League restart, betting on the future resurgence

　League play resumes after about a month, and in Sec. 19, we will face Urawa Reds away. We have back-to-back matches next Wednesday against Nagoya and Saturday against Iwata, but currently we are in 13th place with 21 points. In order to rise from here, this opening game is crucial. It will also test our growth during the break. Among them, the focus is undoubtedly on FW Thales, who will make his first appearance in the J-League. Since coming to Japan, he has struggled with the heat, but in a practice match against Kawasaki Frontale on the 13th of this month, he scored 2 goals and began to show glimpses of his high ability. Manager Hara also expects to "aim to score goals with a new Tokyo style using Thales."

　Concerns include the fact that players Doi, Shigemori, Imano, and Kaji had limited time to practice together due to their activities with the national team, as well as their fatigue. However, Coach Hara accepts this as the "fate of the club". Literally speaking, we want to overcome this toughness and grow into a stronger team. The starting lineup consists of Lucas and Sasa as the two forwards, Baba as the left midfielder, and the in-form Suzuki Noriyuki as the right midfielder. Imano and Kajiyama form a double pivot in the formation.

　Urawa, on the other hand, is currently in 3rd place with 29 points. FW Emerson has left the team, but in the second half of the season, MF Ponte and FW Maric joined. "Ponte is a player who can create opportunities with his passing. Maric may not have the speed of Emerson, but Hasebe adds an accent to the one-two play between Ponte and Maric, which has helped us win the Nabisco Cup. With Emerson gone, we will also chase the ball from the front and have a solid defense. It won't be an easy game," as Coach Hara analyzes, the key will be how well the new players fit in for both teams.

　Urawa changed the front line members slightly from the previous Nabisco Cup match. Japan national team midfielder Mitsudomoe started on the bench. Naga and Maric, who have recovered from their injuries, formed a two-top, with Ponte playing as an attacking midfielder in a 3-5-2 formation. The match, which neither team could afford to lose, finally started at 18:04 at Saitama Stadium, Tokyo, with the scorching heat of the day finally easing.

TOKYO Aim High In League Restart

After a month-long break the J.League restarted with F.C.TOKYO making the short trip north to Saitama to take on Urawa Reds in the 19th. game of the season. Currently lying in 13th. place with 21 points, TOKYO faced three difficult games in a week: home to Grampus on Wednesday and away to Jubilo the following Saturday. All eyes were on new signing Sasa Salcedo, making his first league appearance. The blistering Tokyo midsummer heat had bothered the young Paraguayan but he managed to score twice and impress in a friendly against Kawasaki Frontale the previous week. Manager Hara commented, "We're playing in a new style with Sasa in the team and hoping to score a lot more goals". 
On the other hand TOKYO had cause for concern regarding the returning National Team members Kaji, Doi, Moniwa and Konno; how would their exertions and lack of training time with the squad affect their performances? Manager Hara was sanguine, "That's our fate", he commented. TOKYO lined up with Sasa and Lucas up front, Baba on the right, the in-form Suzuki on the left and Kajiyama and Konno as defensive midfielders. 
The Reds began the game in 3rd. place with 29 points. Ace striker Emerson had departed and newcomers Ponte and Marich had arrived. "Ponte is a passer, a playmaker," said Hara," and Marich isn't as fast as Emerson but they combined well with Hasebe and won a recent Nabisco Cup game. They chase hard from the front and have a solid defence. It won't be an easy game". How well the new signings would fit into their teams seemed the key to the game. 
The Reds had made a few changes from their last outing: Nagai and Marich started in attack with Ponte "in the hole" in a 3-5-2 formation. Japan National Team regular Santos began on the bench. The intense heat of the day had faded slightly as the home team kicked off shortly after 6pm.

Sasa, first goal! Scored early but...

　Immediately after the start, there was a back and forth struggle, but it was Tokyo who took the first chance. In the 4th minute, Sasa jumped into the air early to meet Kaji's early cross, showing an attacking shape. Then, in the 5th minute, Lucas tenaciously kept the ball on the left front line. Kanazawa, who had moved up to support, dribbled inside and crossed with his right foot from the left front of the area. Sasa, who was waiting on the far side, made a diving header! He skillfully shot the ball as it was falling and scored a delightful first goal for Sasa, taking the lead early!

　Urawa also stuck to the left side in the 9th minute and ran into the area where Nagai returned. Nagai took a shot, but the powerful ball was saved by Doi and escaped to a corner kick. In the 11th minute, Suzuki Nori, who had flowed to the left side, faced Urawa MF Yamada in a one-on-one situation. He made a move and passed vertically, then crossed. Sasa ran into it and swung his head back, but the ball went to the right of the goal. In the 15th minute, Urawa allowed the opponent to attack the goal, connecting with precise passes, but Konno and Jean covered well and prevented a shot.

