Match Review
The one hungrier for victory will win──. Coach Rikizo MATSUHASHIspoke about the key to the match ahead of the game against Kashiwa Reysol, which comes after recording three consecutive wins.
After winning the openingtwo matches in penalty shootouts, and showing excellent performance both offensively and defensively to secure a 90-minute victory in the previous match against Kawasaki Frontale, FC Tokyo got off to a great start with three consecutive wins. On the other hand, Kashiwa, who made great strides last season finishing second, has suffered three consecutive losses in this season's special tournament and has yet to earn any points. Will it be Tokyo, aiming higher with a clear goal of winning the championship, or Kashiwa, determined to make a comeback? The coach’s words reflected a resolve to show even greater hunger than the opponent despite already producing results, and an attitude of constantly pursuing quality through challenging soccer.
Tokyo’s starting eleven, eager to showcase passionate soccer both offensively and defensively this match as well, featured Kim Seung-gyu as goalkeeper, with Sei MUROYA, Alexander SCHOLZ, Hayato INAMURA, and Yuto NAGATOMO forming the back line. In midfield, Kento HASHIMOTO and Kota TOKIWA lined up again following the previous match. The attackers were Keito SATO on the right and Ryunosuke SATO, making his first start since returning to the team, on the left. Up front, Marcelo RYAN and Motoki NAGAKURA formed their partnership for the fourth consecutive match.
Also, Keigo HIGASHI was included in the squad for the first time this season on the bench. Divine OTANI, who made his “professional debut” in the previous match, was also listed. As expected, the biggest focus this match is on Ryunosuke SATO. The day before the game, he expressed his enthusiasm, saying, "I am ready to play for 90 minutes. When my turn comes, I want to show everything I have, everything I demonstrated last season (while on a developmental loan at Fagiano Okayama)." Now that he finally has the chance to start, we can expect a passionate performance from him.
The must-win match against Kashiwa, to steadily build up toward the top, kicked off at Ajinomoto Stadium under clear skies at3:03 p.m..
1st HALF—Fierce in Attack and DefenseCreating Chances but Unable to Shake the Net
Both teams clashed fiercely from the start in duels for the ball. The first big chance was created by Tokyo. In the 4th minute of the first half, Erik advanced and delivered the final pass, and inside the penalty area, Ryunosuke Sato took a shot with his left foot. It was a decisive moment, but the ball flew straight to the goalkeeper.
Tokyo quickly switched between offense and defense across the entire pitch, aggressively pressing to immediately regain possession even after losing the ball deep in the opponent's territory. The moment they won the ball in midfield, they sharply broke forward vertically, demonstrating a high-intensity style of play.
In the 12th minute of the first half, Tokyo lost the ball due to a buildup miscommunication and conceded a goal, but they were saved by an offside call, narrowly escaping danger.
There were some tense moments, but Tokyo's aggressive style of play remained unchanged thereafter.
In the 17th minute of the first half, when the forward players limited the passing lanes high up the pitch, defensive midfielder Kento HASHIMOTO made a fierce dash to close down and sharply intercepted the ball. From there, multiple players launched a swift assault on the opponent’s goal. Keisuke Sato’s cross found Nagakura, whose shot was deflected off the left post. The rebound was then targeted by Ryunosuke Sato with a mid-range shot, but it just missed to the left of the goal. Having created consecutive close chances, they were eager to score the opening goal during this good flow of play.
Gradually, Kashiwa increased their possession and attacking time, but the blue and red eleven remained focused and solidly defended the center even when pressed. They sealed off the opponent's attacks with fierce challenges and quick anticipation, preventing any clear chances. Conversely, in the 28th minute of the first half, Keisuke Sato on the right side pushed forward on a counterattack and delivered a grounded early cross. Nagakura rushed in to meet it, but just missed. Although they couldn't shake the net, they showed plays that went beyond the opponent's countermeasures, demonstrating flexible and adaptive battles while assessing the situation.
Both teams, capable of using high press and blocks in defense as well as possession and counterattacks in offense, engaged in intense battles for every ball, creating a tense atmosphere as they looked for opportunities. In the 43rd minute of the first half, a long-range shot was allowed from near the penalty arc, but Min Gyu JANG made a flying save to protect the goal.
