<Match Review>
Tokyo, who will play three games in three days, will face Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo, who are in 10th place with a 3-point difference, at home at Ajinomoto Stadium for the second consecutive week. This match will be held as a "voice support operation verification target match", and it will be the first time for fans and supporters to return to Ajinomoto Stadium for Tokyo since the match against Perth Glory FC in the AFC Champions League group stage in the 2020 season. With the big support of "voice" returning after two and a half seasons, Tokyo aims for their first victory in four league matches.
1st HALF - Leading with 2 goals from penalty kicks
At the start, Tokyo immediately faces a scoring opportunity. Leandro, on the right side of the Sapporo goal, controls the ball. Before the opponent can apply pressure, he swings his left foot, but the ball hits the right post and bounces back. After that, the opponent defends by filling the space instead of chasing from the front. While taking positions in the gap between players, they advance the ball and enter the opponent's penalty area. They struggle to make the final play and cannot take a shot, but they keep collecting second balls and launching a strong attack.
When the opponent launches a counterattack, the first marker delays the attack and then presses back from behind to regain possession of the ball with a numerical advantage. In the 19th minute, Kuryu MATSUKI reacted to a looping pass in the middle range and broke through the space between Sapporo's defenders. MATSUKI controlled the ball, turned around, and took a powerful volley shot, but it was blocked by a desperate defender who had rushed back.
Although he was unable to create a decisive situation to hold the ball, he created a chance while pushing the opponent into the goal in the 34th minute of the first half. Kazuya KONNO, who received the ball at the right corner of the penalty area, took a shot from the cut-in and got a penalty kick as it hit the opponent's defender's hand. In the 35th minute of the first half, Leandro successfully scored a penalty kick to the left corner of the goal, giving Tokyo the lead.
Tokyo, who continued to attack with momentum, earned a free kick chance in front of the penalty area in the 45+3 minute of the first half. Leandro took a direct shot that hit the arm of an opponent player, earning the second penalty kick chance of the day. In the 45+4 minute of the first half, Adailton took the kick and although it hit the left post, it was sucked into the goal, extending the lead to 2 points and ending the first half.
2nd HALF - "The city that never sleeps" echoes at Ajinomoto Stadium with a victory
The start of the second half was a chance to see how Sapporo would come out, but in the 6th minute, Adailton intercepted the opponent defender's pass and broke through the center. The opponent goalkeeper came out, but Adailton's looping shot extended the lead. As the opponent pushed forward, Tokyo took advantage of the space behind to create chances. In the 7th minute, Konno broke through on a diagonal pass from Matsuki, but his shot aimed at the goalkeeper's head was caught by the goalkeeper who had come out.
After expanding the lead, there were times when Sapporo held onto the ball, but we did not panic and continued to slide towards the ball side and check the ball at the edge to prevent them from taking a shot. On the other hand, when we had possession of the ball, we avoided losing it easily and built up the play securely, progressing the game in the opponent's half.
In the 26th minute of the second half, a substitute player who came on in the second half was involved in a chance. Leandro's through pass found Diego Oliveira, who then connected with a heel pass to Kensuke Nagai. Nagai received the ball near the goal, attempted a feint to get past the defender, and took a shot, but was unable to find the back of the net.
As the game approached its final stages, Sapporo held onto the ball for longer periods of time. They maintained a compact formation, filling in spaces and shifting towards the ball side. When it came to finishing, they threw themselves into the shot without getting flustered.
After about two and a half seasons, I was pushed by the "voice" and won the league match for the first time in four games.
