The centre forward turned centre back who was on loan at Sagan Tosu in 2012, from Yokohama F.Marinos has been snapped up by Albirex Niigata … he could be a ready-made replacement for a certain highly-rated centre back that just LEFT Niigata!
Tag Archives: Niigata
Albirex Niigata vs Consadole Sapporo at Tohoku Den 15.30, Dec.1st
Team News
Albirex Niigata – FW Michel is suspended, GK Higashiguchi and MF Uchida Consadole Sapporo are long-term injuries.
Consadole Sapporo – no suspensions, DF Osanai is out injured, MF Miyazawa is in training but would probably not be risked in a meaningless game?
Head to Head – 5 wins for Albirex, 2 for Consadole and 1 draw. Sapporo’s 2 wins both came in J2 in 2003, though!
Match Preview – it all comes down to this match and Albirex Niigata know they MUST win this match to have any chance of staying in J1. if they can win this and Vissel Kobe AND Gamba Osaka get anything less than wins then Albirex can leap frog those two teams and survive. A tall order but nothing is impossible in the J.League! The fact that they are playing the bottom team, long-relegated, nothing to play for, at home can only help, surely! Two away wins in their last four games has got them to this position, but it is two home defeats in those four games that have kept them down here. Is it a home jinx? Are the fans on their backs? Will the pressure be too much?
Consadole Sapporo have lost their last four, conceding 13 goals in that time and have only pride left to play for. Hang on, maybe they don’t have any pride left? We shall see! 27 defeats out of 33 games is soul-destroying for anyone and being away from home on the final day, they will have few fans to play for. I see a team playing out their final game trying not to concede more goals against a team that are under o much pressure to score, yet have manged only 20 goals in 32 games this season (discounting a freak 5-0 win in there somewhere). EXPECT a low-scoring DRAW and relegation for Albirex.
J.League J1 Preview Matchday 32 – 14:00 Albirex Niigata vs Kawasaki Frontale at Tohoku Den
Team News
Albirex Niigata – GK Higashiguchi and back-up GK Watanabe both out long-term. MF Uchida out for the season.
Kawasaki Frontale – DF Morishita is back in training after a long injury.
Head to Head
10 wins for Albirex, 8 for Frontale and just one draw over a decade of meetings.
Match Preview
Albirex Niigata dug out a vital away win at S-Pulse last time out and therefore kept in contention for safety, leveling up on points with Gamba Osaka, although 9 goals behind on goal difference, which could be vital on that final day. The defining fact from their season has been that they have scored only 24 goals in 31 games so far – that’s just two goals more than relegated Sapporo or, to out it another way, only four goals more than Sanfrecce’s Hisato Sato. But for the fact that their defence has conceded just one more goal than top team Sanfrecce they would have been relegated long ago. Although Albirex rarely score, Frontale do let a lot of goals in so Albirex need to find the net if they are to win this!
Kawasaki Frontale’s win over Urawa Reds last game out saw them reach 43 points and safety, if not mathematically, virtually! A single point from three games will be enough to make 100% sure of Frontale’s safety, and they would like to see that sooner rather than later, I am sure. An away draw with Vissel, and then that home win over Reds sees them in reasonable form and scoring goals – if Renato continues his sudden return to form Albirex will find themselves in deeper trouble by the end of the day here. EXPECT a WIN for KAWASAKI FRONTALE!
J1 Preview Nov.7th 19.00 – Shimizu S-Pulse vs Albirex Niigata at Outsourcing
Team News
Shimizu S-Pulse – FW Kim is suspended. No reported injuries but FW Omae and DF Jong-a-Pin not 100%.
Albirex Niigata – DF Kawaguchi will miss the game on Japan U-19 duty. MF Uchida is out long term.
Head to Head – 9 wins for Albirex, 8 for S-Pulse and 5 draws over 22 matches since 2004.