　However, gradually Urawa started to move quickly and began to grasp the rhythm from the pass work centered around Ponte. In the 22nd minute, Ponte → Urawa FW Nagai, who broke through to the right area, took a shot, but Shumonai firmly closed his body and cut off the course, and the ball was in front of Doi. In the 26th minute, Ponte ran into the deep right side position and FW Nagai, who matched the minus cross, took a shot from inside the area. It was a decisive scene, but Doi made a nice save! Tokyo was being pushed back by Urawa's tough marking. They were unable to hold the ball in the front line or midfield and were unable to attack.

　At the 39th minute, Urawa Ponte, who received a pass from the left side, made a pass to the goal area while pretending to go around. Nagai reacted to this and broke out of the area, shooting from the right front of the goal area. It went into the lower left corner, equalizing the score. In the 42nd minute, Urawa MF Suzuki cut into the right area and made a negative cross. Ponte ran in, but it was not a perfect meet and Dohi caught it. Although they didn't allow an additional point, Tokyo couldn't take advantage of the initial advantage, was forced to defend, and ended the first half.

Sasa Gives TOKYO An Early Lead

The match began as a frenzied scramble but it was TOKYO who carved out the first opening, Kaji curling an early cross in towards the diving Sasa. A minute later Lucas battled tenaciously on the left to retain the ball before slipping it to the overlapping Kanazawa. Kanazawa crossed to the far post where Sasa burst behind two defenders to bury a powerful diving header past Tsuzuki for his first league goal. 
The Reds fought back. In the 9th. minute Nagai cracked a drive from the left side of the area that Doi turned around the post at full stretch. In the 11th. minute Suzuki took on and beat Yamada down the left then crossed to Sasa who backheaded the ball wide of the right post. The Reds threatened the TOKYO goal with some neat short passing in the 15th. minute but Jean and Konno blocked the danger. 
However, the Reds slowly began to find their rhythm through pace and movement with Ponte's passwork providing the basis. In the 22nd. minute Ponte played in Nagai on the right of the area but Moniwa's block took the power off the shot and Doi collected comfortably. In the 26th. minute Ponte took the ball to the byline and pulled it back for Nagai to shoot from inside the area. Doi pulled off another superb save to deny Reds the equaliser but TOKYO were being forced back by some fierce pressure. The midfield and forward line were unable to retain possession and the attack dwindled to nothing. 
In the 39th. minute Ponte received the ball from the right and turned infield before releasing a disguised pass towards the TOKYO goal. Nagai raced onto the ball and clipped a low shot past the advancing Doi that nestled inside the far post. Ponte came within a whisker of giving his team the lead in the 42nd. minute but failed to make full contact with Suzuki's cross and Doi caught the ball cleanly. The visitors had failed to take their lead into the break and were firmly on the defensive as the half time whistle blew. 

Urawa Komaba took the lead and the late comeback was not successful

　40 seconds into the second half, Sasu dribbles and passes a floating ball to the front line where Suzuki Nori jumps out, but the opposing GK catches it. Tokyo showed an attacking form at the start, but then faced consecutive threats. In the 46th minute, Ponte receives a pass from left MF Hirakawa near the area and takes a one-touch control shot. The ball goes through the DFs and heads towards the goal, but hits the right post and bounces back just before going in. In the 47th minute, MF Yamada breaks through behind Tokyo's DF and takes a free shot, but Doi makes a super save. In the 50th minute, Urawa launches a quick attack. Ponte takes a shot from the right side of the area, but once again Doi makes a save! They somehow manage to survive the threat.

　However, in the 54th minute, they finally conceded a goal. Kajiyama, who picked up a loose ball in their own half, was intercepted by Urawa Ponte as he tried to attack. Ponte dribbled up to the goal and his shot from just outside the box curved beautifully into the net. It was a skillful shot that allowed them to take the lead. In the 55th minute, Tokyo substituted Miura for Kajiyama. However, it was difficult to stop Urawa's momentum and the game turned into a situation where they only kicked long balls forward without putting pressure on them.

　Substitute Iwakawa for Sasa, who showed signs of fatigue at the 62nd minute. Iwakawa is positioned on the right, Suzuki Nori on the left, and Baba in the center to launch a counterattack. At the 70th minute, Miura steals a right corner kick from Iwakawa's cross. Inoue jumps in for Iwakawa's kick. Although the meet was not successful, they gradually began to show Tokyo-like attacks. At the 72nd minute, Suzuki Nori crosses from deep on the left side to the far side. Baba, who caught up, aims for the goal, but the ball goes well over the bar. At the 78th minute, Inoue sends Suzuki Nori to the left side and steals a corner kick from the cross. Immediately after this, Kurizawa is substituted for Kanazawa. Baba is pushed forward, Kurizawa is positioned in the center, and Suzuki Nori covers the left side back.

