Previews

J1 Preview Nov.7th 19.00 – Vegalta Sendai vs Cerezo Osaka at Yurtec

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Team News – Cerezo Osaka – no players suspended, no injuries reported!
Vegalta Sendai – DF/MF Kakuda is suspended. No reported injuries.

Head to Head – 2009 J2 since Cerezo won this match. In 19 games since 2003, Sendai have won 9, Cerezo 5, with 5 draws.

Match Preview – Vegalta Sendai know that the J.League Championship is, again, in their own hands. Repeated dropped points by all three top teams has left the title race close and, with four games to go, the top two teams are still locked together, clear of the chasing Urawa Reds. But Shimizu S-Pulse may yet have a say! Cerezo are in better form that Vegalta, and, barring ridiculous mathematical combinations of results, must be safe. So no pressure and a good game from them or no pressure, so they relax and give it away. Which Cerezo will turn up today?

Vegalta Sendai have home advantage and know they MUST win this, considering that their rivals for the title have Consadole Sapporo as opponents today. Akamine is in fine form and Wilson has found his touch again, recently. Surprisingly enough, Vegalta do not seem to have missed the in and out form (and injury) of Sekiguchi, who was touted as the next player to go overseas last season. Tehir deoth may help in the last few games. EXPECT a WIN for VEGALTA SENDAI!

In the Mix, Previews

J1 Preview Nov.7th 19.00 – Sagan Tosu vs Jubilo Iwata at Saga

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Team News
Sagan Tosu – MFs Fujita and Kim are suspended. DF Yeo will be out for the rest of the season.
Jubilo Iwata – Still missing MFs Matsuoka and Baek, long term injuries.

Head to Head – One win each in only two historical meetings between these two clubs… Jubilo won the J1 encounter in this season, Tosu won in the Nabisco Cup.

Match Preview Both teams have little left to play for and the home team will be OK with that. Sagan Tosu, in their first season in the top flight, surprised many, including themselves, perhaps and were riding a wave for quite a while. Three losses in their last five matches have seen them drop away from that dream of an ACL spot, although still only five points off it – very much possible, in theory! Jubilo Iwata, on the other hand have not won in their last five, two draws and three losses have seen them plummet to 10th although, with the division so close in the middle, they are still only six points of 3rd and nothing is impossible in J1. A weak start, for me, was improved when they signed Baek and an injury to that player saw them lose form again – what an influence he has been.

Talking of influences, though, Sagan will also be missing an influential Korean in Kim and could suffer through that. With Fujita out too, their attack may suffer, although their home defensive performances have been excellent and that should not change today. Just 33 goals conceded all season means they are always in with a chance of a draw or a low-scoring win. I think today we will see a WIN for SAGAN TOSU!

In the Mix, Previews

J1 Preview Nov.7th 19.00 – Sanfrecce Hiroshima vs Consadole Sapporo at Big Arch

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Team News
Sanfrecce Hiroshima – MF Notsuda will miss the game on Japan U-19 duty.
Consadole Sapporo – MF Sakaki will miss the game on Japan U-19 duty. DF North is undergoing tests, FW Maeda may be back from injury, fitness tests.

Head to Head – In 2003 J2 play Sanfrecce won 3 out of 4 then and won their encounter this season in J1. Just the one draw for Consadole in five outings.

Match Preview – who can see anything else but a win for the top team against the bottom team here today? Consadole Sapporo have never beaten Sanfrecce and lost at home, easily, earlier in the season. Sapporo’s injury list is still long, but shortening slowly, and Kondo and Maeda, if fit, would be adecent forward line, but ateam that has scored just 22 goals all season against a Sanfrecce team that has conceded just 31? Don’t expect an away win here today!

Sanfrecce Hiroshima know they MUST put the wins together in the final month of the season to ward off Vegalta Sendai and, who knows, S-Pulse – if they put a decent run together. Simply put, wins for Sanfrecce (and Vegalta) mean S-Pulse can not catch them. One less team to worry about on the final day?! Surely Sanfrecce won’t waste this chance to keep the pressure up on those chasing them, and, perhaps to improve their goal difference at the same time?! Bad timing on transfer rumours that Moriwaki has been approached by Urawa Reds – perhaps intentionally released by Reds! Hopefully, for Sanfrecce fans, that won’t unsettle the, EXPECT a WIN for SANFRECCE HIROSHIMA!

In the Mix, Previews

J1 Preview Nov.7th 19.00 – Vissel Kobe vs Yokohama F. Marinos at Home's

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Team News
Vissel Kobe – DF Iwanami will miss the game on Japan U-19 duty. GK Tokushige and DF Hayashi definitely out. FW Ogawa is back in training, a possible selection. FW Yoshida and DF Soma undergoing fitness tests.
Yokohama F.Marinos – DF Amano is a long term absentee who is now back in training, but not yet fit?