Match Preview – It seems many games in these final weeks will be must-win for one team or the other, none more so that Albirex Niigata in this battle of the orange! A loss for Niigata will see them fall further back in the race for safety, but they will find it hard against a team smarting from a Nabisco Cup Final defeat! Albirex are also without their ace keeper Higashiguchi, who has been the lynchpin of an excellent defensive record this season (if only they could score goals, too!).
As noted, Shimizu S-Pulse will want to bounce back from their cup final defeat and home advantage will only help them regain confidence. The team was an average age of just 23 in the Nabsico Cup Final, but the experience will only help them grow. They know that an ACL place is up for grabs and they are on form. They may even feel, if results go their way, a 2nd place or even the Champinship is still within reach. They won’t let that chance go. The fitness of Calvin Jong-a-Pin may be an issue, but they have the players to get around that if he doesn’t make it. They are starting games with many youngsters, but the experience they are gaining can only be good (average age of starting XI in the Nabisco Cup FInal was exactly 23!). EXPECT a WIN for SHIMIZU S-PULSE!
J1 Preview – Sat. October 27th – 17:00 Albirex Niigata v. Sagan Tosu at Tohoku Den Stadium
Team News – Albirex Niigata – DF Suzuki is suspended. DF Kawaguchi will miss the game on Japan U-19 duty. MF Nakamura back in training. GK Higashiguchi out for the season and more.
Sagan Tosu – DF Yeo will be out for the rest of the season.
Head to Head – Four wins for Albirex, to one for Sagan and no draws. Albirex’s wins were all in J2. Sagan won their previous J1 encounter earlier this season.
Match Preview –
Albirex Niigata look doomed to J2, and have done for a long time. A freak 5-0 win against Nagoya Grampus gave them 5 of their 23 season goals – just 18 goals in their other 28 matches is a pathetic haul which does not do their quite decent defensive record justice. Their goals conceded column matches top team Sanfrecce and they can expect to lose a defender or two to other teams if they do drop to J2 – which they will if they do not score goals against Sagan Tosu today – this could well be their last chance with Gamba and Omiya in decent form going into the final five games.
Sagan, on the other hand, have lost four of their last five after their bubble finally burst? They have dropped down to 9th and are mathematically still not safe from relegation! That won’t happen and they will have consolidated their J1 position in their debut season, the fans will not be complaining, but their season promised so much more just five games ago. They will be looking to end this bad run and it could be Albirex who feel the force today, especially without key defender Suzuki!! EXPECT a WIN for SAGAN TOSU!
J1 Preview – Albirex Niigata vs Vissel Kobe at Tohoku Den Stadium – Oct.6, Matchday 28
Team News
Albirex Niigata – DF Ishikawa, MFs Nakamura and Uchida, FW Suzuki all reported out injured.
Vissel Kobe – FW Tashiro is still doubtful, DF Hayashi out for the season.
Head to Head – In 18 meetings since 2004 Vissel have won just 3, with 11 wins for Albirex and 4 draws. Vissel won their home tie this season, 1-0.
Match Preview – Albirex Niigata pulled off a 5-0 win over Nagoya Grampus last weekend, after scoring only 17 goals in their previous 26 games! It was a vital win that kept them in touch with Gamba Osaka and Omiya Ardija and a win here would take them to within a point of their opponents and really out Vissel Kobe in trouble. History favours the home side and Vissel must halt their slide of four defeats in-a-row or they will find themselves heading to J2. The fight for 40 points – the probably total for safety this season? – is well and truly underway and it is VITAL for Vissel KObe that they do not lose this. A win would be even better, but it’s tough for a team who are playing reasonably well but losing to get over that losing feeling. perhaps the best that they can hope for is a point? EXPECT a DRAW!
An oldie but goodie as Emerson says goodbye to Vissel fans!
JSoccer Magazine J1 Preview Sept.22nd, Matchday 26 – 16:00 Jubilo Iwata vs Albirex Niigata at Yamaha Stadium
Jubilo Iwata – DF Cho may be available for selection but GK Kawaguchi, MFs Baek, Rodrigo Souto, Matsuoka and Kitaji all unavailable.
