Resume Nabisco Cup, take revenge on Chiba in the league match

　The Nabisco Cup resumes. In the third round of the qualifying league, JEF United Chiba will face off against. In the league matches, they took control of the game against Kyoto and Yokohama FM, keeping a clean sheet for two consecutive matches. Coach Hiroshi JOFUKU and the players also expressed their desire to "cherish this momentum" and aim to maintain the rhythm they have gained in the Nabisco Cup, and turn it into a winning streak.

　However, Kajiyama, who was injured in the Yokohama FM match, will be absent. With the absence of Cabore and Ishikawa, the team is in a difficult situation. However, Coach Jofuku also feels that "we have players who can recognize and calculate their roles, whether they start or come on as substitutes." Therefore, today's lineup includes fresh members, with Kanazawa in the midfield and Tanabe making his professional debut on the right side. In addition, Tokunaga, who has been playing the full matches so far, twisted his foot during practice the day before, so he had to be removed from the lineup today as a precaution. As a result, Mukuhara was named in the starting lineup and will face the match.

　Chiba, on the other hand, has only drawn 2 matches in the Nabisco Cup and has yet to win. Against Chiba, although it is a different tournament, we want to win this time by overcoming the bitter feeling of losing in the league matches twice. Coach Hiroshi JOFUKU also puts his fighting spirit into it, saying, "Whether it's the Nabisco Cup or not, in order to repay Chiba for giving us a good learning experience, we have to give back 'three'."

　Chiba places the target on the front line and clearly aims to attack from the sides, so for Tokyo, the key is how to pick up loose balls. They want to win the battle of tackles and running, dominate the ball, and extend their own soccer time. They aim to achieve victory in a battle that will erase their weakness without being swallowed up by Chiba's home advantage. The match started exactly at 19:00 with Tokyo's kickoff at the Fukuda Denshi Arena, which still feels humid with the lingering heat of early summer.

Kondo's goal takes the lead! The game is progressing favorably with Hirayama as the starting point.

　In the early stages, there was intense competition and the ball was not settling down easily, but gradually Tokyo grasped the rhythm and took control of the game. In the 7th minute, Hirayama caught up with a through pass sent by Kondo on the left front line and behind the opponent's defense, and the shot he took from there grazed the goalkeeper's hand and hit the right post... Then, in the 19th minute, Yamamoto sent a wedge pass to Hirayama in a similar manner, and Hirayama expanded to the left while competing with the opponent. Kondo, who received the ball, entered the penalty area with a fierce dribble, turned the opponent's defender, swung his left foot, and the ball passed through the goalkeeper's legs and pierced the right net on the opposite side. Kondo scored a spectacular goal to take the lead!

　Tokyo completely dominated the ball on this occasion, with Hirayama reliably collecting the ball up front and becoming the starting point, heading towards the Chiba goal one after another. In the 20th minute, Kondo directly shot from Hirayama's cross on the right side. In the 23rd minute, Hirayama carried the ball deep into the left area and made a last pass in front of the goal. However, it did not reach Tanabe on the far side and was cut off by the Chiba defense, resulting in a throw-in. There were also moments when Chiba launched a counterattack, but everyone had a high defensive awareness, and Inomata and Bruno QUADROS consistently snuffed out any potential danger in the final line, leading to an attack.

　In the 38th minute, Tokyo launched a quick attack, with Tanabe carrying the ball to the right area and sending a through pass through the two opposing DF players to the center, but the momentum was weak and it did not reach Hirayama. In the 41st minute, Hirayama dropped the ball with one touch after Kondo competed for it on the front line, and Hayabusa reacted to it. He broke through alone and shot a decisive shot from the left area with speed, but it went wide of the goal... In the 44th minute, Bruno QUADROS dribbled the ball up the DF line and sent a through pass to the space on the left front line. Kondo sent a cross to the center, and Bruno QUADROS, who had once again advanced to the goal, dropped it with his chest, but the trap was slightly too big and he couldn't shoot as he was surrounded by DF players. There were also mistakes in coordination and accuracy in the final moments, and they couldn't score a second goal, ending the first half.

Receive a fierce counterattack from Chiba, but secure a valuable victory with focused defense!

　In the second half, Tokyo took control and attacked. However, starting with Bruno QUADROS' interception, the whole team pushed up, and Kanazawa -> Tanabe played a lobbed final pass to the front line. Hanyu made a run, but the Chiba goalkeeper cleared the ball one step ahead. Kondo shot directly from the loose ball on the right side, but missed by a wide margin. In the 50th minute, Chiba had a close-range header shot from a free kick on the left side, but Gonda made a solid catch.

　In the 54th minute, Nakamura was substituted for Kondo and placed in the right MF position, while Tanabe was moved up to FW in an attempt to score an additional goal. In the 56th minute, Tanabe dropped a right cross at his feet in the penalty area, trying to set up for a shot, but was closed down by the defender and unable to shoot. Nevertheless, they persistently maintained possession and passed the ball between Nakamura and Hanyu, aiming for a central breakthrough, but they couldn't create a chance. In the 61st minute, Yonemoto took advantage of a gap in the opponent's defense and broke into the penalty area. However, his shot lacked power and went straight into the goalkeeper's hands.

