Aiming for the first away victory in the league this season!

Sec. 3 on Mar 15 (Sat) is a match against Vissel Kobe. In the first two games of the season, we took the lead but conceded goals in the second half, resulting in draws. It is still the early stages of the league, but in order to turn our efforts this season into results, we want to secure our first victory first. Although this match is an away game, we have prepared as usual aiming for 3 points. Tokyo will have the same starting lineup for the third consecutive game. Shioda and Kono will be on the bench.
　
Kobe, on the other hand, achieved a return to J1 last season as the runner-up in J2. This season, new reinforcements such as FW Marcinhos, FW Pedro JUNIOR who was with Tokyo in 2011, MF Simplicio, Cho Un-yong, DF Masukawa, and Takahashi have joined the team. Although they have not yet secured a victory in the league with 2 draws, these new additions have shown a dynamic game by fitting in and playing a leading role. In place of the suspended Simplicio, MF Tanaka started in the lineup, and MF Matsumura started in place of the injured Ogawa.

Despite the cold shade, the weather gradually gives a sense of the arrival of spring as the match kicked off in Kobe at 19:04.

Unable to capitalize on scoring opportunities, the first half ended scoreless.

Kobe created a chance right after the start. MF Sung Ryong JUNG's sharp kick from the right side was deflected in front of the goal, and the net was immediately shaken, but this was ruled offside.
Furthermore, in the 5th minute, they were attacked from the right side, and Pedro, the central forward, was challenged, resulting in a corner kick. However, they defended this without difficulty. In the following 8 minutes, Muto attempted a goal from the opponent's goal front center after intercepting from the east, but it was blocked. From here, they received a counterattack, and Pedro, the forward in the left area, was challenged by a through pass from Kobe MF Tanaka, resulting in a left corner kick.

In the 11th minute, Mita connected with Edu on the loose ball from Higashi's pass and expanded to the left. Watanabe, who had taken position on the left, dribbled forward from here. He took a shot from the left area, but it lacked power and was saved by the opponent's goalkeeper, resulting in a corner kick. After this, we had several corner kicks and created chances, but we couldn't score a goal. 15 minutes have passed, and it's Kobe's free kick. The goal net was shaken in this situation, causing a moment of concern, but it was offside. Immediately after that, Kobe launched a strong attack, but Tokyo gradually regained composure and regained control of the game.

In the 21st minute, Mita applied pressure in his own half, and Higashi intercepted the ball, dribbling into the opponent's territory and moving it from the center to the right flank. He attempted to create a chance in collaboration with Edu, but Edu's trap was not successful. In the 25th minute, Tokyo connected a loose ball from Higashi's right cross in the midfield, and Mita passed it to Ota, who was advancing on the left flank. Ota cut in from the side and sent a low cross in front of the goal, but the timing was just off for Muto, who dove in at the near post. In the 38th minute, Watanabe utilized his speed to run onto a pass from Tokunaga on the right flank and delivered a cross. Muto, competing with a defender at the far post, headed the ball but it went over the bar. In the following 41st minute, they connected a series of fast-paced passes, with Edu on the left passing to Muto in the center, who took a shot but was saved by the opposing goalkeeper. Despite attempts to create scoring opportunities from Edu, Watanabe, and Muto, they were unable to score. They gradually showed composure and fought patiently, but were dominated by Kobe, who circulated the ball in Tokyo's half and created chances. Still, they did not allow any goals.

After that, they continued to launch quick attacks from interceptions in the midfield, but they missed several scoring opportunities towards the end and were unable to capitalize on the numerous corner kicks they obtained, resulting in a scoreless draw going into the second half.

Despite Edu's consecutive goals, 2 conceded goals had an impact, resulting in the first defeat of the season.

In the second half, in the 51st minute, there was a chance for a free kick from the left area. Ota kicked the ball towards the goal, but it grazed the opponent's defender and went to the goalkeeper. In the 52nd minute, Kobe quickly moved to the front line. Matsumura dribbled on the left side and connected with Pedro, who was in a high position in the left area, despite Tokyo's defenders delaying him. At this point, Tokyo's coordination between Gonda and the defenders did not work well. Marcinhos, the forward in the center area, was connected and easily scored the first goal.

In addition, in the 62nd minute, from the left side of Kobe, unable to control the pass to the center. Unable to hold the pass exchange between FW Pedro and MF Morioaka, MF Morioaka faced forward and lost the second goal with a powerful shot. In the second half, the rhythm of the passing work improved and approached the Kobe goal, but there were defensive flaws.

However, in the 67th minute, Yonemoto, who replaced Mutoh with a vertical pass from Mita, entered the area. He skillfully passed to the right, and Edu in the right area pierced the net to score a goal. Yonemoto, who came on as a substitute, gained momentum with Edu's consecutive shots, but Kobe also quickly counterattacked after stealing the ball in their own half, and the game was in a back and forth situation.

Entering additional time, Kono from the right area after Edu's cross faced the goalkeeper in a one-on-one situation. He took a decisive shot, but it was blocked by the opponent's goalkeeper... He tried to follow up on the ball that spilled behind, but just before that, it was prevented from becoming a goal by a sliding tackle from Kobe's defender. With the introduction of Yonemoto, the team gained momentum, and Edu's consecutive goals in two matches narrowed the gap to one point. After that, Kono and Hirayama, who came on as substitutes, worked well together and launched a fierce attack at a fast pace, but they were unable to score a goal. The two conceded goals had an impact, and they suffered their first defeat of the season.

【Player Comment】
≪Yonemoto≫
"I was thinking about going forward firmly because I was substituted in to score. Also, I was thinking that it would be good if we could win the ball in a high position. Personally, I am at a stage where my condition has improved, but I think I need to make the passes faster and improve my sense of the game. Tokyo until last season was a team that should have scored when they had the chance and should have held back when they shouldn't have been scored against... I think we need to change something there. However, if we can grasp something like a trigger, I think Tokyo will gain more momentum and become unstoppable. The direction is not wrong. Step by step, the next is the Nabisco Cup, but I want to prepare well."

<<Kono>>
"I came on in a situation where we were one goal behind, and the coach told me, 'Feel free to take the initiative.' Personally, I really wanted to score, so I was focused on playing as close to the goal as possible. Cutting in from the right side is my style, and I was able to create chances that way, but... The one-on-one with the goalkeeper is a shot that I absolutely have to convert. Still, I want to keep my head up and aim to score next time. I want to make plays that lead to three points."

[Summary of Coach Massimo FICCADENTI's Press Conference]
"In the first half, the players were able to do what they wanted to do and created many chances. I think it was good that we didn't give the opponent any chances. As for the second half, we tried to press higher than in the first half, but after giving away a goal, we couldn't do what we wanted to do. Even after going down 0-2, the players didn't give up and created many chances after making it 1-2. I think it can be said that Kobe's goalkeeper was great because we created many chances."

[Kobe Ryo Adachi Coach's Press Conference Summary]
"In the first half, we struggled with the opponent's high press and the ball didn't move as smoothly as in the previous two matches. We created several chances but couldn't convert them into goals. We made adjustments at halftime and started the second half well, scoring one or two goals. However, conceding the second goal at 2-1 was a bit early. If we had defended that moment a little better, I think we could have scored a third goal. Even after it became 2-1, we had opportunities to make it 3-1. If we had taken those chances decisively, we could have secured the three points with a bit more comfort at the end."