The biggest match of the season, welcomed at home in the best atmosphere

Sec. 15 of the 2nd stage, which will be held as a home game following the previous round. Urawa Reds will face off against Ajinomoto Stadium.
Shonan lost the lead and was defeated in the match, falling to 5th place in the 2nd stage. However, they maintained 3rd place in the annual points. Although there is a 6-point difference with the 1st place, they still have a chance to compete in the remaining 3 matches with the possibility of winning the title.

This round, the "direct confrontation" with Urawa, who finished second in the annual points, is considered a big match. The players express a strong desire to win, saying, "We are delighted to be able to fight against Urawa at this time and in this situation. That's why we absolutely have to win." Coach Massimo also takes a calm approach, saying, "Nothing will end or be accomplished in this one game. All three games are important. Every opponent is a good team, and we will fight as one of them." However, he also added, "In order to win, it will be necessary for the team to come together and fight beyond its limits." In particular, they suffered a complete defeat away in the match of the 1st stage. In order to achieve revenge, it is a match where they want to show their growth.

Urawa, on the other hand, finished 6th in the 2nd stage with the same 24 points as Tokyo. They are currently in 2nd place in the overall standings and are also in a situation where they cannot afford to lose any games. Although they didn't show the same momentum as in the 1st stage in the previous match where they lost to G Osaka, under the guidance of coach Petrovic, the team has matured. Each player has strong finishing skills, so Tokyo will need to maintain their focus for the entire 90 minutes. However, Urawa also frequently attacks from their defensive line, so if Tokyo can quickly transition to the attack, they should be able to exploit the spaces. They want to take advantage of the opponent's weaknesses as usual and win this "top match".

Tokyo, Kono, who was absent in the previous match, returns to the top position. Hayabusa is appointed as the inside half. Morishige, who was substituted due to injury in the Shonan match, also starts. In addition, Hayashi is included in the squad for the first time since the Matsumoto match on June 7th and will be on the bench.

Urawa will deploy FW Zlatan at the forefront. FW Koroki and MF Muto will serve as shadows. In order to withstand the attacking lineup of Urawa, which possesses height and speed, we must endure the time we should be patient and strive to exert our maximum power to aim for victory.

Clear autumn weather, perfect for watching, brought together 38,952 spectators in the stands, and a choreography was also performed during the players' entrance. The big game, welcomed in the best atmosphere, started with a kickoff in Tokyo at 14:02.

Unable to demonstrate the Tokyo-like essence. Higashi scored two consecutive goals, but...

With momentum from the kickoff, Tokyo connected the ball through Ota and Takahashi, and advanced to the left area. Unable to stand up in the competition with Urawa's defenders, the game temporarily stopped but quickly resumed. The foul by Urawa was judged to be none. In the 3rd minute, Urawa's central midfielder Kashiwagi passed to Mutoh in the left area. Zlatan, the forward, made a run into the central area behind the defense, but Tokyo's defenders took care of it and the ball went to Vlada.

There seemed to be no pinch until then, but gradually Urawa held the ball and in the 11th minute, Urawa's left DF Makino made a long feed to the front line. UGAJIN, the left MF, broke through to the front line in response to this, and a short cross floated in from the goal line to the center. Morishige and Maruyama were also covering in front of the goal, but AVRAMOV touched the ball with his left hand and it slipped away. Urawa MF Kashiwagi, who ran in front, was left free and easily closed in... We allowed the first goal with the first shot from both teams combined.

This first goal puts Urawa on a roll. In the following 14 minutes, Urawa's right MF Sekine dribbles vertically. MF Kashiwagi, who has moved up the center, brings the ball inside and expands to the left. From the left area, MF Muto, who has moved up, controls the shot from in front of Tokunaga and quickly loses the second goal.

Still, in the 16th minute, Tokunaga on the right side passed a long ground pass to Yonemoto in the center. Higashi skillfully maneuvered with the opposing defender and broke through to the right area. Then, calmly evading the sliding tackle from Makino, a defender from Urawa, he pierced through the near side of the Urawa goalkeeper, deceiving him with a fake cross, and scored a GOAL!! Tokyo also confidently converted their first shot, showing their determination.

