Focus on the current match and accumulate points

　Sec. 28 will face Shimizu S-Pulse at home. In the previous match, they showed their strength by securing chances and achieved a 5-game winning streak despite the difficulties. This match is crucial for achieving a 6-game winning streak in J1 for the first time in the team's history. Especially this season, they have not won against Shimizu, including the Nabisco Cup, with 1 draw and 2 losses, so it is also a game they want to take revenge in.

　Shimizu, on the other hand, is currently in 8th place with 37 points. They lost to Kashima in the previous match, but they have not suffered consecutive losses since the 18th round and have been on the rise. Their defense is solid and their ball possession in the midfield is high. In the attacking line, FW Nishizawa is absent, but FW Okazaki is in good form. This round, they formed a two-top with FW Hara and deployed Hyodo as the left MF and Yamamoto Shin as the right MF.

　Tokyo, Bruno QUADROS and Hanyu have left the team again due to injury, but Makoto IMANO and Hirayama return from suspension this round. IMANO, Asari, and Kajiyama form the midfield, with Cabore and Ishikawa on the sides, and Akamine leading the front line. We want to create chances by taking control on the sides, based on the stable defense we have shown recently. Currently, we are 4 points behind the top team, and we can see their back, but we will focus only on winning against Shizuoka in front of us and steadily accumulate points.

　The weather was clear and the temperature rose, attracting 30,410 spectators to Ajinomoto Stadium. The match started with Shimizu's kickoff at 15:04.

Losing rhythm, conceding 3 goals in the first half...

　In the early stages, Shimizu slightly dominated the ball and launched attacks, but it was a back-and-forth battle. In the 6th minute, Kajiyama sent a long pass to the front line, and Akamine broke through on the left side and took a shot inside the area, but it went outside the side net. In the 12th minute, Shimizu forward Hara aimed for the goal from the right side. In the 14th minute, Nagatomo advanced and Ishikawa followed, moving inside and taking a shot. In the 17th minute, from a pass that aimed for the space behind Shimizu's defense by Asari, Ishikawa sprinted into the right area. They earned a corner kick, but they couldn't capitalize on any of the chances.

　At the 20th minute, Tokyo's clearance was connected by Shimizu FW Hara to MF Edamura with a header, and the ball was passed to MF Yamamoto on the right side. Seeing that there was no press from Tokyo, MF Yamamoto boldly took a shot. The accurate shot was sucked into the goal, and we ended up conceding the first goal in a vulnerable position. Taking this opportunity, Shimizu gained momentum and collected long balls to FW Okazaki, picking up second balls and launching secondary attacks. Nevertheless, Tokyo was still looking for chances, and at the 28th minute, Cabore connected a free kick, and Akamine rushed into the penalty area. He was brought down by the opponent's defender, but there was no foul from Shimizu.

　As time passed, Shimizu was pushed back and lost their rhythm. In the 38th minute, Shimizu FW Okazaki was able to break into the area. This was escaped by a corner kick, but in the 39th minute, Shimizu MF Hyodo's sharp right corner kick was out of reach for the jumping Shioda. Shimizu DF Iwashita from the far side was pushed back while tangled with Tokunaga, and they conceded the second goal.

　In the 44th minute, Kajiyama cuts back the opponent's defender and takes a shot, but it goes wide to the left. Immediately after that, they couldn't stop Shimizu's quick attack from the goal kick. Okazaki dribbles up the right side and passes to the center forward Hara. Hara, with his back to the goal, skillfully turns around from the trap and quickly breaks through between Tokunaga and Shigeta, rushing towards the goal. Shioda also bravely came out, but the save rebound rolls into the net. It was a difficult situation to concede a third goal in injury time, and the first half ended.

Emerson, starting from Otake, counterattacks! Although they scored one goal, they suffered a big defeat with 5 goals against...

　In the second half, Ishikawa and Asari were replaced by Emerson and Otake. Shortly after the start, Cabore received a pass from Emerson and broke through the left side, but was blocked just before reaching the goal. In the 49th minute, Otake created a rhythm with a dribble and passed to Cabore on the left. Cabore crossed the ball, but it was caught by the Shizuoka goalkeeper. In the 51st minute, Nagatomo, who had run up the right side, circled around and took a shot. It missed above the frame, but Emerson and Otake created flow with dribbles and fluid movements, and Inomoto and the fullbacks also pushed forward to gain momentum. In the 59th minute, Kajiyama on the right side passed to Emerson, who exchanged passes with Inomoto in front of the goal and entered the right area. Calmly evading the opponent's defender, he took a shot! The ball pierced the net perfectly, and one point was returned.

　In the midst of the increasing mood of counterattack, in the 64th minute, Sasaki jumps into Otake's left corner kick, but the opponent's goalkeeper saves it just in time. In the 67th minute, Akamine, who had drifted to the right, crosses. In response to this, Imakano jumps out in front of the goal freely and takes a header shot! He created a decisive chance, but it was right in front of the goalkeeper... In the 71st minute, Emerson passes to Imakano in the area, and Kabore gets into a shooting position, but is blocked by the Shimizu DF.

