Tag Archives: Hiroshima

Previews

Vissel Kobe vs Sanfrecce Hiroshima at Home's Stadium 15.30, Dec.1st

Leave a comment

Team News
Vissel Kobe – MF Tanaka is suspended. FW Yoshida undergoing tests, DF Hayashi out for the season.
Sanfrecce Hiroshima – no suspensions,

Head to Head – 9 wins for Sanfrecce, just 2 for Vissel, and 4 draws since 2004.

Match Preview – Vissel Kobe simply need a win to save themselves. A draw would see both Gamba and Albirex able to overtake them with a win. If Cerezo, one place above Vissel lose, it would allow Vissel to overtake them . . . plenty of permutations and Vissel have their fate in their own hands, unlike Gamba and Albirex below them. Tanaka is suspended while Sanfrecce have no suspensions or injuries or . . . anything to play for!

Sanfrecce clinched the Championship last week and could well be hungover, or just simply unmotivated. Either way Vissel fans will be hoping for an underpar Championship-winning team to visit! Vissel have previous experience in surviving on the final day and this could stand them in good stead for this huge game. Vissel fired coach Nishino two games back and caretaker boss Ryo Adachi won the first match in charge (again – he also took over Vissel temporarily earlier in the season when coach Wada was moved on!) but went down, narrowly, to Kashiwa Reysol, with ten men for the best part of the game, and now find themselves with this final big match to finish off the season, again! This is tough to call but I think we should EXPECT a DRAW – which may still not be enough for Vissel!

In the Mix, Previews

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

Leave a comment

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!

Previews

J1 Preview – Sat. October 27th – 14:00 Gamba Osaka v. Sanfrecce Hiroshima at Banpaku Stadium

Leave a comment

Team News – Gamba Osaka – MF Kurata is suspended. FW Sato is out for at least six months with cruciate ligament injury.
Sanfrecce Hiroshima – MF Notsuda will miss the game on Japan U-19 duty.

Head to Head – 12 wins for Gamba, five for Sanfrecce and four draws over the last decade.

Match Preview – Gamba took a big away win at Frontale last week, and added it to big away wins over the likes of Reds and Grampus BUT they seem to struggle more at home. With five games to go the away days may be easier on the players, with less fans on their backs if things go wrong? An early goal will settle the fans – if it’s for Gamba! otherwise, expect a tough time … and, let’s face it, even if Gamba score early, they won’t keep a clean sheet, will they? This will not be a 1-0 win! Gamba suffered a blow when they lost FW Sato to a knee injury until well into 2013, but Ienaga stepped up with two goals last weekend and looks to be settling in nicely, finally.

Sanfrecce Hiroshima have suffered the curse of the top team more than once this season. It struck again last week, the team going down to a last-gasp winner for Reysol, at home and will be looking to make amends and stay clear of Vegalta Sendai, albeit on goal difference only, if both teams win this time around. We are looking at the two biggest scorers in J1 (Gamba with 57, trump Sanfrecce’s 54) so I believe we can EXPECT a HIGH-SCORING DRAW today!

In the Mix, Previews

J1 Preview – Yokohama F.Marinos vs Sanfrecce Hiroshima at Nissan Stadium – Oct.6, Matchday 28

Leave a comment

Team News
Yokohama F.Marinos – DF Kurihara, MF Tomisawa, FW Marquinos are all suspended. No new injuries reported, MF Taniguchi is touch and go.
Sanfrecce Hiroshima – DF Moriwaki is suspended. No injuries reported.

Head to Head – 16 meetings since 2004, with Marinos winning 8, Sanfrecce 5 and 3 draws.