But in the 27th minute, Urawa's left MF Muto dribbled inside. Unable to stop this, he connected with MF Sekine, who had gone up freely on the right side. The shot from the right area, aimed at the goal, hit Maruyama and Urawa FW Koroki and spilled, but in response to the loose ball between Ota and Maruyama, MF Sekine immediately reacted... Maruyama made a sliding tackle, but the controlled shot was scored, and they conceded the third goal.

However, without losing momentum, in the 39th minute, Hayashi -> Ota overlapped. Takahashi in the center connected again and changed to the right. Tokunaga, who had moved up to the right front line, attempted a direct volley from a chest trap, but it went wide. In the 43rd minute, Yonemoto showed his strength in the center. Despite being surrounded by opponents, he kept the ball and Maeda, who followed, took a step forward and played a through pass to the front line. Kono made a run in response to this, but was slightly offside.

In the first half, Urawa had 5 shots compared to Tokyo's 3 shots. Tokyo did not continuously struggle with a disadvantage, as they marked 2 consecutive goals. However, they were unable to demonstrate their characteristic solid defense at crucial moments. They were surpassed in terms of finishing ability and quickness in starting, resulting in a 2-goal deficit going into the second half.

Takahashi scores 2 goals! However, the furious comeback does not bear fruit.

Due to the side creating opportunities against Urawa's 3-6-1, Tokyo also made changes in formation from the middle of the first half. Takahashi covered the defensive line and formed a back three during defense, with Yonemoto and Hanyu as the double pivot. In the first minute of the second half, Kono broke through the right front line from Yonemoto's long pass and made a last pass to Higashi in the left area. Higashi took a well-aimed shot but missed to the right. In the 52nd minute, Nakajima was substituted for Kono, and in the 60th minute, Matsuda was substituted for Hanyu on the right wing. Takahashi moved up to the midfield, with Tokunaga as the defensive midfielder, Morishige in the center, and Maruyama on the left. They aimed to increase the attacking rhythm from the side and prepare for a counterattack.

However, in the 62nd minute, from a pass in the midfield by Urawa, DF Makino advanced and passed to MF Muto in front. From here, FW Zlatan dropped a vertical pass in the area, and DF Makino scored a well-aimed shot to the upper left corner of the goal. Tokyo conceded the 4th goal by taking advantage of player substitutions and a momentary pause.

They never gave up on victory. In the 64th minute, Higashi in the left area trapped the ball with his chest and took a shot. He created a scoring opportunity, but the shot went slightly to the right. In the 73rd minute, Higashi from the right side skillfully expanded to the left area with Maeda in the center. Nakajima, who made a run, entered a shooting position but was blocked a moment too late. Then Nakajima took a middle shot. Maeda, Higashi, Nakajima, and others created a rhythm in the front line and approached the Urawa goal. In the 73rd minute, Higashi made a move on the right side and received a side change. He temporarily kept the ball in the left area, calmly passed it back, and Ota sent a cross. Takahashi jumped in front of Maeda, who was waiting in the center of the area, and scored a spectacular header GOAL!

Trailing by one point, in the 82nd minute, Lin was substituted for Tokunaga and joined the front line. Maeda and Lin formed a two-top formation. Nakajima and Higashi on both sides. Matsuda covered the right full-back position, and they tried to score a goal with an all-out attack. As the momentum of the comeback increased, they aggressively attacked, and in the 83rd minute, Nakajima aimed for a shot from the middle range and attacked the Urawa goalkeeper. The shot was saved, but they earned a corner kick. In the 84th minute, Takahashi headed the right corner kick they obtained, and the opponent's goalkeeper jumped to compete for it, but the ball slipped from his hands, and Takahashi kicked it into the goal with his right foot, GOAL!

