J2 - round 44 results

Shonan Bellmare FC Gifu 3-0
S: Ishihara 15’, Adiel 72’, Tuto 80’

Shonan kept their promotion hopes alive with a comfortable 3-0 win at home vs struggling Gifu. But for Shonan to reach 3rd, both Cerezo and Vegalta has to drop points in their last game, so it’s not too likely. Shonan took command early on, and topscorer Ishihara reacted quickest to a loose ball to make it 1-0 in the 15th minute. The first half saw a lot of poor passing at both ends, which prevented the teams from coming to too many chances. It looked better in the 2nd half, atleast for Shonan’s sake, and the home-team scored 2 more goals to make it 3-0. First Adiel with a nice free-kick, before supersub Tuto added another just a few minutes later. All in all a very deserved win for Shonan, and it was a big gap in quality between the 2 teams this match. Shonan had 12 shots to Gifu’s 4.

Roasso Kumamoto Sanfrecce Hiroshima 1-2
R: Kijima 57’
S: Sato 39’,87’

Sanfrecce are only 3 points away from reaching the 100 point mark now, and with one match left to play they look set to make it. Roasso were unlucky to lose here though, as they fought hard all throughout the match. Roasso’s unbeaten run stopped at 6 matches with this, but they have every right to be happy about their performance here as well. J2-topscorer Hisato Sato gave the visitors the lead with a nice header from a Kota Hattori cross in the 39th minute, and that was the only goal we saw in the first half despite several big chances at both ends. Kijima, who recovered from his injury earlier than expected for this match, equalized in the 57th minute after being nicely played through by Uemura in the middle. Sanfrecce had the most of the chances, but Roasso held on well all the way until the dying minutes, when Sato scored his 2nd to give Sanfrecce the win. Sanfrecce had 18 shots to Roasso’s 9, so overall it was a deserved win. Roasso as well deserves credit for their performance though.

Ehime FC Montedio Yamagata 2-3
E: Aono 11’, 33’
M: Hasegawa 13’, Ishikawa 88’, Toyoda 90’

Montedio made sure they will finish 2nd this season, and with that be guaranteed a place in J1 next season with a 3-2 away win over Ehime. For long all points looked set to stay in Ehime though, but 2 late goals from Montedio turned the match around. It was a frentic start to the match, with Ehime’s Aono making it 1-0 with a well-placed freekick in the 11th minute before Hasegawa of Montedio equalizing just 2 minutes later after showing great skills inside the box. Aono scored once more from a free-kick in the 33rd minute, which put Ehime back in the lead. After that the match were evenly played, with neither of the teams managing to create too much dangerous up front. Montedio looked the most dangerous side, but their equalizer didn’t come before the 88th minute, as Ishikawa scored from a set-piece situation. After Ehime’s Tada couldn’t hold a shot from Watanabe, Yohei Toyoda poked in the rebound to make it 2-3 just 2 minutes later, and with that gave Montedio all 3 points. Overall a draw would have been the most fair result, and Ehime had 11 shots to Montedio’s 12.

Sagan Tosu Vegalta Sendai 4-1
S: Fujita 11’,44’,87’, Uchima 17’
V: Nakajima 26’

The biggest match of the round took place in Tosu, where Sagan beat Vegalta 4-1. A very strong performance, which means Vegalta has to win their last match to be sure of finishing 3rd. Sagan only got a theoretical chance of making it, but were by far the better team this match. The biggest difference however, were Yoshihito Fujita. A hat-trick from the prolific goalscorer, who’s linked with several J1 clubs now, gave Sagan all 3 points. He opened the scoring already after 11 minutes, and just 6 minutes later Uchimura had doubled Sagan’s lead. Nakajima reduced to 1-2 in the 26th minute with a well-placed shot, but another goal from Fujita just before the break put Sagan 2 up again. Vegalta fought hard to get back into the match, and came close to scoring on several occasions. Both Sekiguchi and Nakashima were constant threats, but their efforts didn’t result in any goals. Instead Fujita completed his hattrick 3 minutes from full-time. A well-deserved win, and Sagan outshot Vegalta 20-16.

Thespa Kusatsu Cerezo Osaka 0-4
C: Kagawa 21’, 68’, Inui 32’, Kaio 50’

Cerezo impressed by winning 4-0 away at Thespa, and with that kept their hopes alive for finishing 3th which gives playoff. It was never any doubt about where the points would end, as Cerezo dominated from beginning to end, and looked lethal every time they attacked. Kagawa once again put in a marvellous performance, and scored 2 more goals to take his tally to 17 this season. Not bad for a midfielder, and considering his age it’s even more remarkable. Cerezo’s new formation seems to work really good, and Kagawa and Inui in their offensive midfield roles causes alot of problem for the opposition. Both contributed alot with offensive runs and neat passing here, and the 2 were involved in all of Cerezo’s 4 goals. Kagawa gave Cerezo the lead after 21 minutes, and Inui doubled that lead 11 minutes later. Thespa seemed to be atleast one level beneath Cerezo this match, and didn’t create anything that challenged Cerezo’s goalkeeper. Kaio made it 3-0 five minutes after the break before Kagawa scored his 2nd in the 68th minute. The win could have been much bigger, but 4-0 is a result Cerezo should be happy about. Cerezo outshot Thespa 21-9.

Ventforet Kofu Avispa Fukuoka 0-1
A: Nakamura 87’

Avispa beat Kofu 1-0 away in a match that didn’t mean much to either side. Both are stuck in the middle of the table, and only separated by 1 place now. The match had few chances, and it was clear both teams were looking forward to end their disappointing season. Maranhao were one of few players that were looking lively, and the brazilian striker created several big chances for the home-team. But overall it was a dull match, and the winning goal came 3 minutes from full-time, as Nakamura sent away a powerful distance shot that went by Kofu’s keeper. Kofu had 12 shots to Avispa’s 11.

Mito Hollyhock Yokohama FC 2-3
M: Nishino 49’, Arata 90’
Y: Namba 21’, 53’, Anderson 85’

Yokohama extended their unbeaten run to 6 matches with a nice 3-2 away win over Mito. That means Yokohama climbed above Mito on the table, and are now in 10th. It was an even match, but in the end Yokohama deserved the points. Namba gave them the lead in the 21st minute with a nice free-kick. Nishino equalized for Mito shortly after the break, but Namba responded almost immediately after that with another goal. Anderson did 3-1 with just 5 minutes left. Arata reduced to 2-3 on a penalty in injury-time, but it was too little too late for Mito. Mito had 16 shots to Yokohama’s 8.