Match Preview – Sanfrecce have won their last three as Sendai have faltered and now enjoy a five point lead at the top. This is often the time that a J1 team bottles it – it happens over and over, the team at the top, fail to extend their lead. Let’s see what Sanfrecce can do – they have little experience of holding on to the top spot, but their fate is in their own hands and nothing less than a win is what they will want. Urawa Reds will be looking for any hiccup to take advantage and close in. The influential Moriwaki is suspended and will be missed, not least in the goal celebrations! Hiroshima won 4-1 last week against Tosu, although they scored from a doubtful PK and then a shot that saw deflections galore – of course, they deserved the win, but the luck is going their way too. Will it continue?
Since their long unbeaten run Yokohama F.Marinos have lost three-in-a-row before they beat Antlers, and then drew with Ardija last week to arrest that slide. The likes of Ono are not coming up with the goals, and Marquinos is suspended, can they hold off a rampant Sanfrecce for another 0-0 draw? I think so – EXPECT a (scoreless?) DRAW!

In the Mix, Previews

JSoccer Magazine J1 Preview Sept.22nd, Matchday 26 – 19:00 Nagoya Grampus vs Sanfrecce Hiroshima at Mizuho Athletic Stadium

Leave a comment

Nagoya Grampus – FW Nagai is suspended. MF Isomura out long-term.
Sanfrecce Hiroshima – MFs Nakajima and Mikic, and DF Hwang will be missing through injury.

6 wins for Nagoya, 3 for Hiroshima and 6 draws since 2004.

Nagoya Grampus took out Cerezo Osaka away last weekend, but the top team will be a different proposition altogether! With three wins in a row, and Josh Kennedy finally back on the field, the team will be quietly confident that they can make up the six points and attack the top of the division but a game against any team above them is a must-win if they are to have any chance of cancelling out their points deficit over the next two months in the final run-up. Nagai will be missing through suspension but, in Tamada, Kanazaki and Kennedy, Nagoya have more than enough firepower at their disposal, but does their defence have the organisational skills to hold back Sato, Takahagi and co?

Sanfrecce took the top spot by winning a vital six-pointer battle of the top two last weekend and will be confident that they can continue, as well as being under no illusions of what they have to do to keep hold of pole position as the final straight of the season looms! Mikic’s creation will be a big loss but Takahagi is doing his best to supply, and catch the eye of Zaccheroni at the same time, perhaps!? Sato just puts the goals in when given the chance, so Tulio and his crew at the back for Nagoya will have their hands full in this match. It’s well known that the team at the top of J1 are under the most pressure and reaching the summit often means the next match is lost – I am following that principle here today! Nagoya also will know that if they win this match they will be within four points of Sanfrecce!
EXPECT a WIN for NAGOYA GRAMPUS!

Previews

J1 Preview – Sat. Sept.15th – 19:00 Sanfrecce Hiroshima vs Vegalta Sendai at Hiroshima Big Arch

Leave a comment

Sanfrecce Hiroshima – MF Mikic is out, along with MF Nakajima. MF Yamagishi may be ready to return from injury.
Vegalta Sendai – FW Muto is injured, DF Harada is doubtful

In 2008 J2, then J1 since 2010 there have been 9 meetings between the teams, 2 wins for Vegalta, 1 for Sanfrecce and SIX draws!

This is the epitome of the six-pointer at the top of the league … these two teams have switched places at the top for the last few weeks and have almost identical scoring, conceding and goal difference records, so a win for either will really create a gap that neither can afford the other to have. Vegalta sit a point clear right now, having won their last two matches, while Sanfrecce only managed a win and a draw. Sanfrecce, it should also be noted, lost in the Emperor’s Cup last week, so will be looking to make amends / concentrate on the league and will have their home fans to pacify after last weekend’s pathetic loss. While they will be missing influential midfielder Mikic and Nakajima from the middle, they have the squad to cover and will be giving their all.

Vegalta Sendai narrowly overcame neighbours Sony Sendai in the Cup last week and have no major injuries to worry about and have won two and drawn one since their shock defeat to Consadole Sapporo last month. Their bubble burst in the run-in last season and they eventually fell out of the ACL places, will that experience see them in good stead for this year, or will the run come to an end soon? I can’t see them keeping it going for much longer but I think they will be motivated enough to deny Sanfrecce a victory here, doing enough to allow Urawa Reds to keep in touch with both of these teams.
EXPECT a DRAW!

