Kashiwa Reysol vs Vissel Kobe

Arguably the most exciting fixture in this weekend’s J1 League schedule pits title-bidding Kashiwa Reysol and defending champions Vissel Kobe at Sankyo Frontier Kashiwa Stadium.

Back-to-back winless league matches (D1, L1) have seen Kashiwa waste a golden chance to close a three-point deficit to leaders Kashima Antlers, compromising their hopes of securing a J1 League title for only the second time in club history. Despite suffering a league-low two defeats in the opening 18 rounds, a high volume of draws threatens to undermine Kashiwa’s title quest. Indeed, they’ve shared the spoils in the division-high seven matches (W9), including four out of ten on the road (W5, L1). However, no one can write Ricardo Rodriguez’s side off even if they concede first, as they’ve avoided defeat in four of their five away league games when falling behind this term (W1, D3), including a 1-1 draw at Yokohama FC last time out.

In the meantime, Vissel Kobe’s two-year reign in the Japanese top flight is on the brink of collapse as they languish ten points off the title pace, albeit with a game in hand on Kashima. Therefore, there’s no margin for error, with the reigning holders aiming to bounce back from a 3-2 defeat at Shimizu S-Pulse, which halted their two-game winning league streak. Manager Takayuki Yoshida must address his side’s see-saw form on the road after Kobe alternated between victories and defeats on their last four J1 League travels (W2, L2). But with each game (won/lost) in that sequence yielding a narrow one-goal margin, this could be another closely contested game.