The beginning of a survival race for the championship

　At the point where there are only 3 matches remaining, the 2nd stage of the J.League is presenting a rare and intense battle, with 5 teams within a "2" point difference. In the previous match, Tokyo achieved a resounding victory over Kobe and currently sits in 2nd place, trailing the top-ranked Urawa by a margin of "2" points. For Tokyo, this late-stage title race is a first experience since their promotion to J1, and with 3 matches remaining, they are now entering a true survival race to compete for the championship.

　Sec. 13, which will be held on this day, will be a match against Gamba Osaka away. Gamba is currently in 9th place, but with 17 points, they still have a chance to enter the championship race if they win this match, so their motivation should be high. In the previous match, they managed to catch up with Kashima in the late stages and brought it to a draw away, showing an upward trend in their form. Even looking at the past league match records, Tokyo has 3 wins and 4 losses, so they are not an easy opponent, and a tough battle is expected.

　However, at this point, it doesn't matter how the opponent is doing. We just need to believe in the soccer we have played up to this point and unfold it on the pitch. Technical and tactical discussions are important, but as it is said, "The team with a strong desire to win will win," from here on, a team with a "strong mentality" will demonstrate its strength. In that sense, in a situation where the presence or absence of this "strong mentality" is questioned, what kind of soccer can Tokyo show? It became a match to measure Tokyo's true strength.

　The starting eleven in Tokyo is the same as the previous match. On the other hand, Gamba made changes to both wing-backs from the previous match and brought in MF Hashimoto and MF Okubo, who will start for the first time in a while. In the refreshing autumn weather, at 2:03 pm, the whistle for the kickoff, which marks the beginning of the survival race, sounded.

Overwhelming Gamba with high concentration in both offense and defense

　Backed by the loud cheers of approximately 800 supporters from the goal end who came all the way from Tokyo, Tokyo was aggressive from the start. In the 1st minute, Tokyo, who turned to attack, quickly built up the play from the right with Ishikawa, then to Kelly in the center, and flowed to Kanazawa on the left. Kanazawa took a low shot from the left corner of the penalty area, but it narrowly missed to the right of the goal. In the 6th minute, Miyazawa, who cut off the ball in the center, quickly sent a long pass behind the Gamba Osaka defensive line, and Toda broke free and attempted to break through the oncoming Gamba goalkeeper, but was prevented by a desperate defense that could also be considered a handball. On this day as well, with Kelly's outstanding ball retention as the centerpiece, Tokyo overwhelmed the opponent with Ishikawa's speedy breakthroughs from the right and Miyazawa's versatile passing.

　On the other hand, Gamba targeted FW Maguron with long balls, but Tokyo's 184cm Jean responded. The intense aerial battle was one of the highlights of the match, but the danger came in the 11th minute. When a long pass from Gamba DF Miyamoto was sent to the front line, Maguron headed it down and FW Yoshihara ran in and unleashed a powerful volley shot, but goalkeeper Doi parried it with one hand and didn't allow a goal. After that, Jean won many aerial battles and sealed off the post-play with sharp pressing, including the midfielders. Gamba's attacks from the sides, which they are good at, lacked power because the ball couldn't settle in the front line. MF Nikawa and FW Yoshihara, along with Gamba's sharp attackers, desperately attempted central breakthroughs with dribbles and intricate passes, but the strong defense line centered around Mobata shut them out. They didn't allow dangerous situations with their stable defense and high concentration.

A devastating goal conceded from just one mistake

　Tokyo's attack was even more brilliant than the previous match. In the 15th and 18th minutes, Kelly → Ishikawa broke through the right side with a hotline, and in the 23rd minute, Kelly ran into the space on the left side and passed to Miyazawa. Miyazawa put a low cross directly into the center, and Kelly ran in at top speed and hit it with his right foot, but the decisive shot flew to the right of the goal and Gamba GK Matsushiro made a fantastic reaction to deflect it, preventing a goal.

　Tokyo continued to attack without letting up. In the 25th minute, Kelly crossed from the right side and Amaral competed for it, resulting in a corner kick. In the 28th minute, on the contrary, Amaral exchanged passes with Miyazawa in the center and sent a lofted pass to Kelly, who had taken position in front of the goal, but it narrowly missed. The game continued completely in Tokyo's pace.

　However, in the 34th minute, Tokyo connected a pass in their own goal area, and Miura passed the ball back to Moino, who intended to kick the ball forward, but it hit an opposing player and bounced to Hashimoto on the right side, who was free. Without hesitation, Hashimoto put a low cross into the disorganized Tokyo goal area, and Okuro, who had run in near side, pushed it in, conceding the first goal.

　Despite being overwhelmingly dominant, Tokyo allowed a goal from a single chance, but they did not crumble and once again directed their sharp fangs towards the Gamba goal. In the 35th minute, right after conceding a goal, the biggest chance of the day arrived. From midfield, a long pass pierced behind the Gamba defense, and Toda broke free, shooting with his right foot from close range to the left of the goal, but the GK made a sharp reaction to deflect it. Furthermore, Ishikawa picked up the ball that flowed to the right side and delivered an exquisite cross into the center of the goal, where Amaral was waiting free and unleashed a decisive header, but once again, Gamba GK Matsushita made a super save to deflect the perfect shot that flew to the lower left of the goal. In the 41st minute, Ishikawa cut deep into the right side with a pass from Kelly and sent a precise ground pass to the center of the goal, but Toda let it go, and Kelly, who ran in from behind, shot freely, but the ball hit the crossbar. In the end, despite creating numerous decisive chances, Tokyo was thwarted by Gamba GK Matsushita and ended the first half allowing a one-goal lead.

Despite shooting more than three times, they were only able to score one goal against the Gamba goalkeeper's incredible defense.

　"We are creating far more chances. Let's continue playing with confidence. We cannot afford to lose with so many supporters coming from Tokyo. In the second half, we just need to score towards those supporters. Let's definitely win and return to Tokyo," said Coach Hara in his halftime speech, motivating the Tokyo Eleven to approach the second half with renewed determination.

　The weather has changed dramatically before the game, with thick clouds covering the sky. However, the intensity of Tokyo football has only increased. Just 30 seconds into the game, Ishikawa crosses the ball from the right to the far side, but the Gamba DF clears it with a header. However, the ball floats in front of the goal and Amaral, who steals the ball, takes a shot. The ball hits a defender and rolls to the left side, then it is crossed back to the center. This time, Kelly takes a shot from a close distance, but it is caught firmly by GK Matsushiro right in front of him.

　In the 52nd minute, Miyazawa ran into the penalty area from the midfield and floated a exquisite pass to Ishikawa, who shot it directly with his right foot. The powerful shot caught the top frame of the goal, but it was saved by GK Matsushiro's superb save and resulted in a corner kick. Miyazawa directly aimed for the goal with his magical left foot from this corner kick, but GK Matsushiro punched it away. Miyazawa once again sent a low, curved ball to the front of the goal, and Kelly headed it, but it went over the bar.

　Tokyo is not only overwhelmingly attacking, but also quickly checking the opponent in the midfield, preventing high-quality passes to the front line and maintaining a good defensive balance. However, Tokyo, who desperately wants to score, substitutes Miura for Suzuki in the 68th minute. As the number of attacks increased, the defensive balance changed slightly, allowing Gamba's Japanese national team midfielder Endo to break through in the midfield and pass the ball to the side. In the 71st minute, Endo dribbled through the midfield and passed to Yoshihara on the right, but Maguron's header shot from Yoshihara's cross missed to the left of the goal.

　The dangerous situation was just that, and the rest was a one-sided game for Tokyo. In the 78th minute, Amaral dropped a cross from Kaji with his head, and Kelly ran in at a good timing but missed the ball. In the 79th minute, Ishikawa put a ground ball in from the right side, and Kelly ran in and took a free shot, but it went wide to the right of the goal. In the 80th minute, FW Abe was substituted for Toda. In the 83rd minute, Suzuki broke through the left side and put a perfect cross to Abe, who was free on the opposite side. Abe's powerful header seemed to go into the bottom right corner of the goal, but it was blocked by GK Matsushiro's superb save. In the following 84th minute, Suzuki showed his quick movement on the left side again, and with a delicate passwork flowing from left to right - Suzuki, Kelly, Suzuki, Amaral, Kelly, Abe - they bewildered Gamba, and in the end, Abe took a powerful shot from inside the penalty area, but it was stopped by GK Matsushiro.

　Although the remaining time was running out, Tokyo did not give up and showed a furious attack until the end. In the 88th minute, Ishikawa forcefully broke through on the right side, looked inside, and delivered a negative cross, allowing Miyazawa, who ran in from the front of the goal, to take a powerful left-footed shot unmarked. The ball was on a low trajectory and accurately targeted the goal, but GK Matsushita caught it. In stoppage time, Miyazawa's free kick from the right side threatened the Gamba goal, but GK Matsushita cleared it with a punch. Kaji sent the ball to the front of the goal with a header from the center, and Amaral aimed for it with a back header, but unfortunately was offside. They showed fierce attacks until the very end, but cruelly, the time was finally up. Despite taking more than three times the number of shots compared to Gamba, with a shot count of 19 to 6, they ended without scoring and suffered a complete defeat. Although they lost in the context of the championship battle, the aggressive attitude they maintained until the end with the best game content of the season will surely lead to future success. Fortunately, there were upsets in other venues where the top teams lost, and the situation remains uncertain with two matches left. Today's game content and fighting spirit proved that Tokyo still has a sufficient chance to win the championship. In the next match, they will aim for the best result in the last home game of the season and connect their dreams to the final match.

[Player Comments]《Miura》"We had several chances from the first half, but they were all stopped by the GK, so I had a bad feeling. We lost in the end, but the teams above us also lost. Today's defeat was certainly painful, but the next match is at home, so I want to switch my mindset and fight." 《Toda》"I was able to approach the match with a more tense atmosphere than usual. We entered the match in a good shape, and if we had scored first, the result would have been different. If I had scored in the first chance..." 《Miyazawa》"It's disappointing to lose when we were able to play our style of football like that. We really need to convert our chances. I've heard about other results, but we still have a chance. The next match is at home, so I will fight with all my strength to win." 《Ishikawa》"The opponent's GK was fantastic. No matter how many shots we took, they didn't go in. We are playing good flowing football and it's not bad. I want to keep my head up, switch my mindset, and approach the Verdy match."

[Summary of Manager Hara's Press Conference] "The performance was the best among the recent matches. I think it was better than the previous game, but today we were stopped by Gamba's goalkeeper Matsumoto. Kelly's shot at the beginning was stopped and we were put under pressure, but it was like a divine possession. The team was in a good condition with the planned development of attacking their backline, but we cannot win if we cannot score. We conceded a goal from a mistake, but it was worse that we couldn't score. We have to continue with our current approach and improve the precision in the details. As the top teams are losing, there are still chances for us. We don't have time to look down. We want to switch our mindset and make the best preparations for the Verdy match."

[Gamba Osaka Manager Nishino's Press Conference Summary] "I think it would be better for Matsushiro to come here and make a comment today. Today, we were expecting to be pressed by Tokyo, who currently has the most scoring power. Despite that, everyone was focused on defense and fought hard. Playing defensively and then countering is not the usual way for Gamba, but being able to play this kind of game gives us confidence. Matsushiro helped us today, but from Maglone to Matsushiro, everyone raised their defensive awareness and did well. The gap with the top teams is also closing, so we can go into the next match with higher motivation. We want to prepare well for the next game."