Cerezo went berserk in Gifu for the 2nd time this season, and didn’t stop before they had put 6 goals behind Gifu’s goalkeeper. A huge boost for Cerezo, who proved they are back in the form we expect them to be in. Cerezo’s brazilian forward Kaio got somewhat of a breakthrough here, scoring 3 goals and being a constant threat to Gifu. Already after 15 minutes played had Kaio found the net twice. The early lead made the Cerezo-players relax, and Gifu were forced to play catch-up early on. That was a job they didn’t feel comfortable with at all, and they were never a real threat for the visitors.
Shinji Kagawa, who returned to the squad here after being suspended last round once again turned in a marvellous performance. He scored the 3-0 goal in the 60th minute, and just minutes later added Furuhashi a 4th after picking up a spill ball. The win were already secured at that point, but in injury-time Komatsu and Kaio added 2 more to complete the humiliation of Gifu. Last time Cerezo were in Gifu they won 5-0, so clearly it’s one of their lucky stadiums. Gifu had 6 shots to Cerezo’s 15.
Shonan continued their great run of form when they beat Yokohama 1-0 at home this round. Despite playing without 2 of their best players, they managed to take all 3 points, although it was only just. It was a closely contested battle, and neither of the teams had that many chances. Yokohama got off to the best start, with Anderson causing trouble for the Shonan-defence. Late in the first half, Shonan’s impressive brazilian defender Jean had to limp off, but it’s unsure how seriosu his injury is at the moment.
Shonan put on their new signing Tuto at half-time, and as in the 2 previous matches the brazilian came off the bench and scored. In the 63rd minute Kato were fouled inside the box, and Tuto stepped up to make 1-0 to the home team. Shonan sems to have found gold in Tuto, who clearly will be an asset in the closing stage of this year’s season.
All in all an even match, and it could just as well have ended up with a win for Yokohama, who outshot Shonan 6-5.
T: Goto 68’, Omoto 81’
Kofu and Thespa are among the teams with the most draws this season, and therefore it was no surprise that the match between them ended with the teams sharing the spoils. That’s certainly a result Thespa will be most happy about, after receiving 2 red cards and seeing Kofu control the game for most of the time.
The first half were filled with many rough tackles and hard play, with Kou creating most of the chances. They couldn’t find the net though, and Thespa’s sturdy defence kept them from coming to any real big chances. In the 2nd half the picture were pretty much the same, but now Thespa were more involved and created some chances from counter-attacks mainly. They saw Kofu take the lead through Maranhao around the hour break, who converted a penalty-kick after being fouled himself. Just minutes later Goto equalized for Thespa though after a defensive error from Kofu.. Thespa’s DF Che received the marching order just before Kofu’s goal, and soon after the equalizer did Terada see the red card as well. That meant that Thespa had to play the last 20 minutes without their 2 fullbacks, and naturally it didn’t take long before Kofu exploited the 2-man advantage. Hayashi picked up the spill ball and fired home the 2-1 goal with just 15 minutes to go, and now most people thought Kofu would run away with it. But Thespa refused to give up, and equalized with a free-kick through Omoto near the end of the match. Certainly a lucky point for Thespa, but they deserve credit for coming from behind 2 times. Kofu had 20 shots to Thespa’s 8.
The top 2 teams in the league met this round, and Sanfrecce showed how big difference there really is from them and down to the rest of the pack when they hammered Montedio 4-0 away. Montedio’s been a positive surprise this season, and entered this match with a 7 game unbeaten streak. That only makes Sanfrecce’s big win even more impressive, and clearly they are a team that belongs in J1.
J2’s topscorer Hisato Sato were on target after a corner kick in the 34th minute to make it 1-0, and that were the only goal before the break. Sanfrecce dominated though, and Montedio looked overwhelmed by Sanfrecce’s nifty passing exchange and impressive team-work. There were never any doubt about where the points would go, and in the 2nd half the goals kept coming for Sanfrecce.Takahagi has had a marvellous season this year, and the speedy winger scored the 2-0 goal before Makino could add a 3rd just minutes later. Morisaki finished off the game with a nice header in the 77th minute to make it 4-0. Sanfrecce had 20 shots to Montedio’s 12.
S: Iio 51’
Mito will be unhappy with just a point against Sagan this match, as the home-team were by far the best team. They had the majority of the chances, and put Sagan under alot of pressure throughout the match. Sagan is known for their good defensive work though, and managed to keep Mito from getting to too many big chances. Mito lacked accuracy in the finishing as well, and infact it was Sagan that were to score first. A corner-kick from Leandro found Iio in the box who put the visitors 1-0 up in the 51st minute. Mito scored an almost identical goal just minutes later though, through in-form defender Hiramatsu. Mito came close of scoring on a couple of occasions, but also Sagan had chances to grab the winner. In the end Mito were the best team though, and had deserved all 3 points. They outshot Sagan 20-10. Sagan have now 3 draws in a row, and are falling behind in the tight race for promotion.
T: Oshima 90’
Avispa had few problems beating bottom-placed Tokushima this round, and took a comfortable 3-1 win at home. Their new signing Daiki Niwa ( formerly of Gamba and Omiya) got off to a great start for his new club, scoring after only 7 minutes following a corner-kick. Niwa took place in central-defence, a position Avispa have been struggling with all season. Perhaps Niwa could help tighten up a shaky Avispa-defence, as that is one of the main reasons why they find themselves so low in the table. Kiyokazu Kudo also had a good day for Avispa, as 2 of his corners ended up being assists for goal. Just before the break he found Havenaar who headed in the 2-0 goal. To add to that, he also scored the 3-0 goal late in the 2nd half to kill the game off. Oshima struck to give Tokushima a consolation goal in injury-time, but it was too little too late. For Avispa, it was a much-needed win as they had gone 5 matches without winning. Tokushima on the other hand, are without a win for 15 matches now. They actually outshot Avispa 12-11 this match, but were never really in contention for the points.
Vegalta seems back on track now with 2 straight wins, and they once again look to be in contention for one of the top 3 spots. Their biggest problem have been that they draw way too many matches though, and although they’ve only lost 6 they are only in 5th place at the moment. Roasso looked decent the first half, and were fully on level with Vegalta. Actually it was Roasso that had the ball most of the time, and also got to most of the chances. A quick goal by Nadson following a Sekiguchi cross just after the restart turned the match around though, and Vegalta took more and more over. Vegalta’s topscorer Hirase is enjoying his best ever season in terms of goals, and 2 goals in quick succession killed the game off. Hirase have now scored 9 goals, which is more than he scored during his 4 years in Vissel Kobe. Saito added a 4th late in the match, but 0-4 doesn’t really give the correct picture of the match. Roasso could have done better if they had a bit more luck, but in the end the best team won anyway. Vegalta outshot Roasso 15-12.
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