Final
4-0 June 7th 2009, 1:04PM Kickoff at Ajinomoto Stadium (Chofu, Tokyo) Attendance 28,235 GK 20 Shuichi Gonda
DF 25 Yuhei Tokunaga
DF 4 Bruno Quadros
DF 6 Yasuyuki Konno
DF 33 Kenta Mukuhara
MF 28 Takuji Yonemoto
MF 10 Yohei Kajiyama
MF 18 Naohiro Ishikawa
MF 22 Naotake Hanyu
FW 24 Shingo Akamine
FW 13 Sota Hirayama Starting Members
GK 33 Takanori Sugeno
DF 25 Yusuke Murakami
DF 3 Naoya Kondo
DF 13 Yuzo Kobayashi
DF 7 Hidekazu Otani
MF 28 Ryoichi Kurisawa
MF 34 Kota Sugiyama
MF 37 Masato Yamazaki
MF 41 Junya Tanaka
FW 15 Minoru Suganuma
FW 9 Hideaki Kitajima 71′ 27 Soutan Tanabe (for Ishikawa)76′ 14 Hokuto Nakamura (for Hanyu)

87′ 19 Yohei Otake (for Hirayama) Substitutes HT 36 Masato Kudo (for Yamazaki)

59′ 11 Popo (for Tanaka)

71′ 2 Kamata (for Sugiyama) 44′ Akamine
55′ Hanyu
62′ Hirayama
69′ Ishikawa Goals Cautions 40′ Katajima
77′ Kamata Ejections

Report

So, let’s take care of the elephant in the room.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=4H-ADHsIzLU

Naohiro Ishikawa, currently tied for the league scoring title (15 goals), went down hard in the process of scoring Tokyo’s fourth goal of the game and was immediately removed by stretcher.  There’s a bit of debate as to whether or not he was fouled by the Kashiwa player… I don’t really think it was anything extreme and it’s the kind of play that could have happened to anyone, which is saying a lot given how rough Kashiwa played over the course of the match.

So, here’s what we know:

-Ishikawa was taken from the pitch to the locker room, where they iced his knee and wrapped it.

-According to postgame comments by Kajiyama, Ishikawa was walking (albeit panfully), under his own power, without crutches.  He was taken by ambulance to a hospital for observation and sent home, and is to receive a full exam today (Monday).

-Ishikawa posted to his blog on Saturday night.  “I have no regrets about the play… I hope that the injury is light, but I’ve had a knee injury before so I have a feeling… I hope that feeling is wrong, though.”

-Reports posted to Twitter on Sunday indicate that Ishikawa stopped by Kodaira Ground in order to receive treatment and was walking without crutches or a wheelchair.

-According to Nikkan Sports, Nao said to reporters “I could swear I heard something in my knee when I fell… I immediately got the sense that it won’t be easy to heal quickly, but we’ll see what the doctors say tomorrow.”  Such a sound could be indicative of ligament damage; a torn ACL would require surgery and 6-9 months of recovery, putting Nao’s hopes of playing in the 2010 World Cup at risk.

-Matsu of The Rising Sun predicts, after looking at the injury video, that Nao sustained a hyperextended knee as opposed to ligament damage.  Such an injury would take at least 2-4 weeks of recovery.

The absolute sunshine-and-rainbows optimistic view is that it’s a hyperextension and Nao could possibly come on as a substitute in the Nabisco Cup game.  Worst-case is that he’s out for at least the rest of this season and the first 2-3 months of next season, and he’d need an absolute miracle to play in South Africa.  In any case it’s an absolute tragedy and the team (and supporters) will have to rally together.

Let’s not let this injury take away from the good parts of the match: Tokyo played a physical game and controlled an equally-physical Kashiwa squad.  Akamine, Hanyu, and Hirayama all had great goals (particularly the defying physics that lead to Hanyu’s score).  Hanyu’s total effort was one goal and 3 assists… but yeah, the air was certainly much, much different after Ishikawa was taken off the field.

