Match Review
Do your best and leave the rest to fate──. It has finally come down to the last two matches. Winning this round against the Urawa Reds will keep the dream of a comeback victory in the final round alive. The point difference with the top-ranked Kashima Antlers, who have a match the next day, is 4. This game is an opportunity to take the initiative, close the gap, and apply as much pressure as possible.
What is required for that is to defeat the formidable opponent right in front of us. It is necessary to overcome Urawa, who have achieved four consecutive wins since the appointment of interim manager Tanaka. For that match, head coach Rikizo MATSUHASHI selected the starting eleven with goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu, who was announced just before kickoff to have been selected for the South Korean national team for his fourth consecutive FIFA World Cup appearance. The back line consisted of four players from right to left: Sei MUROYA, Alexander Scholz, Hayato Inamura, and Kento HASHIMOTO. The double pivot in midfield was formed by Kento HASHIMOTO and Kota TAWARATSUMIDA, while the attackers were Keita ENDO on the right and Keita ENDO on the left. Up front, Marcelo and Ryunosuke SATO formed the2-top. Additionally, Yuto NAGATOMO, who was announced as a member of the Japan national team for the FIFA World Cup the day before the match, was on the bench, and Kota TAWARATSUMIDA was included in the squad for the first time in about six months since his injury at the end of last year.
The away side behind the goal was packed full, with chants for each player echoing from the warm-up onwards. At player entrance, loud cheers and countless blue and red flags inspired the team. With this wonderful atmosphere, the players faced kickoff with a determined, must-win attitude.
1st―Continuing to press without rushing,towards the decisivesecondhalfbattle
In the early stages, Tokyo aims for chances while maintaining ball possession. They build up play from the back line, spreading the ball to the left and right as the fullbacks accelerate, then deliver crosses or recover loose balls to launch secondary attacks.
In response, Urawa adopted a flexible system based on a four-back formation, pushing left-back Naganuma up to positions close to an inside half or winger during attacks. Including Tokyo’s strong point of the vertical relationship on the right side, the game became a test of how to prevent them from using this area while trying to seize control.
In the early stages, both teams based their play on building from the back line while mixing in long balls. For Tokyo, time passed as the game unfolded without being able to speed up their attacks significantly.
Even so, Tokyo demonstrated a strong collective mindset of all-out attack and all-out defense. After pressing forward with a solid attack, when they were nearly caught by a counterattack, Inamura delayed Urawa's advance, and Kento HASHIMOTO pressed back with full effort to regain possession. The team unitedly continued to create chances patiently without rushing.
In the 35th minute of the first half, a big chance was created from a corner kick won on the right side. Kento HASHIMOTO received a short corner return and delivered a sharp cross with his left foot. Inamura rushed in and connected with a header, but the ball, which was skillfully redirected from near post to far post, struck the left post. It was a decisive moment, but unfortunately, they could not shake the net to take the lead.
Furthermore, in the 44th minute of the first half, Tokiwai skillfully switched his body in midfield to intercept the ball, then exchanged passes with RIAN to penetrate in front of the goal and took a left-footed shot. However, it went over the goal. They turned good defense into good attack, but this also did not result in a goal. The first half ended scoreless, leaving the outcome to be decided in the second half.
2nd―Winning the intense penalty shootout,EAST Group keeps hopes alive in the race for first place
Tokyo made no substitutions at halftime, while Urawa took the initiative andsubstituted 2players. They changed their forward players to reinforce their attack.
Tokyo, aiming to keep their hopes alive for a comeback championship, first wants to score the opening goal. At the 5th minute of the second half, Endo accelerated down the left side, RIAN attempted a dribble breakthrough, and then at the 51st minute, Kento HASHIMOTO unleashed a powerful right-footed shot on a loose ball in front of the goal, showing a strong desire to score, creating consecutive chances and displaying a vigorous attack.
Furthermore, at the same 14th minute, after building up play and threading a vertical pass, Lucas RIAN advanced forward with the ball, and the one who broke free to receive the final pass was Endo. However, his first touch was slightly too long, preventing him from taking a shot. The cross ball from Kento HASHIMOTO, who picked up the loose ball and crossed it back, was also blocked by the opponent.
Urawa made another attacking substitution at the 18th minute of the second half, taking the initiative to increase the pressure. Meanwhile, Coach Matsuhashi, who had been carefully assessing the situation, made his move at the 25th minute. Teruhito NAKAGAWA came on for Hian, and Tawara Tsukida replaced Endo. For Tawara Tsukida, this was his first official match appearance since the FC Machida Zelvia game on November 9 last year.
That player, Tawara Tsukida, immediately impressed. Right after being brought on, he showed off his proud high-speed dribbling with a sticky ball touch on the left side and earned a corner kick. Kento HASHIMOTO sharply targeted the loose ball, but unfortunately, it was stopped by a fine save from the opposing goalkeeper Nishikawa.
FC Tokyo is determined to secure a victory within the 90 minutes at all costs.From behind the goal, a loud chant of "Pour out your passion! Grab the championship!" echoes, and with15 minutes remaining, the team unites as one in blue and red to snatch the 3 points.
