Gamba choke as Urawa extend lead at the top in Keluaran Sgp
There was a drama charged round of J-League matches here at the weekend, as Gamba Osaka inexplicably let a two goal lead slip away at FC Tokyo. Gamba's loss and the point gained by Urawa in their hard-fought 2-2 at home to Kawasaki Frontale means that Urawa are now six points clear of Gamba Osaka with six games remaining.
At Saitama Stadium, more than 50,000 fans created an intimidating
atmosphere as third-placed Kawasaki Frontale took on Urawa in arguably the
biggest match of the season. Frontale were far from overawed, despite going
behind to an early Washington goal. It was the prolific Brazilian striker's
twentieth goal of the season in just twenty J-League matches. Frontale
responded with a penalty from their own Brazilian striker Juninho, before
taking the lead through midfielder Kengo Nakamura's bullet header. It was
another Brazilian, Robson Ponte, who had the final say, poking home after
Nobuhisa Yamada had sliced through the Frontale defence.
The other big match of the round took place on Sunday, as Gamba
Osaka clashed with struggling FC Tokyo at Ajinomoto Stadium. Osaka surged into
a two goal lead after strikes from Ryuji Bando and Magno Alves and with twenty
minutes remaining, looked certain to hold on for a comfortable victory. The
momentum of the match suddenly shifted when Bando was substituted after
seventy-two minutes. The Japan striker took an eternity to leave the pitch,
cynically attempting to run down the clock and ultimately being dragged off by
referee Hajime Matsuo. Bando's unsporting behaviour incensed the 36,000 strong
home crowd and fired up the hitherto listless FC Tokyo team. They struck back
with a vengeance, firing home three unanswered goals in the space of eight
minutes and all but ending Gamba Osaka's hopes of defending their J-League
crown.
Elsewhere Omiya Ardija recorded a vital Toto Sgp victory,
defeating JEF United 3-1 at the Fukuda Arena in Chiba - just one week after an
under-strength United had thrashed Kashima Antlers 4-0 on the road. Yoshiyuki
Kobayashi, Tatsunori Hisanaga and new signing Alison scored the goals for
Omiya, as they won for the first time in twelve matches.
At the foot of the table, Cerezo Osaka consigned Kyoto Purple
Sanga to last place after their 4-2 win over Sanfrecce Hiroshima. Yoshito Okubo
was the key man, scoring a brace for Cerezo as they swapped places with Kyoto
at the bottom of the J-League.
Avispa Fukuoka were the other basement team desperate for a win,
and they beat Jubilo Iwata 2-1 to record their third home victory in
succession. The win lifts Fukuoka into the all-important relegation/promotion
play-off in 16th place. If they finish in this position at the end of the
season, they will play off against the third-placed J2 side for a place in the
First Division next season.
Currently Kashiwa Reysol occupy third place in J2. They had a bye
in the last round of J2 matches but can move within a point of second placed
Yokohama FC, if they beat Yokohama at home in the next round of matches.
Vissel Kobe are in prime position to make a swift return to the
top flight. They lead the J2 standings with 83 points and hammered Consadole
Sapporo 4-1, in front of more than 18,500 fans partisan fans at the Sapporo
Dome.
Players Overseas
Mitsuo Ogasawara:
Messina
Ogasawara opened his goalscoring account for Messina with a neat
half-volley in their 2-2 draw at home to Empoli.
Masashi Oguro: Torino
Oguro did not feature in their weekend draw away to Cagliari but
could play in midweek against Fiorentina.
Takayuki Morimoto:
Catania
The youngster has impressed with four goals for Catania's youth
team so far this season, and is expected to feature in Serie A in the near
future.
Koji Nakata: FC Basel
Nakata suffered a broken nose in Basel's victory over FC St.
Gallen at the weekend and will be out for an as yet undetermined length of
time.
Teruo Iwamato -
Auckland City
Auckland City have announced the short term signing of former
Japan international striker Teruo Iwamoto. Iwamoto joins on a deal similar to
the one which saw Kazu Miura play for Sydney FC last season, and will feature
in the upcoming FIFA Club World Cup in Japan, as well as the New Zealand
Football Championship.
Japan National Teams
Japan under-23 National Team
The Japan Football Association has announced a strong squad to
represent Japan at the upcoming 2006 Asian Games in Doha, Qatar. The tournament
is restricted to under-23 players but still features plenty of J-League
experience in the likes of Oita Trinita's Shusaku Nishikawa, Shimizu S-Pulse's
Naoki Aoyama, Keisuke Honda of Nagoya Grampus Eight and Sota Hirayama of FC
Tokyo.
Japan under-20 National Team
The JFA also announced the squad for the AFC Youth Championship,
which kicks off in Bangalore, India on October 29. The squad includes Kashima
Antlers' Atsuto Uchida, Tsukasa Umesaki of Oita Trinita and Sanfrecce
Hiroshima's Yosuke Kashiwagi, among others. Japan are expected to finish as one
of the top four teams in the tournament and thereby qualify for next year's
FIFA under-20 World Cup in Canada.
Yamazaki
Nabisco League Cup
J-League officials announced on October 17 that all tickets for
the League Cup Final at Tokyo's National Stadium had been sold. Around 60,000
fans will pack into 'Kasumigaoka' on November 3 to watch defending champions
JEF United take on Kashima Antlers for the League Cup trophy.
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