Here’s the rest of the highlights from the game.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ae-F0lRzzY

Final
0 -- 3 June 7th 2009, 1PM Kickoff at Hitachi Kashiwa Soccer Stadium (Kashiwa, Chiba) Attendance 10,266 GK 33 Takanori Sugeno
DF 25 Yusuke Murakami
DF 5 Mashiro Koga
DF 13 Yuzo Kobayashi
DF 7 Hidekazu Otani
MF 14 Keisuke Ota
MF 28 Ryoichi Kurisawa
MF 19 Shu Abe
FW 15 Minoru Suganuma
FW 20 Tadanari Lee
FW 9 Hideaki Kitajima Starting Members
GK 20 Shuichi Gonda
DF 25 Yuhei Tokunaga
DF 4 Bruno Quadros
DF 6 Yasuyuki Konno
DF 5 Yuto Nagatomo
MF 28 Takuji Yonemoto
MF 10 Yohei Kajiyama
MF 18 Naohiro Ishikawa
MF 22 Naotake Hanyu
FW 9 Cabore
FW 13 Sota Hirayama 51′ 10 França (for Hideaki Kitajima)
51′ 11 Popo (for Keisuke Ota)
60′ 27 Yuki Otsu (for Tadanari Lee) Substitutes 68′ 27 Sotan Tanabe (for Naotake Hanyu)
71′ 24 Shingo Akamine (for Cabore)
79′ 40 Tatsuya Suzuki (for Sota Hirayama)   Goals 9′ Naohiro Ishikawa
20′ Cabore
46′ Sota Hirayama   Cautions     Ejections  

Report

Unfortunately due to photography commitments I wasn’t able to make the trek out to Hitachi this time, but I would have apparently had a much better time than I did the first time I went there bck in March.

Cabore breaks his slump in league games, Ishikawa moves into a tie for 3rd among goal-scorers (tied for 1st among Japanese players), and the battlin’ monk Hirayama gets his first goal of the season.   Now let’s see them keep it up.

Here’s the video:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=x3rsdKPa5bo

Second Half
1 – 0

Final
3 – 1

89′ 37 Masato Yamazaki (for Hideaki Kajima) Substitutes 52′ 40 Tatuya Suzuki (for Naotake Hanyu)

59′ 24 Shingo Akamine (for Sota Hirayama)

63′ 19 Yohei Otake (for Naohiro Ishikawa) 22′ Iwao Yamane

32′ Popo

47′ Yuki Otsu (PK) Goals 33′ Cabore 73′ Yuta Minami Cautions 31′ Yuhei Tokunaga

46′ Ryuji Fujiyama

71′ Hideki Sahara Ejections

Report

Filling in the report template is already more effort than I wanted to put into the horrendous display put on by FC Tokyo last night in Kashiwa.  Sloppy play, poor passing, reckless fouls, an inability to get the ball into the net despite outshooting the opposition (in this case 21 to 9), you name it.  Even Cabore’s goal, with an empty net begging for the ball, was far from guaranteed until the ball finally went in.  The players were outrun and outgunned and showed their frustration; particularly in the case of Hideki Sahara’s yellow card after getting tangled up with a Kashiwa player.

It’s good to know that the players are frustrated, the supporters are as well.  The fact that Tokyo fans haven’t started booing yet is a miracle in my opinion; the catcalls following the postgame bow to the fans were teetering on that edge.  One wonders what it’s going to take for the team to play up to its potential.  Should Jofuku start benching his experienced players and call up some of his younger recruits?  Will there be a Mike Singletary-esque moment where Jofuku goes off on his team and the assembled press?  Is the answer as simple as Shiota’s return to the posts or as complicated as the entire offensive squad going on a peyote-fueled retreat and finding their power animal?

I don’t have the answer to that, but for the sake of the team and its supporters I hope an answer comes sooner rather than later.

In FC Tokyo’s case, this means five matches played over the span of two weeks, three at home and two away. These matches are against a variety of opponents from all over the table, and how they perform in this period will be as good an indicator as any of what the season holds for the team.

