Tokyo vs. Roma, the Capital Derby held on a midsummer night!

　Following last year, this year's preseason match against an overseas team will be held, and we will face the strong Serie A team AS Roma. Prior to today's match, Tokyo will embark on a one-week trip to Spain and also play against the strong La Liga team Deportivo La Coruña. Having already won 2-1 away, there is no end to the excitement of what kind of battle they will show against Roma today. It is a match where we want to show the results of the trip.

　Last season, Roma finished 2nd in Serie A. They have welcomed new coach Brandelli this season and are starting to build a new team. Although they are currently missing key attackers Totti and Cassano, as well as midfielder Tonmaji due to injuries, they have a number of Italian and French national team players, who have joined the team after their tour in the United States.

　Tokyo, who has just returned from the Asian Cup as a representative of Japan, did not participate, but Toi started in the starting lineup. The defense is made up of Maeda, Jean, Fujiyama, and Kanazawa from the right. Miura and Kajiyama form a double pivot in the midfield, with Toda on the right, Kelly in the center, and Baba on the left. They will face the match with Lucas in the front line.

Attack without fear from the beginning and create chances one after another!

　"Coach Hara said, 'I want to make Rome serious. Let's go aggressively from the beginning and aim for victory.' Tokyo attacked boldly from the kick-off as he said. In the 40th second, Baba -> Kelly -> Lucas passed the ball, and Lucas entered the area. Baba received the return, and Miura took the shot. In the first minute, Baba ran up to the left side space and crossed. It didn't connect with Lucas in the center, but Maeda aimed for the goal from the far side. In the second minute, Kajiyama -> Lucas connected from the right side throw-in, and Kajiyama boldly took the shot after receiving the return. In the fifth minute, Lucas, who stole the ball from the opponent's DF, dribbled quickly into the area. He entered the shooting motion, but was cut off by a sliding tackle from Roma DF Mekses."

　Roma aimed for a direct goal from a left-leaning FK by DF Panucci in the 10th minute, but Doi caught it firmly in front. In the 12th minute, Tokyo had another chance. Toda sprinted into the space on the right side. He cut inside and sent a fast and strong ground cross. It couldn't be connected in the center, but Baba picked it up on the left side and connected with Kanazawa and Kajiyama in one touch. Kanazawa then made a through pass to the front line again. Lucas, who had jumped out, was saved by the opponent's GK one step ahead, and the ball spilled, but Mekusu picked up the cleared ball and connected it, and this time Maeda crossed from the right side. It ended up being offside, but they continuously attacked the Roma goal from both sides, picking up loose balls one after another.

　In the 16th minute, Kajiyama was fouled on the right side, quickly restarted and moved forward, Lucas took a shot. It missed to the left of the goal, but Tokyo showed a high awareness of pressing up and quickly connecting attacks from ball recovery, with Kelly, Lucas, and Toda leading the way with sharp movements. On the other hand, Roma defended tightly with a solid defensive line and sent passes to the front without taking risks. However, scenes of the forward line being caught offside were noticeable, and they did not create any decisive chances.

Continuously creating chances from side attacks

　In the 29th minute, Roma launched a quick counterattack. Mekses sprinted up and sent a vertical pass to the forward Delvecchio. Delvecchio evaded the marking of Fujiyama and took a left-footed shot from just outside the box, but it went over the goal. In the 35th minute, Tokyo had a golden opportunity. Kanazawa, who had stolen the ball on the left side of their own half, passed it to the forward line, connecting with Baba and Lucas, and then attacking towards the center to find Kelly. Kelly dribbled to draw the opposing DF and passed to Toda on the right side, who was free. Toda crossed the ball quickly with a lot of power towards the center, but the opposing DF desperately cleared it towards the Roma goal. However, the goalkeeper and DF covered it just in time and cleared it again. Kanazawa, who had advanced to attack, picked up the ball and took a shot, but it was blocked by the opposing DF.

　Roma gradually started to pass the ball around, and in the 37th minute, Del Vecchio entered a shooting position near the goal from a right-side free kick, but Jahn blocked it by leaning his body. Then, midfielder Dakour received a through pass from forward Corvia and made a pinpoint pass to the front line. Candela crossed from the left and took a shot from inside the box, but it hit Toi's face. In the 38th minute, Tokyo responded with a left cross from Baba, and Toda, who was free on the right side, volleyed the ball directly, but the shot unfortunately hit the crossbar. In the 39th minute, Baba sent a long free kick to the front line. Toda and Lucas connected with headers, but the opponent's defender cleared the ball just in time. Toda, who injured his right ankle in this play, was substituted with Kondo. And Roma couldn't break through their solid defense, so the match was carried over to the second half.

　In the second half, Tokyo took the first shot. In the 46th minute, Kondo dropped a header from a right corner kick, and Kajiyama took a shot from the middle range, but it went over the goal. In the 48th and 50th minutes, Roma had scenes where they attacked Tokyo's goal by connecting passes, but they didn't take a shot. In the 53rd minute, Maeda crossed from the right after Kajiyama's side change. Lucas took a volley shot in front of the goal, but it narrowly missed the target. In the 55th minute, Kondo headed the ball away from the goal after Baba's right free kick, but it went to the left of the goal. Tokyo, who couldn't break the goal no matter what, replaced Kelly with Abe in the 59th minute. Abe moved to the left MF position, and Baba moved to the center.

Substitute players also function, overwhelming Roma...

