Six goals in four games on Saturday were followed by 24 goals in five games on Sunday! Gamba stay top, with a mini-pack on their heels.SundayKashiwa Reysol 3-2 Kawasaki Frontale Kashiwa 10,703Cerezo Osaka 3-1 Urawa Reds Nagai 26,248Vissel Kobe 0-4 Gamba Osaka HOME’S 17,177Kashima Antlers 6-0 Avispa Fukuoka Kashima 13,434Nagoya Grampus 4-1 Ventforet Kofu Toyota.S 19,061SaturdayOmiya Ardija 2-0 Jubilo Iwata NACK5.S 10,013Shimizu S-Pulse 0-0 Yokohama F.Marinos OUTSOURCING.S 17,162Sanfrecce Hiroshima 1-0 Albirex Niigata Hiroshima.B 14,852Vegalta Sendai 2-1 Montedio Yamagata Yurtec.S 19,087

A JSoccer Magazine group went out to see this Kansai Derby – there was never any doubt of the result!

Japan squad announced to open their World Cup qualifying campaign at home to North Korea in Saitama on 2 September, and away in Uzbekistan on 6th.GKs Kawashima, Nishikawa, GondaDFs Komano, Konno, Kurihara, Inoha, Makino, Uchida, YoshidaMFs Endo, Kiyotake, K.Nakamura, Abe, Hasebe, Hosogai, KashiwagiFWs Lee, Okazaki, Honda, Morimoto, Kagawa, Haraguchi.

Here’s a story that I was asked to write for Shukan Soccer Magazine, which will be translated into Japanese and used in the next issue. So a sneak preview for you. Kiyotake, as regulars will know I have said over and over, will be a STAR! But I am hoping he will stick around in Japan for a little longer, yet!

Ryo Miyaichi in the Arsenal squad for this weekend’s Liverpool match, although Arsene Wenger has stated that he’ll need time to settle to Premier League pace, so we can hope, but not expect to see him in the next few weeks?! Remember JSoccer.com told you about Ryo early last year – finally the world will get to see what we knew on this page long ago!?

Grampus come away with a point that coach Piksi was more than happy to admit was, in a way, undeserved, with Gamba creating so much. Yet Grampus never gave up and “playing for a draw in our dressing room is forbidden”, said the Nagoya coach. Nagoya stay top of J1 … Stoijkvic said, “Now all teams have played the same number of games and we go into the final part of the season all level, but we are on top when it matter now. And I think we can stay there and win another Championship”.

Sanfrecce Hiroshima 0-3 Nagoya GrampusAlbirex Niigata 2-3 Urawa RedsJubilo Iwata 6-1 Kashiwa ReysolAvispa Fukuoka 2-1 Kawasaki FrontaleShimizu S-Pulse 3-0 Omiya ArdijaVegalta Sendai 0-1 Kashima AntlersYamagata Montedio 3-1 Ventforet KofuCerezo Osaka 1-1 Gamba OsakaVissel Kobe 2-0 Yokohama F.MarinosNagoya move top with impressive away win at Sanfrecce and remain unbeaten since May. They also have a game in hand, against Gamba Osaka tomorrow night!Reds took an away win from Albirex, with Naoki Yamada (featured on the back of JSoccer Magazine) scoring and generally showing us all that he over his long-term injuries.Jubilo Iwata stuffed Kashiwa Reysol 6-1, putting a dent in the goal difference of Reysol as Gamba and Nagoya put the pressure on.Hisashi Jogo netted two goals as Avispa sent Frontale to their 4th defeat in a row and it’s looking like Frontale are in decline?Shimizu’s inconsistent season took an upward turn this weekend with an emphatic 3-0 win against Ardija.Kashima Antlers needed a PK to take the points away at Sendai.Montedio got themselves three goals and three points off Kofu in the battle of the teams trying not to join Avispa in relegation?!Cerezo held on for a home draw in the Osaka Derby as Gamba took 70% possession – or so it seemed – but failed to convert chances.Vissel Kobe continued their fine run with a 2-0 win against high-flying, but faltering Yokohama F.Marinos.Gamba Osaka entertain Nagoya Grampus on Wednesday night and will take top spot with a win. Grampus can open up a gap if they take maximum points.

Wednesday night, August 17th, kick off 19.00 sees two big games, for different reasons – Gamba Osaka v. Nagoya Grampus in a battle for the top spot, and Kashima Antlers v. Cerezo Osaka, to gain points to pull away from the relegation-threatened pack. These games are the games in hand that the four ACL clubs have held since it was held back from the 3rd May to allow those clubs time for an ACL game to be played. With Reysol losing 6-1 to Jubilo yesterday, the goal difference of the Sun Kings took a huge hit. F Marinos were taken out by Vissel Kobe and dropped away, and Nagoya took full advantage by beating Sanfrecce away (while Gamba drew at Cerezo) and moving to the top.Wednesday night’s game will see Nagoya pull clear at the top if they can come away with a win, or even a draw, while Gamba can take over the top spot with a win. So it’s an early title decider??!

Yes, we’re hearing that he has been granted a working visa … hot off the press from London!

The big story, of course, this week, was the death of Naoki Matsuda aged just 34 … this, understandably was on everyone’s mind this week. See the JSoccer.com tribute elsewhere on this site.There was a moment of silence before every game today, of course, and On the Reysol bench was Masami Ihara, long-term defensive partner of Matsuda and now a coach at Kashiwa. Leandro Domingues opened the scoring for Kashiwa Reysol early on in the battle for the top spot against Yokohama F.Marinos. The Reysol no.10 then set up his compatriot Jorge Wagner for the second Reysol goal in the 2nd half. Shunsuke Nakamura hit a post with a curling free kick late on but Reysol took the points.In Saitama, Vissel Kobe took a 2-0 1st half lead through a brace from Takayuki Yoshida – dedicating each goal to his ex-team mate Matsuda by holding his three fingers in the air, signifying Matsuda’s number for Marinos. Mazolla and Tatsuya Tanaka came on for the 2nd half and each scored a goal to bring the game level before a rash Marcio Richardes tackle took down Hideo Tanaka, as he was about to unleash the shot, for a PK, which Yoshito Okubo duly converted, VERY coolly, a-la-Endo, for a very important three points for Vissel.Ventforet entertained Sanfrecce Hiroshima, hoping for the points to pull them out of the danger zone, while Sanfrecce were hoping to stay in touch at the top. Tadanari Lee conveyed a PK that he had earned himself to open the scoring for the away team and Hisato Sato lobbed the keeper from the edge of the area to take the points for Sanfrecce, 2-0.Cerezo Osaka visited Kawasaki Frontale and Kiyotake nudged home a near post corner, before sending a superb through ball for Kurata to make it 2-0 before half time. Frontale pulled a goal back through Noborizato. But the points went to Cerezo.Nozawa opened the scoring for Kashima Antlers from a trademark free kick, before Osaka made it 2-0 with a pointblank prod home from an Endo low cross. Ota pulled one back for the away team before Araiiba twisted and turned as he cut in from the left and made it 3-1 with a shot across the keeper and into the corner, giving Antlers a confidence-boosting three points.Albirex Niigata annihilated visitors Shimizu S-Pulse, although three of their four goals came in the last 30 minutes. Michel got a couple for the winning Orange!