Responding to that determination, Tokyo intensified their offensive pressure. At the 35th minute of the second half, Tawara Tsukida cut in from the left side and took a right-footed shot. At the 38th minute, they launched a short counterattack with coordinated pressing from a high position, triggering a short counterattack with coordinated pressing from a high position. Furthermore, at the 41st minute, Tawara Tsukida intercepted on the left side, advanced with the ball, dribbled across the pitch, expanded play to the right front, and earned a corner kick.
Tokyo's fierce attack continued. Then, in the 43rd minute of the second half, from a diagonal pass inserted by Muroya, Kento HASHIMOTO exchanged passes with Nakagawa and broke through in front of the goal to take a shot. Later, in the 90th minute, the recently substituted Fuki YAMADA struck a powerful left-footed shot, but it was saved by Nishikawa with a horizontal dive. Even during the 3 minutes of added time in the second half, Kei Sato boldly attempted to break through vertically and continued to attack courageously, but they still could not shake the net before the whistle blew. The intense battle ended up dragging into a penalty shootout.
The penalty shootout, which was held using the away side's goal, began. First, goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu made a flying save against Urawa's first kicker, Hajime MATSUO. However, Tokyo's first kicker, Megumi Sato, was stopped by goalkeeper Nishikawa. After both teams scored their second kicks, Urawa's third kicker, Nemoto, hit the left post and missed, while Tokyo's Yamada struck a powerful left-footed shot to take the lead. However, Tokyo's fifth kicker, Muroya, fired a shot that went over the bar, failing to seal the victory.
After both teams scored three each, on the ninth kicker, goalkeeper Sungyu made a fine save on Nemoto's shot! However, Tokyo's Scholz was stopped by goalkeeper Nishikawa, and they still couldn't secure the victory here.
At the eleventh kick, both goalkeepers scored, and the penalty shootout entered the second round. At the thirteenth kick, Urawa’s Watanabe’s shot grazed the crossbar and went wide, then Tokyo’s Kento HASHIMOTO scored to secure the victory. Winning the intense penalty shootout involving a total of 26 players from both teams, Tokyo earned 2 points away from home.
With this,the point gap withthe first-place Kashima Antlers wasnarrowed to 2,and whether they can keep the hope oftaking the top spot in the EASTgroup in the final rounddepends on the result of Kashima Antlers' match tomorrow, Sunday. After the match, as the players headed back to the locker room, the blue-red family behind the goal who believed in the comeback kept chanting, "Pour out your passion! Grab the championship!"
Interview with Coach Rikizo MATSUHASHI
Q: please review the game.
A: Although the game ended with one point less than we originally wanted, the players really prepared well, and as an expression of that preparation, while it was not perfect of course, I think it was a game in which they properly aligned their focus and performed well both offensively and defensively.
Although there were two chances to score the PKs early on, even in such a situation, not giving up and ultimately pulling the victory closer is something I believe holds great value. I truly think they played an excellent game.
Q. It seemed like there was a slight lack in further strengthening the attack towards the end. What were your thoughts on that?
A. With almost all the forward players changed,firstly, for Kota TAWARATSUMIDA, who came in on the left, the aim was not so much for him to break through by individual skill, but rather to have one or two players close him down and then cleverly use the space that opened up. Regarding the opponent’s defensive back line, the patterns we rehearsed were clearly displayed, and there were moments in the second half when we began to capitalize on that, but failing to fully finish those chances made things a bit difficult.
Regarding the player who was positioned at the top, the focus was more on defensive tasks rather than attacking. We aimed to increase the intensity of our pressing a bit more, inducing the opponent to lose possession due to hesitation, and then transition into our specialty, the short counterattack. Therefore, height was not particularly required, and we chose a player who demands mobility. Although Teruhito NAKAGAWA is not physically large, I believe he expressed himself very well in fulfilling tasks such as holding the ball firmly and receiving it behind the opponent’s back. Of course, we also considered applying more pressure by making one, two, or three substitutions in the defensive line, but there were difficulties related to the timing and the plan.
Fuki YAMADA, who usually plays primarily on the right side, is a very creative and technically skilled player. Considering the opponent’s situation this week, we assigned him a role in the center—not exactly as a free man, but moving around various positions to become a focal point. I believe he expressed this role well after the game opened up. Also, since there was a high tendency to be vulnerable to counterattacks, we had him firmly shut those down and then regain the tempo for our team, which was the meaning behind his involvement in the game.
Q、日本代表に選出された長友佑都選手が今日は出場しませんでしたが、理由を教えてください。
A、戦術的な部分です。もちろん、我々がリードしたなかでどうゲームをクローズさせるかというところでの交代は頭にはありました。ただ、今日は必ずしもそうする必要がある状況ではなかったので、そこまで大きく変える必要はないと考えていました。そういう意味では、戦術的な理由として今回はスタメンではなく、ゲームチェンジャーとして入ってもらった、というのが理由です。
Q, including the penalty shootout, I think goalkeeper Seung-gyu Kim also had an outstanding performance. From the coach’s perspective, how was his play today?