I will not be attending the first match (away at Shimizu) for obvious reasons. However, as I’m a season ticket holder I’ll be at the Oita, Nagoya, and Kashiwa home games, and have procured a ticket to attend the away campaign at Omiya. So, in the interest of not flooding this blog with 20 posts in a week by posting match previews every 24 hours (and in the interest of staying sane by not having to do so), I’m going to preview the upcoming two weeks of insanity here in one big post. Match reports/YouTube roundups will hopefully come after each match and if anything occurs that drastically alters the face of any matches I’ll naturally post that as well.

So, let’s get started with the home team!

Where FC Tokyo Stands

It’s been a long time since the Blue and Red stood alone as high as third place (the last time they were this high in J1 was in 2005, when they spent the first month or two of the season in first place). Trailing last year’s champion Kashima Antlers by two points and the current table leaders Nagoya Grampus by five, FC Tokyo is arguably the hottest team in the league right now – while Nagoya may be in the lead, and teams like Kashima and Urawa may have stronger rosters, Tokyo has youth, poise, and a new sort of confidence that the team – and the fans – have been waiting for. Manager Jofuku has put a team on the field that the supporters expected last year and have been waiting for for the last several years – what remains to be seen is whether that momentum can be sustained.

On the attack side, FC Tokyo is taking more shots, controlling its passing better, and getting around defenders with ease. Newcomer Cabore may not yet be the goal-scoring machine that he was in K.League last year (in fact, he’s has three so far – certainly not bad by any stretch), but he’s creating chances, making key plays, and pulling attention from other defenders, making him just as dangerous. Fellow arrival Hanyu, though he’ll miss the next game with an injury he sustained during the Verdy match, has also performed well and added depth to the lineup. Team elder statesman Yasayuki Konno leads the squad with four goals and is as dangerous as ever in the box, while Shingo Akamine has finally found his groove and pushed the attack.

Yet if any player could be considered to be emblematic of FC Tokyo’s success, it would be young phenom Youhei Otake. Raised through the Tokyo system, and easily spotted among the squad (as he’s a few centimeters shorter than most of his fellow teammates), his speed, passing ability, and pure passion for the game have energized the team and captivated the fans. His first J.League goal, less than 30 seconds after coming onto the field, was a perfect lob that the Kawasaki keeper had no chance of stopping that followed a swift dissection of the Kawasaki defense. Already being referred to by some fans as 神の子 – “Child of the Gods”, Otake will likely be the future face of the team.

Defensively, though the team’s goal differential is only +2, 2008′s defense is a vast improvement over last year’s, and Saturday’s game was as great an indication of that as any. Half a year after getting pounded 7:0 by Kawasaki, FC Tokyo held the Dolphins to two goals that came off of free kicks (the one troubling point on the squad), and neutralized Kawasaki strikers Chong and Juninho. A week earlier, Verdy striker Hulk found himself attacked on all sides for most of the game and was, save for his set-piece goal that was admittedly a beauty, a non-factor. A frequent lament of the team’s performance last year was that every time FC Tokyo would march up the field, they would soon be swarmed on all sides by defenders that seemed to materialize out of nowhere as though they were Agent Smith and his many replicas. These days, the shoe is on the other foot, and boy does it fit great.

There are still a few questions that face the team – the foremost in my opinion being can they stay fit. GK Shiota was helped off the field after Saturday’s game by trainers, and although he’s a tough SOB one can’t help but worry. MF Emerson has been out for several weeks now and his eventual return will only add depth to Tokyo’s attack. Other concerns include the team’s vulnerability to the free kick, their ability to consistently score (one can only hope that the offense clicked during the Kawasaki match and will continue to do so), and their strength against stronger squads. So far Tokyo’s wins have come against Albirex Niigata, Consadole Sapporo, Tokyo Verdy, and Kawasaki Frontale – not exactly the top teams in the league by anyone’ standards. Their one loss came against Yokohama F. Marinos in what was undoubtedly their worst performance, and the team has pulled draws against Vissel Kobe and a surprisingly resilient Kyoto Sanga FC.
All in all, they are winning games they are supposed to win, which is all well and good, but to reach first place the magicians on the squad had better dig deep into their hats and pull out some rabbits. This stretch of games will provide them the perfect opportunity to do so.