Albirex Niigata – MFs Nakamura and Uchida, and FW Suzuki are all long-term injuries.
8 wins for Iwata, 4 for Niigata and 6 draws since 2004.
Jubilo Iwata were lucky to come out of last week’s match away at Vissel Kobe with a win, thanks in no small way to some help from the referee and are feeling the pressure from a list of injuries. It is surprising to many that they are still in with a chance of an ACL-qualifying top three place, although the top three seem to be locked in now. They should find it no problem against Albirex Niigata – a team that has scored just 17 goals all season, even less than bottom-dwellers Consadole! On the other hand their defence has been strong, but will be sorely tested against a rampant Jubilo, who average more than two goals per game and have won three out of their last four – despite all those injuries.
Maeda, for Jubilo, is looking to creep up on the goalscoring crown-to-be of Hisato Sato at Sanfrecce, and cement his place in the national team, while Albirex are just looking for another season in J1. A decent keeper, an Olympic defender, and some decent players all told are hampered by a total lack of firepower up front, with Bruno Lopes, Yano and Hirai, among others, totally failing in their duty.
EXPECT a WIN for JUBILO IWATA!
J1 Preview – Sat. Sept.15th – 19:00 Gamba Osaka vs Albirex Niigata at Banpaku
Gamba Osaka – GK Kimura, DF Nakazawa and FW Kawanishi all out with broken legs. DFs Kaji and Eduardo out injured. FW Leandro is hopeful of returning from injury.
Albirex Niigata – MFs Uchida and Nakamura injured
7 wins for Gamba, 5 for Albirex, and 5 draws over the last decade, all in J1
Gamba have Leandro to thank for inspiring them to an unbeaten run that got them out of the bottom three and, sure enough, when he was out injured in the last league game Gamba went down to Sagan Tosu. This game is a real six pointer in the battle against relegation and Gamba will be hoping their Brazilian hot shot is fit. If so, expect goals – Gamba ARE the 2nd highest scorers in J1, even though they are in the lower reaches – and the points to go to Gamba.
The Gamba defence is still leaking goals, too, though, but the incoming loan of Iwashita seems to have settled them a little. Albirex are struggling to score goals but Gamba rarely keep a clean sheet, so perhaps we can expect a high scoring game? Albirex Niigata, though, are the lowest scorers in J1, having notched only 16 goals in 24 matches, and have lost three of the last four – surely the form of a team bound for J2?
EXPECT a WIN for GAMBA OSAKA!
J1 Preview Aug.25th – 18:30 Kashima Antlers vs Albirex Niigata at Kashima
Kashima Antlers – FWs Osako and Dutra and DF/MF Nishi are all suspended. DF/MF Koji Nakata will be out for at least another month.
Albirex Niigata – MFs Kim, Nakamura and Ichida, and FW Suzuki are all long-term injuries.
Head to Head – surprisingly even over the years, since 2004, 7 wins for Antlers, 6 for Albirex and 7 draws.
Kashima have won one of the last three – with defeats to Sagan Tosu and Urawa Reds sandwiching a win over Jubilo Iwata. After a terrible start Kashima put some points on the board but still look like a team in disarray at times and are not yet clear of relegation this season. If they can consolidate their position in J1 the powers-that-be need to decide if they keep faith with Jorginho as coach, then they can start the rebuilding process. FW Koroki will have a lot on his shoulders with the suspensions of Osako and Dutra which could be a bonus for Albirex Niigata, who are in deep trouble.
The return of CB Suzuki from the Olympics didn’t make much difference last week in a defeat to top team Sanfrecce Hiroshima, and they are the lowest scoring team in J1, with even less goals than bottom club Consadole! FWs Hirai, Yano et al MUST take the chances that they are given, as they are few and far between.
Even with the suspensions I can not see Albirex getting anything out of this. Expect a WIN for KASHIMA ANTLERS!
J1 Preview Aug.18th – 19:00 Albirex Niigata vs Sanfrecce Hiroshima at Tohoku Den
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!