A, truly, it was absolutely wonderful. "Wonderful" is the word that sums it up.
Player Interview
Seung-gyu KIM
Q: please review the PK shootout.
A: This was the first time I experienced such a long PK shootout, and since we really needed the points, I am first of all happy that we were able to win. There have been many PK shootouts this season, so the opponents analyzed me, and I also analyzed them. I was careful not to lose in the psychological battle, and since the opponents knew my rhythm, I played while gradually changing my tempo.
Q, there was a moment when you took a penalty kick. Were you nervous?
A, It was my first time taking a penalty, so I was a little nervous. But I tried to appear as if I wasn’t nervous while taking the kick.
Q. How do you look back on the entire match?
A.The Urawa Reds changed their coach and their style of play also changed, with some parts improving. We prepared thoroughly on the defensive side against the style they wanted to play. We progressed through the match without conceding, and I believe we also had chances in attack. However, because we couldn’t capitalize and finish those chances, in the end, we were unable to secure a victory within 90 minutes.
Q, How do you feel about the situation of chasing the Kashima Antlers in the final stages of the league?
A, Kashima Antlers’ match is tomorrow(May 17), so the result is still unknown, but since we are in a position to chase by accumulating points, I believe we can only keep striving to win until the very end.
Kento HASHIMOTO
Q,Please reflect on today's match.
A, Honestly, I wanted to win within 90 minutes, but I think we achieved the minimum required result. Our mission today was to bring back 3 points, and I believe we did what we could.
Q, I think it was a very tight game. How did you feel on the pitch?How did you feel on the pitch?
A, I believe there were many chances, but we lacked in the “quality” aspect of finishing them off. I see this as a challenge to address moving forward.
Q. How did the team prepare for this must-win match?
A. We received the words "Put your soccer life on the line" from head coach Rikizo MATSUHASHI. We understood that if we didn’t win, the possibility of finishing first in the EAST group would disappear, and I believe the passion we brought to this match influenced the outcome. I think we were able to express what the team needed to do.
Q, Kento HASHIMOTO himself had some close chances.
A, I want to create more of those kinds of chances, and I believe I can do more. I want to face this as a personal challenge.
Q, It was an intense penalty shootout. Please also share your reflections on it.
A, It was very long. Personally, it was my first time taking two penalty kicks in a shootout, and there was a different kind of mind game than usual. In the moment where “if I score here, the match will be decided,” I assumed the opposing goalkeeper wouldn’t dive to the center and started my run-up accordingly, but since goalkeeper Nishikawa didn’t move until the last moment, I shifted slightly to the right just before kicking. Watching the goalkeeper’s foot movement, I think I was able to kick reflexively.
Q, for the next match, please share your enthusiasm for the game against Kashima Antlers.
A, We cannot control Kashima’s result tomorrow, and regardless of that outcome, we want to show our fans and supporters the strength of Tokyo this season by winning against Kashima within 90 minutes.
Kota TAWARATSUMIDA Player
Q. It was your first appearance this season, but what kind of mindset did you have going into the match?
A. Since it was probably my first match in about half a year, I just thought I would give it my all, return to my roots, and focus on going straight for the goal.
Q, What words did the coach say to you?
A, He justtold me, "Go and enjoy it."
Q. When did you start to see that you would be able to return in today's match?
A. After the camp ended, Sec.2 was when I was originally scheduled to return, but my recovery took longer and I had some setbacks in other areas, so it ended up being this timing.
Q、In the past, it was difficult to win at Saitama Stadium 2002, but in recent years we have been able to secure victories there.
A、このスタジアムだから勝てない、というようなジンクスがあるチームでは優勝することができないと思っています。どんなスタジアムでも勝てるようなチームにならなければいけないと思っています。
Q. You were quite aggressive from the moment you entered the match. What mindset did you have while playing?
A. I was simply focused on moving toward the goal.
Q. It was your first official match in a while, but was there any difficulty in showing explosive plays right from the start?
A. I wasn’t really thinking that much about it. The coach also told me to "go and enjoy it," and since my teammates understand my strengths, I thought I should be more and more proactive. Even my first play felt like my body moved instinctively and explosively. I swung my leg to take the shot, but I really need to score in those kinds of situations, so I want to keep improving.
Q,while player Tawara Tsukida was sidelined, the team has been producing results. How did you think about contributing in this match?
A,Last year was tough, and during that time various players came in, so I think it’s truly wonderful that we have been able to win up to this point this year. That’s why I have been constantly thinking about how I should play when I join the team.
During this period, I focused a lot on strength training. From my diet to everything else, I have truly rebuilt my body from scratch over the past six months, so I want to show an even more evolved version of myself.
Q, as a kicker in the PK shootout, you seemed quite nervous.
A,Yes. I was a bit too nervous and felt like I was completely out of breath, but I’m glad I was able to score in the end.
Q, by accumulating points in today’s match, do you think you were able to put pressure on the Kashima Antlers as well?
A, yes. While making them feel that pressure, it’s true that we rely on others, but we want to keep winning until the very end.