Round 8: 04.26 Shimizu S-Pulse vs. FC Tokyo at Nihondaira Stadium

Shimizu presents a dangerous matchup for FC Tokyo – while the team is undefeated in the Nabisco Cup group stage (including a win against FC Tokyo and a win and draw against Tokyo Verdy), in league play they have only 5 points to their name, hovering above the relegation zone along with Albirex Niigata. Their last game was a convincing draw against Yokohama F. Marinos that did nothing else if not prove that S-Pulse hasn’t lost its energy from last season. Where Shimizu has lacked so far this year is in the goal department – they’ve put five on the board in the first seven games of the year, tied for the lowest in the league with Albirex. If FC Tokyo can keep Shimizu off the board and their offense continues to click as it has in the last couple games, this should be a relatively easy three points.

Round 9: 04.29 FC Tokyo vs. Oita Trinita at Ajinomoto Stadium

Truth be told… I really have no idea how Oita is performing this season. Apparently they’re in the middle of the table. I think we may have lost to them last year, I could be wrong. In any case I don’t think predicting a Tokyo victory would be unreasonable, but someone correct me if I’m mistaken.

Round 10: 05.03 Omiya Ardija vs. FC Tokyo at NACK5 Stadium

In what could be the most intriguing match in this strech (if not the highest-profile; that honor goes to the Nagoya campaign), FC Tokyo travels north to take on the “other” Saitama team – a surprisingly resilient Omiya Ardija squad that has gone from a team that just barely avoided relegation to a mid-table contender. Omiya’s match on Sunday, a well-fought 0-0 draw away at Urawa, proved that though they lack depth, they do not lack skill or passion which, when concentrated enough, will beat an expensive roster such as the Reds’ 9 times out of 10.

Win, lose, or draw, this will be a fun and entertaining match – the visitor’s stand at NACK5 (which I’m referring to from now on as 靴箱競技場) sold out in about a day or two and FC Tokyo fans are scrambling to get tickets in the back stand as they come out to visit Squirrel Nation. Omiya, for its part, will open the sprint by playing home against Kashima and away at Gamba Osaka. Following their near-upset of Urawa, fans across J.League will surely be tuning into those two games and FC Tokyo would be advised to take notes as well.

Round 11: 05.06 FC Tokyo vs. Nagoya Grampus at Ajinomoto Stadium

Depending on Tokyo’s performance in the first three matches of the spring, this could be the match that defines how our season will play out. Nagoya is currently the strongest team in J1, with an unbeaten record that includes having won the last six games including wins against ladder-toppers Yokohama FM and Urawa. The team is high on new head coach Pixy’s dust but whether they will continue to be strong or flame out early like they did last year is yet to be seen. For what it’s worth, Nagoya’s three opponents before the Tokyo match include away at Verdy (which, given Verdy’s latest performances without Hulk, will likely be the equivalent of stealing candy from a small retarded child), home against Kawasaki, and away at Osaka.

Round 12: 05.10 FC Tokyo vs. Kashiwa Reysol at Ajinomoto Stadium

Just when you expect that most teams in J1 are about to fall over from exhaustion, one last Saturday game gets attached to the schedule to test the mettle of both the players and hardcore supporters alike. Kashima is currently hanging tough on the lower half of the table and could prove to be a reasonable threat to Tokyo – then again given that all 18 J1 teams will endure similar schedules, Kashiwa may be ready to collapse as well.

As far as my predictions – the “middle of the road” prediction is two wins (Shimizu and Oita), two draws (Omiya and Kashiwa), and one loss (Grampus). Optimistic would be 3 wins (Shimizu, Oita, Kashiwa) and one draw (Nagoya), with Omiya as a game that could net Tokyo either one point or three. Conservative would be one win (Shimizu) two draws (Oita, Kashiwa) and two losses (Omiya, Nagoya). I think if one is to predict based on the assumption that Tokyo is the “favorite” for all but the Nagoya match, the only team with the potential footing for an upset is Omiya.

So, to sum things up, this sprint should be good for FC Tokyo and at the end we’ll most likely be in the top half of the ladder.  I’m attending a concert in town tomorrow but I may try to find a sports bar that w