Defensive Lapses Condemn TOKYO To Defeat In Niigata
11/22/2004
Defensive Lapses Condemn TOKYO To Defeat In Niigata
J.League Division 1 Second Stage 13th.Game
20/11/2004
Niigata Stadium ( Away )
Attendance 33,504
Defensive Lapses Condemn TOKYO To Defeat In Niigata
F.C.TOKYO 2 Albirex Niigata 4
F.C.TOKYO/ 21 Miura, 79 Lucas
Albirex Niigata/ 22 Ueno, 26 Matsuo, 65, Edmilson, 71 Edmilson
F.C.TOKYO:
Doi, Kaji, Masushima, Fujiyama, Kanazawa, Konno, Miura ( Kajiyama 53 ), Kelly ( Abe 63 ), Ishikawa ( Baba 66 ), Lucas, Toda.
Albirex Niigata:
Nozawa, Matsuo, An, Maruyama, Yamaguchi, Kuwabara, Shingo Suzuki ( Oseas 89 ), Kentaro Suzuki, Edmilson ( Terakawa 80 ), Ueno, Fabinho ( Honma 75 ).
Aiming For First League Win In Seven Games
F.C.TOKYO traveled to Niigata to play Albirex in the 13th. game of the second stage in the first match held at Niigata Stadium since a series of earthquakes struck the area last month. TOKYO's 1-0 victory over Vegalta Sendai in the Emperor's Cup the previous weekend was a welcome return to winning ways but the side had failed to post a win in the league since September 23rd. The team aimed to take the full 9 points from the three remaining games and finish the season as high up the standings as possible.
Albirex had a second stage record of W5 D2 L5 for 17 points but had lost three consecutive games following the earthquakes and a win seemed distant. However, the team is vastly changed from the one that finished 14th. in the first stage; the strike force of Edmilson, Fabnho and Oseas carries a considerable threat and Albirex were the third highest scorers in the second stage with 24 goals. Ueno replaced Oseas in the starting line up as Albirex fielded an attacking formation.
For TOKYO, Moniwa and Jean missed the game through injury with Masushima and Fujiyama taking their central defensive positions; otherwise TOKYO were at full strength. Mitsuhiro Toda celebrated his 100th. league appearance and TOKYO kicked off on a sunny afternoon on the Japan Sea coast.
Miura Opens The Scoring With Fine Finish
TOKYO manager Hara sent his team out with advice to, "Score at least two and win. Anyway, let's just play the game". Both sides began in an attacking mood with TOKYO winning an early corner as the home defence cleared Toda's first-time cross from the left. In the 4th. minute some sharp short passing between Lucas, Konno and Kelly allowed the former a sight of goal but his effort cleared the bar.
In the 5th. minute Kentaro Suzuki won the ball in midfield for Albirex and fed his namesake Shingo Suzuki, who raced down the left flank and earned a corner. A minute later Edmilson intercepted a Konno pass in midfield and exchanged passes with Fabinho before shooting wide. Both sides traded attacks in a lively opening period.
In the 11th. minute Kelly collected a sublime through ball but fired high, while Toda also failed to hit the target from Kaji's long feed two minutes later.
In the 16th. minute TOKYO opened up the Albirex defence on the right, allowing Kanazawa to cross and gain a corner. Ishikawa won a free kick in a good position on the right shortly after but no TOKYO player could make contact with Toda's far post header back into the danger area. TOKYO created chances by using the wings to great effect and it was no surprise when they took the lead in the 21st. minute.
Kelly brought the ball out of defence and slipped it to Toda on the left. Toda checked back and curled a long pass out to Ishikawa on the right wing; Ishikawa's superb first touch took him away from an Albirex defender and inside the area. He cut the ball back to Miura who buried a low first-time shot inside the far post from just outside the area. A crisp, incisive move, unseen in recent games, had given TOKYO a deserved lead.
Errors Lead To Goals
TOKYO's joy lasted precisely one minute. Edmilson picked up the ball in midfield and dribbled forward, held off Fujiyama and pulled the ball back to the near post where Ueno arrived at full speed to clip the ball past Doi for the equaliser.
Albirex were suddenly in total control of the game with Edmilson wreaking havoc down the right and causing confusion in the TOKYO defence with some pin-point crosses. Things went from bad to worse for the visitors in the 26th. minute. Shingo Suzuki swung a corner in from the left that the TOKYO defence cleared, but only to defender Maruyama. Maruyama crossed again and Doi punched the ball away; Shingo Suzuki shaped to volley the ball goalwards but completely miscued and inadvertently floated the ball across the six yard box. Matsuo reacted fastest and nodded the ball past Doi to give his team the lead.