　In the 62nd minute, Suzuki was substituted for Tanabe. However, Chiba never gave up and both teams fiercely collided with each other, with Chiba also facing the counterattack as they tried to regain their rhythm. In the 64th minute, the left cross was dropped by FW Maki in front of the goal, and he evaded Inokano with a trap and took a shot. It was a decisive opportunity, but it missed the target and nothing happened.

　74 minutes, Yonemoto perseveres and earns a free kick from near the right corner. Suzuki takes this free kick, but the opponent's defender clears it. Nakamura in front of the area drops the loose ball with his chest and shoots with a volley. It seemed like a reproduction of the Yokohama FM match! But it goes over the bar... In the final stages, Tokyo becomes unable to connect passes calmly and the game becomes a hectic exchange of counterattacks. In the 80th minute, Nakamura cuts back the opponent's defender from the right side and calmly crosses sharply towards the goal. It was a decisive ball, but just missed Hiraoka. Chiba also throws the ball into the front line striker Maki and launches a counterattack from the starting point of side midfielder Fukai.

　In the 86th minute, Chiba's FK created an opportunity by breaking through Tokyo's defense and delivering a final pass from the right to Chiba's MF Yonekura, who took a decisive shot from inside the area. However, it was saved by Konda and resulted in a corner kick. Following a mistake, Chiba countered and MF Fukai sprinted down the left side. A final pass was sent to FW Maki in front of the goal, creating another scoring chance, but narrowly missed the timing and avoided danger... In the long 4 minutes of stoppage time, everyone concentrated and defended with Konda at the center, keeping a clean sheet. They successfully protected the valuable 1-0 lead by Kondo and achieved victory for the third consecutive game without conceding a goal.

【Player Comments】《Kondo》"There was a similar opportunity at the start, but I couldn't score then. When the same chance came again, I absolutely wanted to score. The angle wasn't great, but I thought if I could just strike the ball without thinking about the pass, I could score. I'm happy that I was able to deliver results when I was on the field. Since the end of last season, I've been feeling frustrated against Chiba, and I thought we couldn't lose in the same way three times. It was good that everyone fought with a strong mindset and we won without conceding. However, I also felt the difficulty of managing the game." 《Tanabe》"I didn't get involved in any shots. I was desperately trying to keep up, and it just ended like that... I had some anxiety before stepping on the pitch, but the excitement was greater. I think my entry into the game wasn't bad, but I couldn't showcase my strengths at all. I could break through with my dribbling, but I got hit there and couldn't fully break free. I felt the strength of the challenges, and my composure started to fade. However, realizing that nothing worked today is a good experience. It will become a greater motivation."

　【Summary of Coach Jofuku's Press Conference】 "I am truly grateful that many fans came to support us despite it being an away game on a weekday night. It was wonderful to celebrate with them here at Fukuda.A. However, the match should not have ended 1-0. Ideally, we wanted to score 2 or 3 goals. Nevertheless, I believe it was a valuable 1-0 victory. I knew that the opponent would resort to a more aggressive style of play towards the end, but despite various incidents, the players remained focused. If we can score a second goal in this state, I think we can move up even further, but we managed to hold on. We have now gone three matches without conceding a goal, and I want to continue this trend. (Regarding debut player Tanabe) We always approach matches with the aim of respecting each other's individual strengths to achieve the greatest common multiple for our victory. When new players join, the existing players play in a way that respects them, which likely made it easier for the debuting player to perform. (What was the reason for his selection?) Standing on the pitch comes with responsibilities. The premise is that he has been performing well enough at Kodaira to bear that responsibility. There are other players like that, but he brings creativity in the attacking third that our current team lacks, and with various stimuli, this team can reach another level. That was part of the background as well."

　[Chiba - Coach Miller's Press Conference Summary] "In the first half, FC Tokyo was attacking in a better shape. The reason for that was that we were not able to pass the ball properly. We were particularly dominated in the midfield. Even when we regained possession of the ball, we lost it again quickly. Regarding the goals conceded, we were caught behind the defense and conceded a goal in a bad shape from there. In the second half, our movement improved, and I think the tempo of the game and the passing also got much better. Still, we couldn't convert our chances. If we had scored there, we might have had a chance to equalize or even take the lead. I am pleased that the players gave their all, and they fought well even in this tough schedule of five matches in 14 days. (What was the reason for the improvement in the second half?) First, there is a positional issue. In the first half, when we had the ball, the back four were passing it among themselves, and the opponent was a team that applied pressure, so the first, second, and third players were further pressed, and we lost the ball. Also, there was little supply of the ball to the forwards. We ended up making more sideways passes, which led to being pressed and losing the ball again. In the second half, the player with the ball started to play facing forward, and players began to run into open spaces, allowing us to use the width better. I think there were points where we could take the initiative in those areas."