Previews

J1 Preview Aug.25th – 19:00 Sanfrecce Hiroshima vs FC Tokyo at Hiroshima Big Arch

Leave a comment

FC Tokyo – MF Otake out for the season, DFs Ota, Jang and Hiramatsu out for a few more weeks each, no news on FW Hirayama from the club, MF Hanyu may be set to return but needs match fitness.

Head to Head – 7 wins for Sanfrecce, just one for FC Tokyo and 5 draws since 2004, all in J1.

Sanfrecce Hiroshima sit atop the J.League four points clear of Vegalta Sendai, after the clubs around them all dropped points recently. Having said that, Sanfrecce themselves lost at home to S-Pulse when they topped the division two weeks ago so anything can happen with the “Curse of the Top Team” in J1! But FC Tokyo are seriously tiring and showing dire form right now, with fans seriously worried about them dropping into the relegation battle after such a good start to the season. A win for FC Tokyo here would settle the team, go some way to rebuilding shattered confidence and pull them away from a potential nail-biting final two months. But Tokyo are beset with injuries and inconsistencies and I can’t see them taking out a Sanfrecce riding high at the top, especially if Hisashi Sato – J1 top scorer – is allowed time in front of goal.
With five or six teams poised to challenge, if a decent run can be ut together, the fate of Sanfrecce’s Championship aim is in their own hands now and I can not see them losing today.
EXPECT a WIN for SANFRECCE HIROSHIMA!

Previews

J1 Preview Aug.18th – 19:00 Albirex Niigata vs Sanfrecce Hiroshima at Tohoku Den

Leave a comment

Albirex Niigata – DF Suzuki returns from the Olympics. DF Uchida out for the season. FW Musashi Suzuki out for three months.

Sanfrecce Hiroshima – MF Hwang is back from Korea’s Olympic outing.

10 wins for Sanfrecce, 5 for Albirex, and 7 draws since 2003, that season being in J2 before both teams entered J1.

Sanfrecce are top of J1, and well-deserving of the position. But the last time they made the summit they lost their next game. if they are to win J1 they need to kill off opponents and beat the pressure that they feel. Albirex Niigata are slowly sliding into J2, even though they have won 2 of their last 5 games. FC Tokyo and Consadole Sapporo were their victims, but I can’t see them adding Sanfrecce’s scalp to that list. The likes of Bruno Lopes, HIrai and Yano are just not scoring goals, or looking confident in front of goal – just 15 goals in 21 games says it all. That’s level with Sapporo’s goalscoring record. Having noted their forwards’ lack of goals, the Albirex defence should be commended for only conceding 25 goals – almost comparable to teams like Vegalta (20) or Sanfrecce themselves (23), but those teams score goals also.

This may be low-scoring but EXPECT a WIN for SANFECCE HIROSHIMA!

Previews

Sanfrecce Hiroshima v. Albirex Niigata – preview May 3rd

Leave a comment

Sanfrecce too Strong for Struggling Niigata!

Sanfrecce Hiroshima – Kazuyuki Morisaki is suspended.
Albirex Niigata – Bruno Lopes is suspended.

Sanfrecce Hiroshima (P8 W5 D1 L2 GD +8) walked all over Kawasaki Frontale at the weekend, away from home to boot, and will be looking to increase the pressure on runaway leaders Vegalta Sendai in this game. Against a team second from bottom after eight games they must fancy themselves to score a few goals! Hisashi Sato is in fine form and his supply from Mikic, in particular, on the right wing is paying huge dividends. Expect more goals for Sanfrecce today.

Albirex Niigata are just dire … EXPECT a WIN for SANFRECCE HIROSHIMA!