by Abe, a forward for Kofu, with one hand just before the end of the second half)
I could see that he was reacting faster than the other players and trying to get behind the defense line, so I was able to narrow down the angle. It was a position without an angle, but I patiently waited without moving first and reacted to the ball."

[Summary of Coach Massimo FICCADENTI's Press Conference]
"I am satisfied. We were able to break through from the sides and it was a game as we had prepared for. Regarding the first half, Yamanashi came back with a strong press, and their positioning was good, so we had a bit of a hard time. Yamanashi is a team that defends well and has a strong mentality. They didn't give us easy spaces. In the second half, we were able to concentrate even more and create many dangerous scenes before scoring a goal. Even after taking the lead, Nathan BURNS had a chance to score. I think today's victory is important. The reason is that we were able to demonstrate the content that we have built up over time. When playing against a team like Yamanashi, if we can't demonstrate patience and mentality throughout the 90 minutes, we won't win. In that sense, today's victory was meaningful."
(Regarding GK Enomoto)
"He made a great save at the end. He was prepared. Not only that, I think he is a great goalkeeper with a wonderful personality. He has a wealth of experience and supports both the goalkeeper team and the field players. Today, he may not have had many opportunities to get involved with the ball or make saves, but even with few opportunities, he can produce solid results, which is evidence of his ability."

[Kofu - Coach Satoru SAKUMA's Press Conference Summary]
"In the hot weather, many supporters came to cheer us on. In the previous home game, we lost to Matsumoto and couldn't secure 3 points today either. It's disappointing and I feel sorry. As for the game, FC Tokyo is a team with a solid defensive organization under the guidance of coach Massimo FICCADENTI. Even in today's meeting, we talked about how both teams have a low number of shots, so we expected a defensive and tight game. And that's exactly what happened. However, when MF Hashizume was substituted due to an accident in the first half, our defense on the right side became a bit loose and gave the opponent a chance to attack. Nevertheless, ending the first half with a 0-0 score was according to our game plan. However, Tokyo's Nathan BURNS and Maeda didn't stay deep but came down from a position close to the 0 top. Despite being in a "dropping state", our defensive line stayed high throughout the first and second halves. This is partly due to the absence of DF Yamamoto, but at halftime, we discussed the need to be more compact and control the line against back passes and sideways passes. At the start of the second half, our line was still too deep, and the ball was played into that area several times, resulting in a goal from a second ball. It was very disappointing as it was a concern since the first half and led to conceding a goal."