The 21st round of the 2016 Meiji Yasuda J3 League, which was held for the first time since the away match against Tochigi on August 7th.

The opponent for this match, Iwate Grulla Morioka, is the team that achieved their first home victory.
However, they have not lost in their last 6 league matches and have gained momentum by defeating J1 Vegalta Sendai in the Emperor's Cup.
Tokyo sets up a 4-4-2 formation.
GK is Wai. Placing Okaniwa, who made his first appearance and first start in J3, on the right side of the DF line, a young DF line consisting of Yanagi, Okazaki, and Ogawa.
In the midfield, from the right, Mizunuma, Nozawa, Suzuki, and Koyama enter, while Nathan Burns and Hayashi line up in the front line.
Morioka also deployed a 4-4-2 formation, just like in the previous match, and they are a team that plays aggressively with a strong emphasis on building up from the back, including the goalkeeper, and applying pressure from the front.
The point difference between Tokyo and Morioka is 2, and depending on this result, there may be a game where the rankings are reversed, which started with Tokyo's kickoff.

【First Half】
Morioka entered the game with momentum.
Choose to press from the front line and play aggressively, taking the initiative as it is from the recent victory in the Emperor's Cup Sendai match.
Tokyo is struggling to find its rhythm and in the 11th minute, they are broken through vertically on the right side with speed.
If you allow a cross near here, you will be jumped on messily and lose the opening goal.
At halftime, Coach Nakamura said, "The team stepped up their game after conceding a goal," and Tokyo started to play more aggressively from this point.
In the 19th minute, Hayashi steals the ball in the opponent's central area and creates a numerical advantage of 3 to 2 with Burns and Suzuki.
When Hayashi sends a last pass to Suzuki running on the left in front of the penalty area, he is stopped by the good defense of the GK who came out, and they end up in a one-on-one situation.
Tokyo missed a chance, but Burns and Lins are starting to become the starting point in the front line.
Anton BURNS in particular makes a difference with his abundant physicality, whether dropping back to the midfield or getting involved in the front line.
Also, with Lin leading the way, they did not give Morioka freedom with aggressive pressing from the front line.
As a result, the equalizing goal was taken by the two forwards.
24 minutes, he skillfully stripped the ball from the opponent in front of his own penalty area and entrusted it to Burns, who then ran up the center alone.
In the central area of the opponent's field, pass the ball to Hayashi running on the left side. Hayashi dribbles inside and takes a shot, hitting the opponent's defender and getting sucked into the goal.
In the 27th minute, Koyama's shot hit the post. In the following 29th minute, Anton BURNS switched from the right side and shot with his left foot towards the center of the goal.
When Hayashi drops this with his chest, Mizunuma jumps in but misses the ball.
In addition, Anton BURNS created opportunities in the 35th and 36th minutes, but the equalizing goal was far away.
The game gradually settled down and both teams were unable to score a winning goal as the first half ended.

【Halftime】
Coach Nakamura's comment
"Let's aim for the sides while connecting the ball with everyone. It is important to pick up second balls. Make sure to continue picking them up in the second half."
"Improve the final system. We will definitely win with the consciousness of helping each other."

【Second half】
No player substitutions were made by either team in the second half.
48 minutes, Lin is fouled near the opponent's central right sideline and earns a free kick. Mizunuma sends it to the far side and Lin is free to connect, but fails to meet the ball and misses a scoring opportunity.
The 52nd minute scene where a chance was created from a throw-in. After gaining a throw-in deep on the right side, Mizunuma, who had escaped his marker inside the penalty area, received the ball and crossed it to the near side.
If the opponent GK cannot catch it, Koyama tries to close in but fails to score.
Tokyo, who continue to attack from the right side, made a move in the 57th minute. MIZUNUMA, who had the ball on the right side, passed it to BURNS, who had broken free from the opponent's defense line.
Burns dribbles vertically and puts a ground cross near the near post, but it doesn't connect with Hayashi.
61 minutes, Yagi intercepts in front of his own penalty area and runs up nearly 50 meters, passing to Hayashi who came in from the left.
HAYASHI shoots from the dribble but fails to score a goal. Tokyo, unable to take the lead, is losing momentum to Morioka.
Morioka, who started to hold the ball, has more time in Tokyo's territory, and Tokyo responds with a counterattack.
The Tokyo defense continues to respond without losing concentration.
Among them, the one who particularly stood out was Wai. He truly stood as a guardian in front of the Tokyo goal.
In the 63rd minute, Morioka allowed a breakthrough from the left side and conceded a decisive shot, but Iwai made a save by putting his body on the line.
The defense throws their bodies to block the shot even when it is taken from a loose ball.
In the 67th minute, Iwai punched away a powerful shot from the left side.
When this ball is picked up again on the right side inside the PA, Nozawa jumps into the block with all his might and eliminates the shooting course, missing it just above the near side.
In addition, in the 71st minute, he cuts in from the left side to near the goal area inside the penalty area, but Yanagi and Ogawa block it with their bodies.
In the 74th minute, a strong shot from the right side of the goal, after being connected from the center, aims for the right side of the goal but the goalkeeper makes another big save.
The right CK given here is cleared by the DF near the goal and results in another right CK. In response to Morioka's tactic of creating congestion around the GK, Wai punches the ball to save Tokyo from a dangerous situation.
Tokyo also tries to change the flow by introducing Kobayashi and Hiraoka.
82 minutes, Hirayama picks up a loose ball in the midfield and launches a counterattack. He dribbles nearly 40 meters and takes a left-footed shot from a one-on-one situation, but the goalkeeper catches it.
Immediately after, the opposing forward who ran behind the Tokyo defense receives a counterattack and kicks the ball, resulting in a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper. However, the goalkeeper makes a brave save to avert the danger.
Furthermore, in the 86th minute, a play was created in the center of the goal area, and when the space on the left side was left open, the opponent jumped in and a one-on-one situation was created inside the penalty area, but the opponent's attempt was blocked.
Tokyo, whose activity level dropped and struggled to pick up second balls, continued to withstand Morioka's fierce attacks and accumulated 1 point.

