"Entering the biggest challenge of the season!"

With the stakes of "J1 promotion & J2 championship," the J2 league continues its fierce dead heat with only six matches remaining. At one point, it was said that "(J1 promotion) is almost decided for the two teams, Kawasaki Frontale and Tokyo!" The top two teams that had pulled ahead have now faltered. Meanwhile, Oita in third place and Niigata in fourth have been steadily earning points, causing the J2 league to once again enter a state of confusion. Tokyo, struggling with unexpected back-to-back losses possibly due to "fatigue from the Nabisco Cup & the injury and absence of ace Amaral" or "pressure of promotion," currently sits in second place with 58 points after the 30th round. To "win," they must not let the gap with the leader, Kawasaki Frontale (60 points), widen any further, and to secure "promotion (top two)," they must not allow Oita (52 points) to close the gap. On this day, they face a strong opponent, Sapporo. Although Sapporo has not been able to demonstrate its strength since the beginning of the season and has already lost sight of its goals of "J1 promotion & J2 championship," they still have many excellent players, including ace Yoshihara, who performed well in the Olympic preliminary qualifiers and participated in the Copa America as a full national team member, as well as former Japan national team defender Nazuka. Their team strength is still top class in J2. The head-to-head record so far is 2 wins and 1 loss, but they suffered a heavy defeat of 1-4 in the direct confrontation in August, and it was expected that they would struggle again on this day. The next match against Kawasaki Frontale will be a crucial one, and Tokyo is about to enter the "Sapporo and Kawasaki Frontale back-to-back matches," which will be the biggest challenge of the season.

Unable to score a single point...

In the previous day's game, Oita in 3rd place secured a V-goal victory (points 52 → 54), leaving Tokyo with no choice but to go for the win, adopting an ultra-offensive formation. By changing from a one-top to a two-top, they increased their attacking points up front, while also strengthening their offensive power by dropping the energetic Almir to the defensive midfield to maintain care in the midfield defense. As expected, the match unfolded with intense battles worthy of a showdown right from the start. Sapporo was the first to strike. After winning the ball from a fierce check up front, Sapporo quickly brought back their ace Yoshihara, who had just returned from the Olympic representative squad, and paired him with Fukagawa, who is known for his powerful runs, to create a focal point up front. The attacking midfielders and full-backs joined in, launching a speedy attack. In the 3rd minute, they induced a passing mistake from Tokyo's defense with intense pressing, and after cutting the ball, they spread it to the right side and took a decisive shot, but the ball hit the post and resulted in no goal. Immediately after that, Sapporo's defensive midfielder Bijou made a sharp interception in the midfield, carrying the ball all the way to the goal, but Almir desperately defended and regained possession. After this, the fierce 'Brazilian foreigner showdown' between Almir and Bijou in the midfield sparked throughout the full 90 minutes.

After overcoming a dangerous situation, Tokyo's ultra-offensive formation began to function around the 10-minute mark. Tokyo, consciously repeating bold large side changes in the midfield, made a precise cross from Enomoto on the right to Kobayashi, who was deep on the left side, in the 12th minute. Kobayashi dropped it with his chest and unleashed a powerful left-footed shot. Unfortunately, it was blocked by the goalkeeper, but after that, they created chances by shaking the Sapporo defense with several wonderful finishes from side changes. In the 27th minute, from a side attack, Asari took a volley shot in the center, and while the opposing defense stopped, Enomoto broke free for a one-on-one with the goalkeeper. However, Enomoto did not shoot and instead passed it back to the center, allowing the goalkeeper to catch it. In the following 33rd minute, Asari made a large side change from the left to the right side, and Enomoto, who ran in, made a direct pass to Kobayashi in the center. The ball bounced back after hitting the opponent, and Yukiho shot but missed. Furthermore, in the 37th minute, this time from the right side, Kaburaki made a large play to the left, and once again, Enomoto made a perfect trap and passed a lob to Kobayashi, who ran into the center, but the Sapporo defense desperately cleared it. In the 40th minute, Yukiho broke free from a brilliant one-two with Almir in a narrow space on the right side, bringing the ball close to the goal line for a cross. Almir, who ran in, took a shot that seemed like a goal, but it was miraculously cleared by the Sapporo defense. Centered around Almir, everyone was conscious of attacking from the sides, and Tokyo created several decisive opportunities, but they could not break through the goal, ending the first half at 0-0.