MATCH DETAILS
＜F.C.Tokyo＞
STARTING Ⅺ
GK Jakub SLOWIK
DF Yuto NAGATOMO/Yasuki KIMOTO/Masato MORISHIGE/Kashif BANGNAGANDE (42nd minute: Junya SUZUKI)
MF Kuryu MATSUKI/Keigo HIGASHI (42nd minute: Manato SHINADA)/Yuki KAJIURA
FW Kazuya KONNO (13th minute: Diego OLIVEIRA)/Adailton (13th minute: Kensuke NAGAI)/Leandro (26th minute: Ryo WATANABE)
SUBS
GK Go HATANO
DF Makoto OKAZAKI
GOAL
35' First Half: Leandro (PK) / 45+4' First Half: Adailton (PK) / 6' Second Half: Adailton
Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo
STARTING XI
GK Koki OTANI
DF Shunta TANAKA/Daihachi OKAMURA/Akito FUKUMORI (46': Hiroki MIYAZAWA)
MF Takuro KANEKO/Takuma ARANO (54': Kazuki FUKAI)/Tomoki TAKAMINE/Daiki SUGA (77': Daigo NISHI)/Ryo AOKI/Yoshiaki KOMAI
FW Gabriel Xavier (15': Shinzo KOROKI) (77': Milan TUCIC)
SUBS
GK Kojiro NAKANO
DF Toya NAKAMURA
GOAL
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[Albert PUIG ORTONEDA Interview]
Q: please review the game.
A: First of all, I would like to commend our opponent, Sapporo. It is a great honor for me to be able to face such a great coach. I am happy to compete against a team that sets an attacking game plan. Sometimes we will win, and sometimes the opponent will win. However, a match between two attacking teams is very attractive for the spectators. In that sense, I am pleased and very proud to have played against Sapporo, who set an attacking game plan.
There is no need to look back on the first half and the second half separately. I think the flow was the same throughout the 90 minutes. We had a game plan and aimed to press the opponent in a good way. The three players in the front line also contributed to the press for the team. If we give Sapporo space and the ball, they will make good plays. Therefore, I think it was the ability to defend well that led to the victory. And the team was also able to defend compactly, not giving the opponent space between the lines.
When we had the ball, we expected Sapporo to come at us with a man-to-man defense. In turn, we aimed to create space and take advantage of it by having players break through from the second row. Today, we were able to achieve the plays we had hoped for and secure a victory.
Today, 18-year-old Kajiura made his league debut, and I am happy that he played wonderfully along with the victory. Today, there were 18- and 19-year-old players lined up in midfield, and they will surely be responsible for the future of this club.
Finally, I thought it was beautiful and wonderful to have cheers in the stadium.
Q: It was a verification match for vocal support, but how did you feel about receiving support again?
A: Two and a half years ago, when I was in charge of Niigata for the opening match of the 2020 season, we played only one away game against Gunma where we received vocal support. I hope that we will continue to have cheers going forward. After all, having vocal support is what football and entertainment truly are, so I hope it continues.
I am very happy to be able to hear their cheers directly, and I hope that this will be an opportunity for everyday life to return. I believe they were also shouting my name, and it reached my ears clearly. I am very pleased.
Q: Today was our first victory in a month. We have had many injuries among our defensive players. Do you have any thoughts about the team's formation?
A, I believe that a team is a living entity. Regardless of whether there are injured players or not, I see reinforcements as essential to revitalizing the team, not only in summer or winter but continuously. Naturally, the better the reinforcements go, the higher the chances of victory. Regarding that, I expect the strengthening department to do a good job.
[Player Interview]
＜Yuki KAJIURA
Q, how was it to have your first starting lineup at Ajinomoto Stadium?
A, I am happy that my first start coincided with the match where supporters' vocal cheering resumed, and that we were able to achieve a 3-0 result.
Q, how did you feel when your name was called before the game?
A, I have watched matches at Ajinomoto Stadium during my U-15 and U-18 days, and I believe Tokyo's support is the best in Japan. Receiving that cheering made me feel even more determined to give my all, and I am also filled with gratitude.
Q, how did you feel when you were called by the supporters and did the "Sha" after the match?
A, this time I want to work hard again so that I can score a goal and do a genuine "Sha."
Q, I think it was effective to enter the opponent's box as an inside half in many scenes.
A, I believe this is the kind of play expected of an inside half, and in addition, I was required to be involved with the ball from deeper positions. There are still areas for improvement in my involvement with the ball, but including the defensive intensity expected of an inside half, I think I was able to fulfill that part.
Q, East player and Matsuki player played together in the midfield for almost 90 minutes. How was the relationship between the three of them?
A, today the three of us in midfield talked about sliding in defense to cover the spaces, and we were able to do that properly. Additionally, we deepened communication with fullbacks Nagatomo and Yoshifu, and especially in the first half, we felt we almost completely shut them out.
Q, I don't think there was a scene where all three midfielders were tightly marked by the opposing players and got dispossessed.