Thank you very much for your passionate support for FC Tokyo U-23.
Thank you for your continued warm support.

【Summary of Coach Nakamura's Press Conference】
"First of all, when I arrived here, there were fans and supporters who came from Tokyo to support us. We talked about winning and taking 3 points back home."
I first wanted to show the supporters where we will fight.
At the start, the opponent is a very strong team with a lot of momentum, having won against Sendai in the Emperor's Cup without losing any matches. We wanted to approach the game with our own momentum.
The opponent had more pressure in the beginning, and within about 10 minutes, Morioka's number 15 (Kenta Anraku) player, who was known to be a good player, broke through and scored a goal.
However, afterwards, the players did not panic and played their usual style of soccer by carefully passing the ball and penetrating the opponent's defense to take shots, as planned, from the middle of the first half onwards.
We were able to catch up during the first half.
In the second half, we continued to play that style of soccer and created scoring opportunities for about 20-25 minutes (65-70 minutes) without stopping our efforts. However, in the last 15 minutes, our legs started to slow down and the opponent made effective player substitutions, which allowed them to create space in the forward line and prevented us from winning loose balls. As a result, we were pushed back, but I believe we were able to end the match with a draw thanks to the efforts of our goalkeeper.

【Player Comment】
《Okaniwa》
"I was able to approach the game with a little relaxation because the seniors gave me a lot of encouragement, even though I didn't have much practice with the other players."
However, the first 20 minutes of the first half were a tight situation.
Players around me and the players behind me encouraged me, so I was able to gradually show myself. I have no regrets, but I felt that I need to raise my standards.
(What was the reason for becoming tense?) I think it was because of the tension or the atmosphere of the venue.
(The opposing player was the key player in the attack) He was called the key player from the meeting. I thought about not letting him do it, but I realized that I was a little stiff and as the second half went on, I got used to it and understood how to dribble and the distance between us. As an improvement point, I think I was done too much at the beginning.
(Harvest and challenges?) The coordination with the defense and line control is still lacking, and I didn't manage to stay in position and avoid being offside by dropping back too much.
Even in attack, it was a bit stiff at first, so there was less movement, but I hope to increase the movement from the beginning and become a source of goals.
Unlike U-18, each individual's intensity is very high, and I would like to raise the standard even more.
(What is Standard?) It is about not allowing one-on-one situations in defense and aligning the line with senior players.
In terms of attack, we want to have a lot of vertical movement and improve the quality of our play when moving forward. However, there are still issues with the coordination between the forwards and the quality of our passes, so we need to work on improving those areas.
(What is the difference with U-18?) The clear difference was in terms of speed and one-on-one strength. I am usually not a player who cramps his legs, but I cramped towards the end of the second half, and I think that affected each individual's strength in those areas.
(Regarding the play after the stiffness was removed?) We were beaten in defense, but I thought that if I could attack from my side, I would gradually get into my own rhythm.
I feel that I have become more comfortable with myself and have also gained some flexibility when I feel that I am in my own pace. I also feel that I have become more accustomed to one-on-one situations.
(Did you hear the voices of the fans and supporters?) Yes, I did. I heard them quite clearly. It was incredibly exciting.
(The next match will be held at Ajinomoto Stadium, but) I'm not sure if I can participate yet, but if I'm called, I will prepare myself properly and try to improve little by little from today.
 

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