　In the 75th minute, Hiraoka was substituted for Kabore. He sent crosses from the side to aim for an additional goal. In the 76th minute, Emerson switched from the right to the left and made a wide attack, but Emerson's final cross did not reach Hiraoka. On the contrary, Shimizu introduced defensive players such as MF Marcos Paulo and DF Ichikawa to strengthen their defense. However, in the 78th minute, just after DF Ichikawa came on as a substitute, he was dispossessed of the ball in the midfield by DF Ichikawa. Shimizu FW Hara rushed towards the goal. Attracted Tokyo DF and passed to FW Okazaki from the left. FW Okazaki was marked by Nagatomo, but he was hit by a powerful shot and the fourth goal was scored.

　However, they continued to attack until the end and approached the Shimizu goal. In the 79th minute, Hirayama's header from Tokunaga's cross hit the bar. In the 86th minute, Tokunaga again advanced to a high position and crossed from the left. Hirayama from the far post hit a powerful header, and Akamine was also there to follow up on the goalkeeper's rebound, but they couldn't break through the defense. They launched a fierce attack even in the 3 minutes of injury time, but they couldn't break through Shimizu's solid defense. On the contrary, towards the end of the game, Okazaki broke through into the area from a long pass to Shimizu's front line. Shigeki tried to hold him back, but he was given a negative pass in the midfield. At that moment, Shimizu's substitute forward Toda ran in, and Tokyo couldn't catch up to him, allowing an easy goal, and all hope was lost... They couldn't achieve their 6th consecutive victory and suffered a tough defeat with a large goal difference.

　[Player Comments]《Emerson》"We conceded three goals in the first half, making it a tough match. In the second half, we found our rhythm and tried to equalize, but we couldn't achieve it. For my goal, I exchanged passes with Konno, received the return, and was able to calmly enter the area. (Even though I wasn't a starter?) I strive to contribute to the team with my best performance, whether I start or come on as a substitute. I gave it my all... However, the league doesn't end today. It was a disappointing result, but even after the match, I could hear the strong support from our fans. I want to draw strength from that and aim for a better result next time."《Konno》"The team was in a good flow, so I had a strong desire not to lose upon my return. I entered the match with that feeling, but I couldn't play my game at the start. I'm really frustrated with this result. In the second half, I thought about moving the ball forward and I believe I was able to do that without fear... If I had scored with my header, I think the flow would have shifted more towards Tokyo. Recently, we haven't been starting well. I want to bring the game to our pace right from the beginning and improve our game management throughout the 90 minutes. We had a lot of fans come today, and I'm sorry for the big loss. Still, I'm really happy that they supported us until the end. We have to keep pushing ourselves."

　[Summary of Coach Jofuku's Press Conference] "The players stood on the pitch with determination, but I regret that we could not meet everyone's expectations. In the first half, Shimizu simply targeted the back and picked up the second balls. In response, we needed to be patient and when we had the ball, we should have possessed it a bit more, but it turned into a situation where we lost in a bit of a kicking match. Still, it would have been good if we could have kept the goals conceded to zero or at least minimized them. I think the biggest reason for our defeat was that we conceded three goals, including just before the end of the first half, which caused everyone to become unsettled. In the second half, we had no choice but to attack, and to change the kicking match to our pace, we thought about the positioning and awareness of players who could settle the ball and carry it into the opponent's attacking third. The players moved positively towards the goal, but despite their spirit, we fell short in the final step, and conceding the fourth goal was decisive. I want to reflect seriously on the technical and tactical aspects. (We couldn't win against Shimizu this season, is there a sense of inferiority?) It can't be helped if that's what people say, but I don't think there is a sense of inferiority. In my mind, I approached this match while reflecting on the previous three matches, but whether my analysis was lacking or if the players and our efforts were insufficient... I want to reflect properly once again and make corrections for the next time. Among that, after the match, the supporters kept singing, teaching us that we must not give up. From here on, it will be a tournament situation, but after hearing the songs from the stands after the match, I renewed my determination to win all six matches."

　[Summary of the press conference by Shimizu's coach Hasegawa] "It turned out to be an astonishingly wonderful result. We lost to Kashima in the previous match, but it was a game from which we learned what we could gain. The players switched well, and I believe they showed what they couldn't do in the last match today. We scored at a good time, and although we were pushed back in the second half, we managed to keep it to just one goal conceded. Additionally, being able to score another goal during that time was a very significant point in today's match. I don't know what would have happened if Konno's header had gone in, and although the final score was a large margin, it was by no means an easy match. From the content of the game, it could have gone either way. (The aim of slightly changing the lineup from the previous match) was that FC Tokyo also changed their midfield structure. That choice was the result of both teams analyzing each other. Being able to win against a team that is currently on a roll before the break and finishing the series of matches in September, including the Nabisco Cup, with a victory is significant. We will continue to face teams in the upper ranks after the break, so we want to prepare well and strive for an even higher position."