During the 2 minutes of first-half added time, the ball was passed along the left side and Nagatomo delivered a cross. Muroya flicked it back with his right foot, and Sato Kei quickly changed the course with a header aiming for the opposite side, but this time the opposing goalkeeper Kojima stretched out his right arm desperately and the net did not shake. Fierce battles unfolded all over the pitch. Both teams showcased their strengths, and the first half ended scoreless. The thrilling contest’s conclusion was left to the second half.
2ndHALF—Creating Chances While Chasing the Score but Failing to Convert
The second half kicked off with no substitutions from either side. After playing against a strong headwind in the first half, Tokyo now attacks with a powerful tailwind. With the loud cheers of the Blue-Red family in sight, they are eager to land the opening strike somehow.
However, from the start of the second half, Kashiwa increased the pressure and pushed forward. At the 9th minute, from Komi's left cross, Kakita jumped in near the goal and scored the opening goal with a header. In the second half, we conceded a frustrating goal after being caught off guard while slightly on the defensive.
We want to respond better than our opponents, but Kashiwa also uses a compact formation to eliminate space and deny Tokyo attacking opportunities. To break through this situation where effective passes are hard to find, the bench makes a move. At the 18th minute of the second half, Kento HASHIMOTO and Keita ENDO are brought on, replacing Nagatomo and Lucas RIAN. ENDO takes the left attacker position, Ryuu SATO moves to the attacking midfield role, and Nagakura shifts to the lone striker in a 4-2-3-1 system, aiming to stage a comeback.
On the other hand, Kashiwa also made three simultaneous substitutions to refresh their forward line. In the 24th minute of the second half, Yamanochi, who had just been brought on, broke free in a one-on-one situation, but 1v1 Sungyu calmly responded and made the save. He narrowly prevented a goal and showed a fine play that supported his teammates' counterattack.
As Kashiwa maintained a long period of dominance and FC Tokyo sought to somehow change the flow, at the 29th minute of the second half, a switch was made from Tokiwa and Ryu Sato to Fuki YAMADA and Kei KOIZUMI.KOIZUMI moved into the defensive midfield role, YAMADA took the right attacker position, and Kei Sato shifted to the center to form a vertical relationship with Nagakura, aiming to mount a counterattack.
Tokyo struggled to break down Kashiwa's solid central defense and was unable to create many clear scoring chances. Amid chants from behind the goal saying, "Today is a day we cannot lose," Coach Matsuhashi made his final substitution in the 36th minute of the second half. He sent Teruhito NAKAGAWA onto the pitch in place of Kei Sato, entrusting the players with a comeback.
However, immediately after, at the same38th minute, we allowed an attack from Kashiwa's right side, and they broke through to score. We conceded a painful second goal.
They desperately wanted to score a counterattack goal, but Kashiwa, who increased their defensive awareness by committing more players, denied Tokyo any freedom with fierce challenges for the ball.In the 5 minutes of added time in the second half,Nakagawa and Nagakura consecutively had decisive chances in front of goal but failed to convert, and the match ended. This resulted in their first defeat in the special tournament.
MATCH DETAILS
Detailed match data is available here
Interview with Coach Rikizo MATSUHASHI
Q, Please give us a summary of today's match.
A, It was a very frustrating defeat, but even though the overall content was not good, there were several chances to finish and score. I think if even one of those had gone in, it would have made a difference. In the early part of the first half, there were some very good periods, and although we didn’t take excessive risks, it felt like the balance gradually shifted. We want to prepare thoroughly and move forward for the next match.
Q,I think the first half was particularly good in terms of content, but when the opponent applied pressure at the start of the second half, even though we took a defensive stance to hold them off, we conceded a goal there and it seemed like our rhythm was disrupted. How do you see this, Coach?
A, It wasn’t that we intentionally started that way, but it did end up looking like that. At halftime, we made some adjustments regarding defense in the middle block, and the players responded accordingly, but more than that, the poor positioning where we lost the ball and the way we dealt with that didn’t go well at the start of the second half. I think that’s a point for reflection, and from there, it seemed the opponent took control of the rhythm.