The unity with the stands heats up even more. In the 88th minute, Higashi aimed a perfect header from Ota's left cross, but it hit the goalkeeper's face and was offside. In the 89th minute, Matsuda, who had advanced from the right after connecting from a left throw-in, took a shot with momentum, followed by Nakajima in the center. In the 90th minute, Maruyama jumped into the center to meet Nakajima's right cross, and Hayashi in the far side tried to connect with his foot, but... it was cleared for a corner kick just before. Nakajima persistently chased after the clearance from this corner kick and won the ball. It seemed like he was fouled inside the right area, but there was no foul from Urawa. Immediately after, Higashi's decisive shot from the left area was blocked by the goalkeeper... Nakajima's shot from the right area in response to the loose ball was also saved by the goalkeeper, and the time was up.

Never giving up until the end, they showed a fierce comeback with determination... but the 4-goal difference took its toll, resulting in a home defeat. As for the 2nd stage, the point difference with the top team Hiroshima is now 10, and the possibility of winning the title has disappeared.

[Player Comments]
《森重》
“Urawa tried to surpass what we had prepared and caught us off guard. That is their characteristic, but we couldn't catch their movements and conceded a goal in the midst of chaos. After that, we responded by marking more clearly and created many chances in the second half, resulting in three goals. However, there were mistakes on our part among the four goals conceded. In important matches like this, mistakes can determine the outcome. I don't have the impression that we couldn't stand up against Urawa today. However, I think we need to improve our ability to make decisive plays and stop the opponent in crucial moments. We may have suffered consecutive losses, but it's not over yet. We need to switch our focus to the next two matches and go for the win together once again.”

《East》
"It was a game that we absolutely had to win. The atmosphere in the stadium was amazing, and it is a joy as a player to be able to play in such an environment. I am grateful for that. That's why we had to win at home. However, we conceded a goal from a mistake and couldn't find our rhythm after giving away the second goal. In the first half, we played a game that was not like Tokyo. We fought with the desire to win no matter what and approached the game with 120% of our strength... Everyone wants to win in Tokyo, change history, and it is really frustrating to lose today. But we have to hold on somehow and it is important to win the remaining two games."

[Summary of Massimo FICCADENTI's press conference]
"The start of the game was bad, and the result was even worse. We conceded a goal from our own mistake in the early stages, which made the game more open. We couldn't position ourselves well around the midfield in the beginning, and we couldn't respond well to the opponent's attacks. Urawa's second goal was a fantastic shot, but when we concede first, it becomes a difficult situation. Our team's condition is good, but we broke the game with mistakes. After that, we changed the system and ended up with a formation similar to a front four. We needed to adapt while reading the flow of the game. The last 30 minutes were similar to the Shonan game, but this time we scored and didn't give up until the end. Even at 1-4, most teams would give up, but we didn't give up until the end. I am particularly satisfied with the players' performance in the last 30 minutes. This kind of game development is not my preference, but it is considered enjoyable in Japan. Urawa is a strong team competing for the championship and they fought brilliantly. They attacked with great combinations today as well. We also need to move forward. In the last two games, we must look ahead and aim for victory."

[Urawa Petrovic Coach Press Conference Summary]
"It was a spectacular game with 7 goals scored in a single match, and those who came to watch must have been satisfied. It was a great game for both teams. It is rare for both teams to score a total of 7 goals, and both teams gave their all. I think those who watched should simply enjoy it. We had good performance and movement until the 75th minute. We were able to adapt to Tokyo's system change and control the game. However, after the second goal was conceded, our energy level dropped, and the players became defensive and stopped connecting passes. The game turned into a situation where we were afraid and played more long balls. That is Tokyo's strength. As a result, we created opportunities for them to push us back. In Japan, when leading 4-1, the attacking mentality tends to weaken. However, when we have control, I believe we should continue to dominate. Of course, it is satisfying to have won against a strong FC Tokyo. However, we need to carefully review the lessons learned from today and think about how to approach the next Kawasaki game. Even if we earn the most points in the season, we are not the champions, but since we have already secured a spot in the championship, I told the players not to feel unnecessary pressure and strain. That's why we should play our football boldly. I think this game was able to express that mindset."