Head to Head – 8 wins for Marinos, just 4 for Vissel and NINE draws in this fixture since 2003.

Match Preview – Vissel Kobe went through September with loss after loss – October is was draws galore, so November starts with a win? They are just three points above Gamba Osaka in the final relegation spot, and only five above Niigata one spot below. A win here would go a LONG way to ensuring safety in J1 and allow them to build on the fine young players that they have. Injuries and bad luck have plagued the team and they SHOULD be higher than they are. Relegation would not do them justice, and could well see them lose thee promise of the likes of Ogawa, Morioka and Inui, among others, as J1 teams snap them up.

Yokohama F.Marinos are in 7th position, five points off an ACL spot which must seem far away now but is much closer than it ever would have seemed after their dire start to the season. Rumours of Nakamura moving back to Celtic abound right now, and may unsettle the team, or give the fans something to attack the team with, and the promise of Yuji Ono in 2011 has completely disappeared this season. Just 38 goals in their 30 games so far has not been good enough, although their defence is the best in J1 up to now. more goals, more points, more confidence, they could be much higher – find a natural goalscorer and have a great 2013? For now, they have little to play for and may suffer in this game. EXPECT a WIN for VISSEL KOBE!

In the Mix, Previews

J1 Preview Nov.7th 19.00 – Nagoya Grampus vs FC Tokyo at Mizuho

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Team News
Nagoya Grampus – MF Taguchi is suspended. MF Tanabe and DF Sato will miss the game on Japan U-19 duty. FW Kennedy has recurrence of back injury and not expected to be fit. MF Isomura is back in training after long injury break.
FC Tokyo – MF Hasegawa is suspended, MF Hashimoto will miss the game on Japan U-19 duty. DF Ota and MF Kaga are back in training and could be selected. DF Hiramatsu and MF are long term injuries.

Head to Head – Since 2003 it’s 10 wins for Tokyo, 6 for Nagoya and 4 draws. FC Tokyo won the home leg of this fixture earlier this season.

Match Preview – A mid-table match-up? Or a couple of teams still with slim chances of ACL qualification? Either way I am not expecting too much from this one! Both teams have had injury-hit, inconsistent seasons with big wins and unexpected defeats and will be happy to start afresh in 2013, I am sure. The return of Kennedy seemed to boost Grampus, and he certainly creates space and chances for Nagai, but the Australian is injured again – a big loss, perhaps. Home advantage and the wrath of manager Stojkovic over recently lost points may well be the catalyst that gives Nagoya this match?

FC Tokyo – a win and a draw after some bad results recently have given FC Tokyo some impetus as the season draws to a close. They are safe from relegation and, who knows, a few wins in the final month could see them challenging for that 3rd ACL spot – a long shot but worth considering, and well worth them doing their best to win this as it would take them above today’s opponents, and there is some cash at stake too, depending on the finishing position in J1! Hasegawa is missing, suspended, but their injury list is clearing up. Players fighting for a new contract, perhaps, after injury-hit seasons, could pull them through this one – I’ll go for A DRAW though!

In the Mix, National Team, Reports

Kuwait 0-1 Japan AFC U19 Championship – Iwanami (45+3)

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Superb Ronaldo-esque back heel flick from a free kick by Iwanami gives Japan the points in a game that they were barely out of 2nd gear in, on a pitch not conducive to the passing game. Were those things connected, were Japan “taking it easy”? I certainly believe they could have easily given more, or should have and there’s plenty in reserve for their match against the hosts – UAE – on Wednesday night. The group is poised to go down to the last minutes of those games on Wednesday with UAE, Iran and Japan fighting it out. A win is what is needed by the Young Samurai Blue!

National Team, Reports

Japan v Kuwait tonight – MUST-WIN for U19 National team Boys!

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Japan began their AFC Under 19 tournament with a 2-0 loss to Iran on an early goal from Behnam Barzay and a clincher 2-0 goal just before the hour mark from Hossein Fazeli. Japan tried to get back into the game – substitutes Kosuke Onosa and Ryuta Tanabe were thrown on – but were unsuccessful in this opening match and, taken with the 1-1 draw between UAE and Kuwait in the group’s other game, Japan find themselves at the bottom of the group.

The young Samurai Blue take on Kuwait on Monday night knowing nothing less than a win will keep them in the competition in the UAE. They face the hosts on Wednesday night in what may be a match to decide the group winners.

The four semi-finalists of this 16-team tournament will automatically qualify for the U-20 World Cup in 2013 in Colombia.