Conceding a goal from the same time zone and formation as the previous match, once again we lament losing by one point...

In the first half, Sapporo, who thoroughly executed a defensive style of play away from home, began to attack in the second half. The transition between offense and defense became remarkably faster. In the first half, the defensive midfielder, Biju, who had been participating in attacks half-heartedly, was made to focus solely on defense, while the attacking participation of both full-backs was liberalized. With Biju, who excels in defensive ability, concentrating on defense, Tokyo found it difficult to break through, leading to careless dribbles and passing mistakes being cut off, resulting in counterattacks that put them in danger. In the 66th minute, a bad mood began to drift as Fujiyama on the left side joined the attack and sent in a cross, which turned into a significant passing mistake that flowed to the opposite side. This was picked up by Sapporo's left-back, Murata, who dribbled forward and exchanged passes with Biju in the center before sending a large cross in front of the Tokyo goal. As Komine and Yoshihara contested for the ball, it floated, and Sapporo's midfielder, Suguru, headed it. The ball hit the crossbar and bounced back, but Yoshihara, who was there, kicked it in, resulting in a goal. They conceded a goal in a similar time and manner as the previous match (in the last match against Tosu, they conceded in the 70th minute from a counterattack on the left side). With this, Sapporo gained momentum, supported by the enthusiastic cheers of over 500 fans who rushed from Sapporo, and became even more aggressive. In the 69th minute, they cut off a pass mistake by Fujiyama and had a decisive shot from a counterattack, but goalkeeper Suzuki made a fantastic save. Dangerous moments continued, including allowing Nazuka a powerful header from a subsequent corner kick. The midfield was toyed with by Sapporo's midfielder Tanada's individual skills, and Yoshihara was lively in aiming for the goal. Yoshihara, who had been suddenly removed from the Olympic qualifying squad and was not in the right mindset, had been completely shut down by Komine in the first half, but it seemed that the one goal woke him up. Time passed mischievously, and around the 80th minute, Tokyo attempted an all-out attack by bringing up defender Sandro, but in their haste to score, they only threw in simple cross balls and could not break through the Sapporo defense line, which Biju stood firm against. In the end, Sapporo, who maintained their concentration until the end, held on to their one-goal lead, and Tokyo suffered their first three consecutive losses of the season... They wanted to somehow get through this day's match against Sapporo and the next match against Kawasaki Frontale and ride a wave of momentum, but that plan stumbled from the start... However, it can be said that the real battle is still to come. Since Kawasaki Frontale won that day, the gap to the top widened while the gap to third place narrowed, but they still maintained second place. The attacking power shown in the first half confirmed that they could create that many chances even without Amaral, and the defense was not bad. If they can score even one goal in any form, it should definitely be a trigger for a comeback. If they win the direct confrontation against Kawasaki Frontale next, they will undoubtedly ride the wave of momentum. Tokyo's goals remain unchanged! They will definitely make it happen!

Coach's Comment

Okada Consadole Manager

In the second half, I instructed the midfielder Vijay not to go up and instructed the fullbacks to go forward aggressively. Since it was an away game, we initially played defensively, but the players understood well and moved accordingly. We had been practicing for this week without Yoshihara, so I was unsure whether to use him or not. However, considering his quick mental switch and tactical understanding, I decided to use him, and I'm really happy that he made the decisive plays. I want to express my gratitude to all the players who fought without losing concentration until the end today.

<Coach Okuma>

FW did reasonably well. The number of chances and the shape of the attack were good, but there was a lack of decisiveness in situations where they could shoot and instead looked for a pass, which can be attributed to their lack of experience. Also, it was disappointing that we couldn't break through the defense both individually and as a team until the end. The way the ball was taken away in that position was poor, and we couldn't create opportunities, so the involvement of the fullbacks in the attack was also limited. It's frustrating to lose, but we are still in second place, and I believe that the real test is yet to come. I want to switch my mindset and move forward.