　Roma, who patiently connected passes and waited for a chance, won a free kick in the 67th minute when Delle Beccio was fouled in front of the goal. D'Agnostinho aimed directly from the penalty arc on the right, but the Tokyo DF blocked it. As a result, this was the only shot by Roma in the second half. In the 69th minute, Chelchi, who came on as a substitute, received a vertical pass from left SB Panucci and entered the area. He sent a minus last pass to Delle Beccio, but the trap was too big and Tsuchi boldly came out and made a save. No harm done.

　However, Roma's activity gradually decreased, and Tokyo began to dominate the midfield and launch an offensive. In the 71st minute, Abe persisted on the left side, won a throw-in, and approached the Roma goal. In the 72nd minute, Abe received the throw-in himself, circled inside, and made a good judgment to shoot when he saw an opening ahead. However, it was caught by the opposing GK. In the 74th minute, Kajiyama and Kondo launched a quick attack to Lucas on the right side. Lucas advanced into the area, evaded the opposing DF, and crossed. Kondo, who had moved up in front of the goal, jumped in for a header shot, but the opposing GK made a fine save. Abe's follow-up shot on the loose ball also missed the target. Shortly after, Masushima came on for Miura, and Kobayashi replaced Baba. The formation was set with Lucas and Kondo as the two strikers, and Masushima as the defensive midfielder. In the 76th minute, Abe was fouled just outside the left area, earning a free kick. Masushima and Jean jumped in for Kobayashi's free kick from the far side, but the ball that hit Jean's foot went outside the frame. In the 79th minute, Abe made a move in the left area and earned a corner kick. The left corner kick was connected short, and Lucas headed Kanazawa's cross! However, once again, it hit the crossbar and did not result in a goal.

　Tokyo launched a fierce attack, but perhaps thinking that a draw would suffice, they could not break through the defense of Roma, which had eight players focused on defense. In the 87th minute, Lucas was fouled on the left side of the area, resulting in a free kick. Abe made a run to draw defenders, and Kobayashi connected with Abe, who had moved into the center. From a tricky play, Abe took a well-aimed shot, but it was saved nicely by the opposing GK, resulting in a corner kick. This corner was again played short, and Kanazawa sent in a low cross, but unfortunately, they could not connect in front of the goal. In stoppage time, Kondo was fouled about 25 meters from the goal, resulting in another free kick. Kondo aimed for the goal using Jean as a decoy, but his powerful shot hit the bottom left of the post! Tokyo moved aggressively and lively, creating chances with their style of play, but they could not find the back of the net. In this midsummer night dream match, Tokyo had 17 shots compared to Roma's 4, and despite overwhelming Roma throughout the match, it unfortunately ended in a 0-0 draw.

【Player Comments】《Dohi》"My condition wasn't bad. I think I was able to enter the match well. Watching from the back, I felt that the young players with talent were playing with confidence. I think their true selves came out. I'm looking forward to the 2nd stage." 《Miura》"We had chances from the first half. If it ends in a draw, the opponent can make excuses saying 'we were in bad condition', so I wanted to win decisively... To be honest, we also returned from Spain not long ago, and there were parts in the last part of the first half and the second half where we got tired. I want to approach the 2nd stage in a way that we can convert the shots that were blocked by the post and crossbar into goals." 《Jean》"Today, I was thinking about not conceding a goal no matter what. In that regard, I think we did well. The depth of our squad has increased, and the young players are playing wonderfully and producing good football. I believe that it's always necessary to learn in daily practice, and I learned a lot from the Deportivo match in Spain and today's match against Roma, which helped me gain confidence. I think we were able to play international matches in a good way that will lead to the 2nd stage."

[Summary of Coach Hara's Press Conference] "We wanted to score. We had several chances, and after the expedition to Spain, the young players gained confidence and created good opportunities several times. If we had scored there, I think Roma would have shown more of their strength. We hit the post and were denied by the goalkeeper, but I wanted to finish those chances properly. I am pleased that we were given a great opportunity to play against a traditional team like Roma in Tokyo. I think Roma was not in their best form as they have a month until the season starts, but we fought boldly against famous players without fear. I wanted to score in this kind of match and connect it to the second stage... During the expedition to Spain, we faced strong teams, and today, when playing against players from the Italy national team and the France national team, more players have become able to play their game without fear. Specifically, we were able to move the ball simply and use the field widely to break down the sides several times. However, as expected from Italian defense, even if the sides were breached, they effectively cleared the dangerous areas in front of the goal. We also need to improve our shooting skills, but I believe that the fact that players other than the Japan national team and Olympic team players played boldly will become an asset for the team in the future."

[Summary of AS Roma Coach Brandozzi's Press Conference] "It was a very difficult match. FC Tokyo moved very well, had speed, and above all, their condition was good. It would have been better if we could have organized our movements a bit more. The defense was satisfactory. Playing this time revealed various issues, which is a good thing for the new season. Today, Roma really couldn't create chances, but this was not only due to our condition; many players were playing out of their natural positions, and above all, the opponent's condition was good. (In the first half, it seemed stretched out?) We couldn't focus on defense. However, I instructed on that point at halftime, so in the second half, we particularly didn't suffer from counterattacks. A team that has just adopted a new playing style and new tactics may not function well, so I want to make gradual adjustments to get into good shape for the new season. (Any players from FC Tokyo that left an impression?) FC Tokyo is a very good team with excellent tactics. Unfortunately, I don't remember the names, but there are many talented players. I thought the coach also has a very good understanding of football. I believe this team will grow more with talented players and an excellent coach."

"It was a very difficult game. However, Roma is still in the preparation stage, and we fought with all our strength today. Personally, I think it was a very good game." "It was a high-intensity game. And it was very hot. FC Tokyo showed us a wonderful play, and we also did our best, it was a good game."