TOKYO had completely lost their attacking rhythm. In the 31st. minute Lucas bulled his way forward and shot, the ball striking a defender and rebounding to Miura who fired wide from outside the area. In the 33rd. minute Kelly and Kaji exchanged passes before Lucas set up Kelly; once again an Albirex defender stretched to block the shot. In the 38th. minute Lucas hammered a free kick into the defensive wall. TOKYO were creating chances but failed to take them and the half finished 1-2.
Counter Attacks Punish TOKYO
At half time TOKYO manager Hara directed his players to, "Get the ball in to Kelly and Lucas' feet and then out to the wings. Masushima, don't lose to Ueno". The team responded with a spirited fightback as the second half began with Ishikawa earning and then stroking a free kick fractionally over the bar in the 46th. minute. Kajiyama replaced Miura in the 53rd. minute and the amount of possession TOKYO enjoyed increased dramatically.
In the 55th. minute a long crossfield ball from Kajiyama allowed Toda to play a first-time cross that put the home defence under pressure. In the 59th. minute Lucas made a solid connection with Kanazawa's cross, drawing a fine save from the Albirex keeper. Konno and Kajiyama played the loose ball neatly between them to set up Lucas but his shot flew straight at the keeper. TOKYO couldn't get the ball into the net.
Abe replaced Kelly in the 63rd. minute. Instead of regaining parity however, TOKYO fell further behind. Ishikawa held the ball up on the right and played a loose pass infield; Shingo Suzuki pounced on the ball, raced down the field and curled a perfect cross between the TOKYO defence and goalkeeper Doi. Edmilson arrived late at the far post to steer the ball past Doi and extend his side's lead.
Baba replaced Ishikawa in the 66th. minute but his introduction failed to stem the tide of Albirex counter attacks and Edmilson scored his second of the game in the 71st. minute, heading home from a corner.
TOKYO Fight To The Finish But...
TOKYO shifted into all-out attacking mode and were rewarded with a goal in the 79th. minute. Abe dribbled into the area and went down under a hefty challenge; the referee pointed to the spot and Lucas dispatched the penalty cleanly, reducing the deficit to two. In the 85th. minute Lucas had a header scrambled off the line and Kajiyama blasted the loose ball over the bar.
TOKYO attacked until the final whistle blew on a 2-4 loss. The team had managed to score twice but simple mistakes and a lack of balance between defence and attack led to conceding goals.
Players' comments
Miura:
"We couldn't win even after scoring first. We knew Albirex would be desperate to win for those who suffered in the recent earthquakes and had talked about how to withstand their pressure but we just couldn't get back in the game. They were much faster than us right across the field. We've had trouble playing against teams who allow us to come onto them and then play on the counter attack. We're sorry for the fans who made the difficult journey to get here. The next match is the final home game of the season so we'll be looking to put on a better performance and take the three points".
Masushima:
"We took the lead with a great move but then conceded and lost it completely. The back line hadn't had much experience of playing together in today's formation. We coped well in the second half but were caught out on the break. There's so much we have to work on in training. We really wanted to put on a winning performance today but...".
TOKYO manager Hara:
"Given the situation we expected a very tough game here today and that's precisely what we got. We were struggling a little with our rhythm until we took the lead with an excellent move. Then inexperience and poor marking allowed them back into the game. The second goal sprang from Doi's weak punch and the third from Ishikawa's poor pass. We tightened up the defence in the second half but Albirex's will to win was greater than ours today. Masushima has great talent but needs to cultivate a stronger mentality. When Moniwa and Jean are out it's difficult for us. We have to learn from the fighting spirit Albirex showed today and play with the same commitment in the Jef United. game".
Albirex manager Sorimachi:
"We really wanted to put on a good performance and play our style of football today and I think we achieved that. The players put their heart and soul into the game and were fastest to the ball right across the field. TOKYO have some very fast players and we expected a high speed game. We're delighted with the performance and the result".
Other results:
Reds 1 Grampus 2, Jef U 5 Vissel 1, Verdy 1 Cerezo 1, S-Pulse 2 Reysol 1, Gamba 0 F Marinos 2, Sanfrecce 3 Jubilo 2, Trinita 0 Antlers 3.
Standings:
Reds 31, Gamba 24, Grampus 24, Jef U 24, F Marinos 22, Albirex 20, Verdy 19, Antlers 18, Sanfrecce 15, Vissel 15, F.C.TOKYO 14, Jubilo 14, S-Pulse 13, Reysol 12, Trinita 11, Cerezo 10.
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