　At 80 minutes, Kurizawa invades the left area and boldly aims for a shot even from an angleless position, but is blocked by the opponent's goalkeeper. Urawa continues to attack without easing their efforts. At 84 minutes, Yamada drops the ball from a free kick, and MF Suzuki shoots but misses the target by a wide margin. At 86 minutes, MF Suzuki breaks free to the right from a quick counterattack and unleashes a powerful shot, but it curves to the left.

　In the midst of a back-and-forth game, Tokyo never gave up. In the 87th minute, Kaji moved up and played a through pass into the box. Ishikawa broke free and took a shot from close range, hitting the post on the opposite side!... The ball bounced in front of the goal, and Lucas took a shot, but it was blocked by the Urawa DF, missing a big chance to equalize. In the end, Tokyo started to show their true form towards the end of the game, but they couldn't break through Urawa's solid defense. They ended up losing 1-2, a defeat that can be considered more than just a one-goal difference in strength.

　【Player Comments】《Sasa》"It's great to score in my first appearance, but it doesn't mean anything if we don't win. It's disappointing to be turned around. It was a goal with my first touch, but I definitely want to win next time. I want to switch my mindset and do my best."《Kanazawa》"We scored early, but then we started to retreat. Our start was slower than the opponent's, and Urawa dominated us. We didn't move enough and didn't move the ball enough. We wanted to use the sides by aiming for the top two, taking one touch and then using the sides. However, the top was tightly marked and we couldn't pick up the loose balls and connect, so we had no choice but to kick forward. We need to make adjustments during the game, but that's our team's challenge. We want to use Tokyo's strong attacking style."《Miura》"My thoughts... it's difficult. We had to at least draw. I think we conceded the second goal too early. However, after I came on, I was saying 'If we don't concede a third goal, we definitely have a chance and can draw.' But... it's not good to lose the first game after the break. However, there's no point in dragging it out, so in the next game against Nagoya, at Ajinomoto Stadium, we want to have a clean and satisfying game!"

　[Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference] "During the break period, we have been training to integrate Sasa, who recently joined the team. Today, he scored early on and showed his strengths. However, there are still parts where he hasn't fully adapted to the team. Because we scored a goal early on, we ended up sitting back and couldn't press forward. We couldn't catch Urawa's FW Nagai or MF Ponte, and there were several dangerous scenes in the first half. I instructed the players to compete more for the ball, but they ended up not knowing what to do. As a result, Urawa's MF Hasebe and Suzuki picked up the ball and took control. In particular, it was difficult to catch Ponte, and he set the rhythm. Also, Kajiyama couldn't connect the passes. He himself didn't know what position to take, so I was thinking of replacing him with Miura, but Ponte scored a fine goal just before that. We still need to integrate Sasa well, but the combination with Lucas is not working well yet. Sasa was also tired, so in the second half, we returned to the way we had been playing and tried to move the ball by bringing in Ishikawa. With him on the field, we were able to use the wings a bit. We had chances to score towards the end, and Ishikawa's shot hit the post, but we couldn't convert. It's very frustrating, but the game is still ongoing, so we want to integrate Sasa well for the next game, make some adjustments to move the ball better, and challenge the next match."

　[Summary of Urawa Buchwald's press conference] "We expected FC Tokyo to come aggressively from the start, so we also talked about being aggressive from the beginning. The players did just that, but unfortunately, we conceded a goal due to a slight mistake early in the first half and allowed them to take the lead. However, the players didn't hang their heads and continued to play their own football. They created chances and pushed FC Tokyo back. Unfortunately, we could only score one goal in the first half, but there were more chances to score. In the second half, we took control and created many opportunities, and the additional goal came from a fantastic individual skill by Ponte. Despite not being able to convert many chances, there were moments where we were pushed back by the opponent, but overall, it was good, including the fact that luck was on our side. I got excited watching my players' performance. Especially Ponte, who can provide through passes and take shots, lived up to expectations. Substituting FW Maric was a tactical decision because FC Tokyo brought in Ishikawa. FC Tokyo creates chances from the right side with Kaji and Ishikawa's combination. So, we assigned Mitsushima to deal with them, prevent their attacks, and also exploit the space behind them. Today's match is the first game of a series of consecutive matches. We need to quickly switch our focus to the next game and stay concentrated."

