J.League, Week 13
One More for the Title
| Kickoff | Home | . | Away |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13:00 |  | 3-1 |  |
| 14:00 |  | 3 - 1 |  |
| 14:00 |  | 1 - 0 |  |
| 14:00 |  | 3 - 0 |  |
| 16:00 |  | 2 - 0 |  |
| 16:00 |  | 3 - 1 |  |
| 19:00 |  | 3 - 2 |  |
| 19:00 |  | 1 - 0 | |
3 - 1
Striker Atsushi Yanagisawa seems to have caught fire since scoring Japan's lone goal in a 1-1 draw with Italy, and he added two goals in this match to provide the margin of victory. However, the real star on this day was reserve midfielder/striker Masashi Motoyama, who scored one goal himself and set up Yanagisawa's second goal with a brilliant give-and-go play on the left sideline, slashing into the box and providing a perfect pass for Yanagisawa to tap home.
Antlers have two matches remaining, at home to Tokyo Verdy and away to Sanfrecce Hiroshima. With a four-point edge in the standings and a superior goal difference, two points from two matches may be enough to clinch the crown.
1 - 0
Both Jubilo Iwata and Yokohama Marinos had a great deal riding on their match in Iwata Stadium. Jubilo went into the match trailing theAntlers by three points, and knowing that anything less than a victory would pretty much end their hopes of an unprecedented sweep of both the first and second stage titles. Yokohama, meanwhile, are at risk of slipping into the second relegation spot, and joining Cerezo Osaka on the downward escalator to J2.
Yokohama have had hard luck in recent weeks, playing relatively well against several tough teams yet with nothing to show for it. This pattern continued on Saturday, as the Marinos managed to hold off Jubilo's most valiant attacks for a full 90 minutes, but then conceded a goal by Jubilo's veteran striker, Masashi Nakayama, to end the match in extra time. The winning goal came on a terrible back pass that rolled right into Nakayama's path, and gave him a clean path towards the net. Nakayama sank the shot easily, putting the Marinos into the position of needing to win both of their final matches to be reasonably sure of staying up in the top division
3 - 2 
One other match which had some degree of importance last week saw Tokyo Verdy overcome Gamba Osaka in Tokyo Soccer Stadium. Since the arrival of Edmundo, "The Animal", in their front line, Verdy have been a completely recharged team, and they now look like they just might be able to escape relegation, while just a few weeks ago that looked like a certain fate. Edmundo did not score any goals this week, but his presence in the front line was disruptive enough to give his strike partner Marquinhos room to score two goals and get an assist.
With the win, Verdy climb one point above the Marinos in the battle to escape relegation. This is how the battle for the two relegation slots looks at the moment:
| Team | Points | Goal Difference |
|---|---|---|
| Vissel Kobe | 31 | -11 |
| Tokyo Verdy | 27 | -16 |
| Avispa Fukuoka | 27 | -19 |
| Yokohama Marinos | 26 | -13 |
| **Cerezo Osaka | 18 | -31 |
Cerezo Osaka are already certain to finish at the bottom of the league, which leaves four teams that could potentially go down. Although Yokohama Marinos are a point adrift of Avispa and Verdy, they have the best goal difference of the three, and thus would probably be safe if all three end with the same number of points. Vissel Kobe is still not entirely safe, but considering its goal difference, the team probably needs only one point from its final two matches to be sure of staying up.
Of the other three teams, Verdy probably has the most difficult schedule, facing Kashima Antlers in Kashima next week before finishing their season with the Tokyo derby match against FC Tokyo. Yokohama Marinos arguably have the easiest schedule, with a home match against Gamba Osaka and their finale in Kobe against Vissel. Avispa's schedule is only a bit more formidable, with an away match at Shimizu S-Pulse, followed by a home finale against Gamba Osaka.
Cerezo Fall to J2
Cerezo Osaka completed one of the biggest collapses in J.League history, falling to the bottom of the table just one year after they came within a single goal difference of winning the 2000 first stage championship. The failure to re-sign Korean midfielders Noh Jung-Yoon and Kim Do-Hoon was probably the biggest blunder of all. Striker Akinori Nishizawa also departed, moving to Spain, and then to England. However, the team was also badly hurt by repeated injuries to captain Hiroaki Morishima, who missed hearly half of the season, and to rookie midfielder Hitoshi Okubo. Without this dynamic pair in midfield, Cerezo was forced to defend, and that has never been the team's strong suit. Though Cerezo provided some moments of excitement over the course of the season, their defence was too morbid to keep them at a J1 caliber of play.
The relegation of Cerezo will create some interesting horse-trading opportunities in the offseason. It is unlikely that the team can hang on to star players like Morishima, Okubo and volante Kazuaki Tasaka. All of these players are likely to shop around for J1 teams. Midfielder Yoon Jung-Hwan could also be available, assuming that he does not opt to go back to the K-League. All of these players could add enough quality to push other leading competitors in the J1 division from also-rans to champions. As a result, things could be very hot this winter.
