Pick-up Match

F.C. Tokyo (J1) 2-1（0-1, 2-0）Honda FC(Shizuoka)

The Round of 16 in the 96th Emperor's Cup All Japan Football Championship was held on Wednesday 9 November across the country. F.C. Tokyo (J1) met Honda FC (Shizuoka) at the Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo.

Honda beat two J2 opponents, FC Gifu in the 1st Round and MATSUMOTO YAMAGA F.C. in the 2nd, and won against a J3 Grulla MORIOKA (Iwate) to become one of the top 16 teams and the only prefectural representative remaining in the tournament. The ‘eye of the tiger’ JFL club are showing strong momentum and winning one match after another, and now they are looking to post an upset against the top-flight powerhouse.

F.C. Tokyo created a goal-scoring opportunity first. In the 7th minute, HIRAYAMA Sota reacted to a free kick from KAWANO Hiroki through a scramble in front of the goal and fired a shot with his right foot, only for it to be saved by goalkeeper SHIMIZUTANI Yuki.

Although Honda did play a little awkwardly at the beginning, the team gradually found their pace. After 14 minutes, left back NAKAGAWA Yuhei, who broke through by exchanging passes, sent in a swift cross, but none of his teammates could react to it. In the 18th minute, their characteristic passing started to work. KUNO Junya, who surged forward to find a through ball from KAGAWA Daiki, faced the goalkeeper one-on-one. He calmly slotted the ball into the goal scoring the opener for the JFL club.

Thereafter, Honda continued to attack aggressively, and just before the end of the first half, FURUHASHI Tatsuya skilfully aimed at the left of the goal from a free kick, but goalkeeper AKIMOTO Yota guarded well this time and did not allow the opponents to extend their lead.

F.C. Tokyo sent OGAWA Ryoya onto the pitch and replaced KAJIYAMA Yohei at the beginning of the second half, which allowed them to build up positive momentum. In the 51st minute, they strung passes from the middle of the field and advanced the ball to the opponents’ penalty area, where NAKAJIMA Shoya reacted to a loose ball in front of the goal and fired a volley with his left foot. The shot hit the opponents’ defender and was deflected into the goal. F.C. Tokyo had succeeded in scoring the equaliser.

After the game was levelled, Honda continued to display their playing style, looking for the go-ahead goal. After 70 minutes, HOSOKAI Ryuta attempted a shot from a difficult angle on the right side. Then, in the 74th minute, Kuno also aimed at goal from mid-range, which was caught by the goalkeeper.

F.C. Tokyo were eager to maintain their pride as a professional team. In the 80th minute, substitute HAYASHI Yohei demonstrated his physical strength and found Nakajima near the penalty area. He, then, sent the final pass to the right and towards onrushing MUROYA Sei, who struck the tie-breaker with his right foot, turning the game around 2-1.

Honda did not give up until the final whistle. After 86 minutes, KURIMOTO Hiroki fired a shot from a free kick, which hit the right goalpost. In added time, Kagawa, who reacted to a cross from MIURA Masafumi, fired a volley with his right foot, but was denied by the opponents’ goalkeeper.

Honda, unfortunately, lost the game 1-2 and failed to get through the Round of 16. F.C. Tokyo, who managed to turn the match around, will meet the winner of the game between Kawasaki Frontale (J1) and Urawa Reds (J1) for the quarterfinals on Saturday 24 December. The rest of the Round of 16 games will be held on Saturday 12 November.

Match Details (Japanese version only)

Coaches' and Players' Comments

SHINODA Yoshiyuki, Coach (F.C. Tokyo)
First of all, I’m glad that we managed to advance to the next stage. We were forced to play a tough game, since we conceded an opener in the first half. We were lacking speed, occasionally took too long to make a move, and allowed a goal without threatening the opponents. We must learn a lot from this game. Honda FC were an excellent team—they were dedicated and determined to win, which we may lacked in the game. Since we struggled against them, we’d like to clarify our strengths and weaknesses from this experience. We need to restart our training from tomorrow.

MUROYA Sei (F.C. Tokyo)
(Regarding the goal) NAKAJIMA shook off the opponents’ defender and cut inside, and I timed it well to receive an excellent ball from him. I was facing the goalkeeper one-on-one and I calmly struck the shot, which was a little rare for me. Although I expected a tough match, it was much harder than anticipated, because we let the opponents score the opener. Having said that, we stayed calm in general, finding our rhythm especially in the second half. It was good that we managed the game with composure.

IBATA Hiroyasu, Coach (Honda FC)
Since I’ve been watching the player’s practice everyday, I believe that they could have performed better. So I am not totally convinced with their performance today. When the opponents replaced the fullback in the second half, the situation changed for us. I wish we could have done something sooner. As we have been focusing on offence everyday with a strong belief that we can beat the J1 teams, I feel nothing but frustration about today’s game. The score difference was only one goal, but I personally feel utterly beaten. It was a precious experience. We’d like to learn from today’s game for our future.

KAGAWA Daiki (Honda FC)
It was good that my pass worked well when we scored. We could have struck more goals from our opportunities. At the beginning of the game, I didn’t feel comfortable from lacking the experience in playing big matches, and there were times I passed the ball too hastily.

Looking back at the today’s match, I felt like the opponents let us move the ball around, rather than our passing style worked against them. They didn’t allow us to drive the ball into the critical area near their goal. I saw the level difference there. It’s been six years since I started to play for Honda, and it was my first Emperor's Cup appearance. It is a rare opportunity to play against teams from the J. League. Since my aim is to beat as many professional teams as possible, I’d like to look for more wins in the future.

Round of 16 (Fourth Round) Other Fixtures (11/9)

Round of 16 (Fourth Round) Fixtures (11/12)

Fixtures and Results (Japanese version only)

96th Emperor's Cup All Japan Football Championship

【Round of 16 (fourth round)】 9 November(Wed.) - J.League teams in the second (J2) and the third (J3) divisions advancing to the round of 16; 12 November(Sat.) - Seeded teams of the top division (J1) in the J. League who particiapted in the ACL
【Quarterfinals】24 December (Sat.)
【Semifinals】29 December (Thu.)
【Finals】 1 January 2017／ New Years Day (Sun.)

More Information
Ticket Information (Japanese version only)