Reds Dominate As TOKYO Fail To Mount Fightback

In the first minute of the second half Sasa surged forward and found Konno whose floated through ball was whipped away from Suzuki by the Reds keeper. TOKYO had begun brightly again but were soon under the cosh. Ponte received the ball on the edge of the area, took one touch and fired a shot between two defenders that beat Doi but struck the inside of the post and rebounded away. In the 47th. minute Yamada raced clear of the TOKYO defence but Doi again produced a stunning save to keep his side in the game. Doi foiled Ponte once more in the 50th. minute but was unable to prevent his team falling behind in the 54th. Kajiyama pounced on a loose ball and moved to attack but Ponte robbed him, dribbled forward and unleashed a sumptuous, curling drive that arced beyond Doi's despairing dive and into the back of the net. Miura replaced Kajiyama but TOKYO failed to find a foothold in the midfield and resorted to hitting long balls to the forward line. 
Sasa began to flag and Ishikawa replaced him in the 62nd. minute. Ishikawa moved to the right, Suzuki remained on the left and Baba moved into a central position. In the 70th. minute Ishikawa's cross earned a corner and while Konno failed to make substantial contact the flurry of attacking activity raised TOKYO's hopes. In the 72nd. minute Suzuki played a deep cross from the left towards Baba who made contact but hoisted the chance over the bar. In the 78th. minute Konno set Suzuki away down the left flank and TOKYO won another corner. Kurisawa then replaced Kanazawa and moved into a central position while Baba moved further forward and Suzuki covered the left side. 
In the 80th. minute Kurisawa raced into the Reds area and shot from a tight angle, drawing a scrambled save from Tsuzuki. The home side had chances to extend their lead, most notably in the 84th. minute when Yamada nodded a freekick down to Suzuki who blazed over the bar. Suzuki shot wide from a good position in the 86th. minute. 
The chances came and went until TOKYO nearly claimed an equaliser at the death. Kaji found himself upfield with the ball and rolled a delicate pass through the Reds defence to Ishikawa. Ishikawa shot first time from point blank range and saw his effort beat Tsuzuki but hit the post and rebound into play. Lucas pounced and shot but a Reds defender blocked his effort on the line and the ball was scrambled away. The resurgence proved too little too late as TOKYO failed to breach the solid home defence and the match finished 2-1 to the Reds. It would be fair to say the difference between the teams was more than a single goal. 


Players' comments
Sasa:
"I was very pleased to score my first goal for the club but it has no meaning if we don't win. The way they came from behind was very disappointing. I scored with my first touch; I'm determined to do my best and we'll definitely win the next game".

Kanazawa
"We scored first but it was downhill from there. They were faster to the ball than us and we allowed them to control possession. We didn't have enough movement and didn't move the ball around enough. We aimed to get the ball up to the front men and then move it out to the flanks; the marking was very tight though, and we weren't winning the loose balls. That left us with no options other than playing the long ball. We have to be able to adapt our tactics to the situation we face during the game; that's been a recurring theme for us. We have to find a way to play our natural attacking game".

Miura
"It's difficult to express my feelings about the game. We should at least have had a draw out of it. When I went on I thought that if we didn't concede a third we could still take something from the game. It feels really bad to lose the first game back after a long break. It's pointless crying over spilt milk though; we have a game against Grampus at home on Wednesday and we'll pick ourselves up for that".


TOKYO manager Hara 
"During the break we tried to familiarize Sasa with the team as much as possible. He scored an early goal and showed his strengths but some things he isn't used to yet. After we scored we became a little loose, were pulled around in defence and stopping chasing up front. We struggled to get hold of Nagai and Ponte and a certain amount of indecision crept into our play. The Reds midfielders Suzuki and Hasebe then took charge of the midfield. In particular, Ponte was a handful and he really created the rhythm for the team. We wanted to use Kajiyama to move the ball around but he had trouble finding his correct position and, just as we decided to replace him with Miura, Ponte scored a superb goal. We must find the proper way to use Sasa and his combination with Lucas isn't working smoothly yet. In the second half we reverted to our usual formation when we sent Ishikawa on to move the ball around. He allowed us to use the flanks more and nearly had the equaliser right at the end of the game when his shot hit the post. It was very regrettable but we have another game coming up and will have to find how to integrate Sasa into the team and move the ball around more". 

Reds manager Buchwald 
"We expected TOKYO to come at us aggressively from the kick off and discussed starting aggressively ourselves. We did, but a moment's loss of concentration led to them taking an early lead. The players kept their heads up and determined to play our usual style of football. We were able to acheive it, create chances and force TOKYO back. Unfortunately we could only manage one goal in the first half despite the number of chances we had. We dominated the second half though, created a hatfull of chances and Ponte scored the second with a marvelous piece of individual skill. They came back at us though, and we had some luck but overall it was a very good performance. I was very excited by the way the team played. In particular Ponte fulfilled our expectations of him; he shot well and played some beautiful through balls. We took off Marich for tactical reasons as TOKYO had sent on Ishikawa and his combination with Kaji on the right is very dangerous. We sent on Santos to deal with that threat and to try to find space behind the TOKYO defence. Today was the first in a succession of games; we're looking forward to the next match now and aim to maintain our concentration".