A, I believe we were able to maintain the relationship where when one player stepped forward, the other two covered behind, and we made sure not to switch positions when stepping forward. It’s a simple task, but I think it’s the most important, so being able to do that properly was a big factor.
Q, I felt that you were so focused that I couldn't believe it was your first starting lineup in the league.
A, I didn’t think about conserving my energy and went full throttle from the start to see how far I could go. The last 10 minutes were physically tough, but I want to get more involved in matches and clear each challenge one by one.
I still think it was a match where I was helped a lot by the players around me. Everyone supported me by calling out, so it was very easy to play.
Q, did you get the first goal from Leandro?
A, In our regular practice, Leandro, Diego, and I practice penalty kicks together. In today's match, Leandro took the first kick, so I took the second. Rather than him giving it up to me, it was just as we always practice, so I was allowed to take it. I'm glad I was able to score.
Q, I think we were able to connect from good defense to attack throughout the game.
A, we have had a series of matches recently where we couldn't win and sometimes couldn't play the style of soccer we wanted. There were games where we couldn't express the style we've been working on since the preseason before the opening, but I think today we were able to show a bit of it, and it was good to win with multiple goals.
Q: How was the cheer when the point was scored?
A, in previous matches, fans and supporters came to the stadium even though they couldn't cheer out loud. Today, I really felt that the cheers pushed us forward. Also, the cheers after scoring a goal made me very happy.
Q: What kind of dance do you perform after scoring a point?
A, When I was watching videos at home, my son saw that dance and told me he wanted me to do it if I scored, so I performed that dance.
Q, where is the original source of that dance?
A, It is a dance that is popular in Brazil.
Q, I think Adailton's chant has been sung since the 2020 ACL, but how was it sung again in today's match?
A, quite some time has passed since the last time we raised our voices, but once again, I felt that having the fans and supporters cheer and call out my name gives me a tremendous amount of strength. We also want to do everything we can to the fullest and share the joy together with everyone, and today's support really became a great source of power for us. It also became a trigger for us to move forward, so it was truly wonderful.
<Kuryu MATSUKI>
Q, how did you feel about the momentum of connecting good attacks from defense?
A, I felt that the way we set up our defense was good throughout both the first and second halves. Also, the intensity of Higashi and Kajiura in midfield was high, and I think that led to good attacks.
Q, when Leandro came down, I could see the intention of using him well as an inside half player.
A, as a team tactic, we anticipated that when Leandro received the ball, the opponent would follow him, so we thought that if he could shake off the defender alone there, it would create a chance, and we aimed for many runs behind the defense.
Q, there were scenes where we could aim for a goal.
A, there was a scene where I could have taken a direct shot.
Q: Do you want to continue to make going fiercely to the ball a characteristic of yourself in the future?
A, there were several moments of switching today as well, so I felt that I wanted to win those battles decisively and connect them to our attacks.
Q, it will be the Urawa game in three days after the middle school third grade.
A, the next match will definitely not be an easy one either, so I want to fight for a better result than today.
<Kashif BANGNAGANDE>
Q: please review the game.
A, it was good that the team got a positive result, but personally, I couldn't show much of my best. In the first half, I spent a long time being pressed defensively and didn't have time to move forward, so I wanted to push up a bit more.
Q: Sapporo.D scored two goals in the first half, both of which were penalty kicks. How would you describe the overall performance?
A, we were able to score two goals in the first half in a lucky way, which helped us get into a good rhythm, and in the second half, we were able to press forward more and more, so that was good.
Q: How was it to play with the support of the fans?
A, the atmosphere after scoring was a first-time experience for me, and having the cheers made us more aggressive on the pitch. There was even encouragement within the team to push further. It felt like we were being supported from behind, which was a refreshing sensation.
Q, it seemed like we were struggling against the opposing team's attacks at the beginning.
A: We knew from pre-match scouting that they would launch attacks, and we had prepared to respond accordingly. As a result, we did not concede any goals, but personally, I feel that I responded too lightly, especially at the start of the first half. We managed to regroup somewhat in the second half, but I reflect on that as being too naive. If we can’t maintain the defensive performance we showed in the second half from the beginning, we end up relying too much on our teammates, and it would not be surprising if we conceded goals. We need to improve how we start the match.