And so, the battle for the second stage championship could very well be decided on Saturday, when Kashima Antlers take on Tokyo Verdy and Jubilo face off against Sanfrecce Hiroshima. Here is how the standings look mps. certain to finish as J2 cha
| . | Team | Pts | GP | W (90/ET) | D | L | GD | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kashima Antlers | 33 | 13 | 12 (9-3) | 0 | 1 | +16 | 31 | 15 |
| 2 | Jubilo Iwata | 29 | 13 | 11 (7-4) | 0 | 2 | +14 | 26 | 12 |
| 3 | JEF United Ichihara | 23 | 13 | 7 (7-0) | 2 | 4 | +3 | 22 | 19 |
| 4 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | 21 | 13 | 7 (7-0) | 0 | 6 | +7 | 32 | 25 |
| 5 | FC Tokyo | 19 | 13 | 5 (5-0) | 4 | 4 | +2 | 28 | 26 |
| 6 | Nagoya Grampus | 19 | 13 | 6 (6-0) | 1 | 6 | +0 | 22 | 22 |
| 7 | Kashiwa Reysol | 18 | 13 | 5 (5-0) | 3 | 5 | +6 | 28 | 22 |
| 8 | Shimizu S-Pulse | 18 | 13 | 7 (4-3) | 0 | 6 | +5 | 30 | 25 |
| 9 | Tokyo Verdy | 17 | 13 | 5 (5-0) | 2 | 6 | -1 | 21 | 22 |
| 10 | Yokohama Marinos | 15 | 13 | 5 (3-2) | 2 | 6 | -2 | 16 | 18 |
| 11 | Gamba Osaka | 14 | 13 | 4 (4-0) | 2 | 7 | -5 | 17 | 22 |
| 12 | Consadole Sapporo | 13 | 13 | 4 (3-1) | 2 | 7 | -4 | 23 | 27 |
| 13 | Avispa Fukuoka | 13 | 13 | 4 (3-1) | 2 | 7 | -7 | 18 | 25 |
| 14 | Urawa Reds | 12 | 13 | 3 (3-0) | 3 | 7 | -5 | 17 | 22 |
| 15 | Vissel Kobe | 12 | 13 | 3 (3-0) | 3 | 7 | -7 | 23 | 30 |
| 16 | Cerezo Osaka | 7 | 13 | 3 (1-2) | 0 | 10 | -22 | 16 | 38 |
Rumours and Rumblings
Kyoto Advance to J1
J2 club Kyoto Purple Sanga secured promotion to the J1 next season, with a 2-1 victory over Shonan Bellmare. Kyoto, who were relegated from the J1 last year, fought a close battle with 4-5 other teams for the J2 crown, but with just one match remaining, the team managed by Gert Engels are almost certain to finish as J2 champs.Alex Turns Japanese
Shimizu S-Pulse midfielder Alex has gained Japanese citizenship. His name is now officially Aresandoro Santosu (Alessandro Santos). Having gained citizenship, Alex is now eligible to play for the Japanese national team at the 2002 World Cup, though it remains an open question whether Troussier will use him. Alex generally plays the left wing position, where Troussier has been using Shinji Ono in recent matches. Alex might make the team as a reserve, or he could be used as a volante -- a position he has played in the past -- alongside Arsenal's Junichi Inamoto. However, it seems doubtful whether he could win a starting position in place of Ono. On the other hand, the addition of yet another quality midfielder makes 2002 hopes for players like Shunsuke Nakamura and Daisuke Oku look increasingly dim. Even Parma's Hidetoshi Nakata now looks like he could find himself playing a reserve, rather than a starting role in 2002.J2 Promotion Race Goes Down to the Wire
While the title in the J.League's top division has been fircely contested this year, the battle between Antlers and Jubilo pales beside the free-for all in the second division. Until last week, no less than six teams, or half of the league, still had a shot at promotion. Kyoto Purple Sanga clinched a promotion spot, as well as the J2 title, with a victory over Shonan Bellmare on Saturday, but the second promotion spot will still be up for grabs on the last day of the season. Sadly, Albirex Niigata, who are arguably the best-supportedd team in the J2 this year, fell just short in their promotion bid. Three teams are still in the hunt with Montedio Yamagata and Vegalta Sendai the most likely candidates. Oita Trinita, which has missed promotion by a single point in each of the last two years, seems likely to repeat its heartbreaking run, though the team has not yet been mathematically elimitated. Here are the standings with one match to play.
| Team | Points | Goal Difference | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kyoto Purple Sanga | 84 | +32 |
| 2 | Montedio Yamagata | 80 | +23 |
| 3 | Vegalta Sendai | 80 | +21 |
| 4 | Oita Trinita | 77 | +23 |
| 5 | Albirex Niigata | 76 | +31 |
Ono The Younger Signs for Saarbrucken
Seventeen-year-old Masatomo Ono, the younger brother of Feyenoord midfielder Shinji Ono, has been signed to a temporary contract by German second-division club Saarbrucken. The yonger Ono has already featured in Japan's U-17 squad, and is considered to have very high potential. Although it is rare for a Japanese player of this age to travel to an overseas club, the fact that his elder brother is nearby in Holland probably was a factor smoothing the deal. Saarbrucken officials said that they had seen Masatomo in action, and thought he showed good promise. He will play for the team's reserve squad at first, but officielas said that, depending on his performance over the next few months, the team may sign the youngster to a full-pay, one-year contract at some point next year. Ono is expected to leave for Germany before the end of November.Antlers Strikers On Target Against Persija
Kashima Antlers fielded a three-forward offense in their Asian Club Championship match against Persija Jakarta, and the alignment paid off as Tomoyuki Hirase hit a brace and Atsushi Yanagisawa added a goal in a 4-1 drubbing of the Indonesian club champions. Kashima will now progress to the second round match against BEC, a Thai club.Send all questions, comments and queries to: