Penalty Shootout

Liga de Quito (Advance)/8×/4○/10○/20×/3○, FC Tokyo/39○/8○/24×/6○/10○

Battle for the international title, Riga de Kito vs. Capital!

　Apr 4 (Wed) Suruga Bank Championship 2010 TOKYO will be held. Tokyo will participate as the reigning Nabisco Cup champion. They will face LDU Quito from Ecuador, who won their first title last season in the South American cup competition "Copa Sudamericana". Quito is the capital of Ecuador. It will be a "capital showdown" for the international title of the "Cup Winner Champion".

　In the midst of the league season, which is filled with a tough schedule, the upcoming matches will be consecutive. However, Coach Jofuku says, "We must clearly find the meaning of today's battle. The ultimate goal is how we can connect to the J-League. We want to make this game a turning point. We don't want to end with a loss and say 'we had a good experience'."

　Liga de Quito started its activities in 1918. It is a historic club that was officially established in 1930. In 2008, the club won its first title as an Ecuadorian club in the Copa Libertadores. It also participated in the Club World Cup Japan 2008 and achieved the runner-up position. Coach Jofuku says, "There will be travel involved, and I think we will struggle with the hot and humid conditions in Japan. However, if we adapt to the game, we should be able to deliver a performance that is among the best in the world. We will see how we can express our style of football against such opponents."

　The current tournament is played in 45-minute halves, with a bench of 7 players. Up to 6 substitutions are allowed. If there is no decision after 90 minutes, a penalty shootout will take place. Tokyo aims for victory, but considering the schedule with league matches, player selection and substitutions will prioritize the players' condition (Coach Shirofuku). Starting lineup includes Murohara as right full-back, Nakamura on the left. Tanabe and Morishige form a double pivot in midfield, with Ishikawa and Otake on the wings. Hirayama and Ricardinho form the attacking duo. On the other hand, Liga de Quito's lineup consists of 5 defenders and 2 forwards, with their ace forward Hernan Barcos (top scorer in the Ecuadorian league) leading the line in a 3-4-2-1 formation.

　 The sun has set, and finally the "Home" National Stadium has begun to free itself from the heat of the day. The match started exactly at 19:00 with the kickoff in Tokyo.

Despite conceding the first goal, each player displayed their strengths and equalized with a goal from Hirayama!

　Tokyo launched an intense battle with a fresh lineup against Liga De Quito (hereinafter referred to as Quito), who entered the game cautiously. They took the ball, passed it around, and threatened Quito's goal. In the 3rd minute, Otake -> Nakamura crossed from the left, and Morishige headed freely. In the 6th minute, they launched a counterattack from Quito's free kick, and Ishikawa from the right side bravely took a shot after Nakamura -> Hirayama. Quito also connected several passes and made crosses in the 18th minute, but Imamura cleared it.

　In the 20th minute, Muhara passed vertically to Ishikawa, and Nakamura overlapped on the right side, but it narrowly missed. They created chances from set plays, and in the 23rd minute, Kim Young Gwon took a direct free kick. In the 28th minute, Otake's left corner kick was headed in by Morishige, winning the duel against the opponent. However, despite finding their rhythm, they couldn't shake the net. On the contrary, in the 29th minute, starting from Kito's defensive line, the ball went through the midfielder and reached the second-row forward Salgueiro. Salgueiro passed a single ball to the ace forward Barcos. Barcos cut inside with one step, aimed carefully, and took a shot. It went in, and they allowed the first goal to be scored by effectively utilizing one chance.

　However, in the 34th minute immediately after, Tokyo created an opportunity on the left side, and Nakamura passed it back from behind. Tanabe boldly aimed for a middle shot. The shot grazed the defender and took a big deflection. The goalkeeper saved it but it rebounded and Hirayama quickly reacted. He pushed it in with his right foot and scored! The first half ended with the game back to square one.

大黒 scores a skillful goal at the end!! Wins the penalty shootout and secures victory in a fierce battle

　In the second half, MoriShige and Otake were replaced by Kajiyama and Hanyu. They made a total of 6 player substitutions, and among them, they excelled in their starting and passing work, and were expected to take the lead. In the 50th minute, Nakamura passed the ball to Hanyu, who made a direct pass to Ricardinho on the right side, and Nakamura broke through to the right front line. Hirayama jumped into the goal area, but was deemed to have committed a foul and the ball went to Kito. In the 52nd minute, Ishikawa stole the loose ball in the opponent's territory, cut inside, and switched the side to Hanyu in the right area amidst the chaos. However, it was offside.

　In the 57th minute, Ricardinho was replaced by Okubo. In the 60th minute, Ishikawa intercepted the opponent's throw-in in their own half and passed it directly to Hirayama on the left side. Hirayama dribbled the ball out and made a through pass to Okubo, who was trying to break through the opponent's defense. The pass initially succeeded, but the opponent's defenders quickly closed in and prevented him from taking a shot. Despite dominating the game, in the 63rd minute, Mokuhara was judged to have committed a foul during a free kick situation by Kito, resulting in a penalty kick for Kito. They scored the penalty kick, putting us behind once again.

　In the 64th minute, Yong Duk SEO made his debut in Tokyo, replacing Tanabe and playing as the left MF. Hanyu moved to the defensive midfield position as Tokyo chased a goal. Tokyo dominated the ball, while Kito focused on defending their lead. They created chances through Kajiyama's attacks, Hirayama's post-play, and the attacking full-backs. In the 69th minute, Okubo scored from Ishikawa's cross. In the 76th minute, Hirayama scored from Mokuhara's cross. In the 77th minute, Shigematsu replaced Ishikawa, followed by Matsushita replacing Mokuhara. However, they couldn't find the back of the net and time passed without a goal.

　But just after entering the 4 minutes of stoppage time. The ball from Young Gwon KIM, Hiraoka in the opponent's field competes with the opponent's DF, and the ball spills behind the Kito DF. Daigo chases after it fiercely and breaks through to the back, controls it with one touch, and shoots with his left foot out of his pivot foot. This grazes the post on the opposite side and bounces back, scoring a goal. With a never-give-up attitude, they equalize again at the end of the game and the 90 minutes are over.

　The match went into a penalty shootout. First, Kitoda saved Kito's first kicker's penalty kick! Tokyo's Daikoku and Matsushita then scored confidently. Although Kitomatsu's third kick was blocked by the goalkeeper, Kito's fourth penalty kick went wide. Next, Tokyo's Imakuno and finally Kajiyama scored perfectly, and Tokyo won the penalty shootout 4-3! Tokyo launched an all-out attack in soccer and won the title.

　[Player Comments]《Oguro》"The supporters were cheering for us, and since it was our home, I definitely wanted to score a goal. Kito created good attacks when they won the ball in a good shape, but I felt they weren't used to the climate, so I thought we should actively aim for the back. In the match against Niigata, I couldn't hold my ground, so today I imagined firmly standing my ground and taking a shot. It was good that we equalized in the end and won in the penalty shootout, so I want to approach the upcoming league matches with confidence and make the supporters happy. I want to concentrate on each match and aim to score at any time."《Gonda》"We had a long time and were able to progress in a good flow, but we conceded a goal first, which led to us always chasing the game. I want to reflect properly on the situation of the conceded goal and apply it to the league matches. The penalty shootout was a bit complicated since we had conceded two goals, but if I save it, the GK can become a hero. I didn't have confidence that I could stop it, but I approached it with determination. I was able to save the first one, but I wanted to stop more to contribute to the victory. Beyond that, I still feel my strength is lacking. However, I believe that fighting at my best in every match will lead to growth. I want to work hard to make sure the team goes in a good direction, starting with this victory."

　[Summary of Coach Jofuku's Press Conference] "On a weekday, despite not being able to achieve the results we hoped for in the J-League, I am deeply grateful to nearly 20,000 fans and supporters who came out. I would also like to express my gratitude to everyone involved, including the people from Suruga Bank, who provided us with the opportunity to play against such a high-level team. This match was held during the J-League break and in the hottest season in Japan. During the past week, we played three matches. Liga de Quito must have also struggled with this temperature and humidity. There was a great motivation to compete against the best of the best in the world, but we were not in a situation to step onto the pitch fully prepared. However, the players who stood on the pitch, both as individuals and as a team, will surely turn this valuable experience into something tangible. I want to express my gratitude again to everyone who created that environment and to the players. Finally, the players went around the stadium to show their appreciation. I also feel grateful and consider this a wonderful title, but I do not count today's title towards the goal I set at the beginning of the year, which is to win one title. Therefore, I did not participate myself.

　Regarding the match, the first goal conceded was supposed to be the opponent's first chance. The second goal was also a mental blow as we were controlling the pace. However, South American teams are known for coming back in such situations. Being able to catch up in that kind of situation gave meaning to today's game. I think the strong desire of the players to "restart from here" was a factor in catching up. It is rare to have the opportunity to compete against a team like Liga de Quito, considering their achievements and the quality of their players. So, we were able to embrace the situation in a positive way and enjoy the penalty shootout."

　[Summary of the press conference with Edgardo Bauza, coach of LDU Quito] "The first 10 to 15 minutes were difficult to get into the flow, but after that, our movements became smoother, and I think we were able to compete evenly. Both teams were making good movements trying to win the ball. However, when we had chances, we couldn't capitalize on them. In the second half, the players were quite tired, so I tried to change the flow with substitutions, but it may have been too late. After that, we ended up in a draw and lost in the penalty shootout. However, I think the match was evenly matched. (Which player from FC Tokyo left an impression on you?) Morishige participated in the attack while defending and handled both roles well. We struggled with Hirayama's height as well. When he was on the field, we lost our control. (What is necessary for Japan to become a strong contender in the world?) It is important to recognize that Japanese football has made significant progress. This must have been due to the efforts of the Japan Football Association, as well as the coaches and players, including foreigners. Moving forward, we need to bring in even more excellent foreign players to raise our level and gain experience through various matches to compete on equal terms with the world. I believe we will progress through such experiences. I think we will become stronger with better matches, better players, and better coaches all coming together."