Q, Ryunosuke SATO was included in the starting lineup for the first time. Could you tell us the reason for this and what kind of play you expected from him? Also, please evaluate his performance today.
A, Since the opponent was Kashiwa Reysol, a team that can maintain possession for a long time, we knew we had to challenge ourselves to overturn that. We also anticipated that the defensive phase would be long, so we considered the role of the wide players to be very important. In that sense, he fully demonstrated his dedication, and even when he was beaten, he diligently recovered and managed to win the ball back again, or dropped back to the defensive line to fully regain possession, which I think was very good.
In attack, I thought that if he had scored on his first chance, his rhythm and form would have steadily improved, but unfortunately, he was unable to convert the message-laden pass from Marcelo RYAN into a goal. Also, the reason he couldn’t participate in some promising counterattack situations in the first half was partly because the position where we won the ball was too deep, preventing us from creating a counterattack starting point, which caused his playing position to drop slightly. However, I believe he performed very well both offensively and defensively.
Player Interview
Kento HASHIMOTO
Q,The winning streak has ended, resulting in a frustrating outcome.
A,There were several clear scoring opportunities throughout the match. We knew it would be a tough game, but I think whether or not we could convert those chances greatly influenced the flow of the match.
Q,The team was able to attack well from the start, but it seemed that gradually the opponent took control of the pace. How did you feel on the pitch?
A,If we had connected one or two solid passes after winning the ball, we could have launched good counterattacks, but the passes after winning the ball became sloppy and lacked accuracy, which led to us being pushed back in the first half.
Q,I think you tried various things to regain control of the game from there, but what made it difficult?
A,First, we wanted to push back defensively, but I think the accuracy of our attacks after winning the ball was low today. On the other hand, the opponent had good build-up play and their speed in pressing to regain possession was faster than ours. This made us realize that we still have a lot to improve.
Q,I strongly felt your determination to move forward and push forward yourself.
A,Not yet. The number of times I win the ball is still low, and today I couldn’t create many chances, so I want to improve my accuracy more in practice.
Q,What kind of conversation did you have in the locker room after the match?
A,We talked among the players about how it was a tough match. The coach said, "There's no point in looking down. Let's prepare well for the next game." We've only lost one match so far, so we want to switch our mindset and prepare thoroughly for the next one.
Ryunosuke SATO
Q, How do you look back on your performance today?
A, I wanted to finish off the first chance. I was under pressure defending for a long time, so I couldn’t really show my strength in attack.
Q. It looked like the team was playing good soccer in the first half.
A. I don’t think it was bad. However, although we aimed for short counters, I don’t think we were able to do many of the things we wanted to do.
Q. What was difficult about regaining control after the momentum shifted to the opponent?
A. We were dominated by the opponent and ended up reacting more than acting, so I think it became difficult to create our own flow in those situations. The opponent positioned themselves in ways that made it uncomfortable for us, and in terms of the quality of play, they outperformed us.
Q, In the second half, you moved your position from the side to the center. What was your mindset while playing there? Also, since you are good at playing in the center, did you find it easier in any way?
A, The distance was far, so I focused on touching the ball, creating rhythm, and advancing forward. Today, there were few coordinated plays, so I felt it was difficult to receive the ball in good positions.
Q, Even with the strong wind, we felt your awareness of trying to become the starting point of the attack by firmly controlling the ball. What were you thinking about?
A, I was conscious of touching the ball a lotto create attacking opportunities, but I think today was one of those days when things just didn’t go very well.
Q, How do you want to continue bringing out your strengths consistently from now on?
A, I just want to focus on expressing my own play.
Q, Today was the match where you earned your first start. How do you look back on the season so far?
A, Since it’s only been four matches, there’s no need to look back yet, and I was able to perform well with the U-23Japan national team and returned in good condition, so I hope to do well here in Tokyo from now on.
Q, Returning to FC Tokyo and starting in the lineup for the first time, how did you feel about the atmosphere at Ajinomoto Stadium, where it was also your first league start?
A, I felt a bit nervous, and I believe I have to perform well here, so I want to do my best next time.
