The final three games of the 2013 J1
Season for the Top Five & Those 15th & 16th.
Top Five
1. Yokohama 59 points, GD +20; 1 Home
2 Away Remaining
Iwata (17th) A, Niigata (8th) H, Kawasaki (6th) A
- Sorely missed Shunsuke Nakamura
in home loss to Nagoya but draws for Urawa and Hiroshima kept them top. Should
have Nakamura and Manabu Saito
fit after international break, next two look winnable but misfiring attack has scored only five goals
in the last eight and Marquinhos hasn’t
netted in the league since the end of August.
2. Urawa 58, GD +18; 2 Home 1 Away
- Seconds away from going top
before Sendai’s late, late equalizer - the second
time in current six-game unbeaten run they’ve surrendered lead in stoppage time (Kofu, Matchday
26). Two home games left looks good on
paper but will the defence hold up and can they handle pressure and expectations from rabid home
support?
3. Hiroshima 57, +20; 1 Home 2 Away
Cerezo (5th) A, Shonan
(16th) H, Kashima (4th) A
- Missed chance to go top in draw
at Kashiwa , making difficult trip to Cerezo next a must-win. Experience of
last year’s title should mean they’re
in it going into the last day, but Kashima could still have title to play for themselves.
4. Kashima 56, GD +10; 2 Home 1 Away
Tosu (14th) H, Cerezo
(5th) A, Hiroshima (3rd) H
- Goal difference could end up
being their Achilles’ heel and as a result they’ll
probably need to win all three to stand any chance of claiming the title, a huge ask as Cerezo and Hiroshima
still have plenty to play for themselves.
5. Cerezo 53, GD +18; 2 Home 1 Away
- Big win at FC Tokyo kept their
ACL hopes alive. As I’ve been saying for the
past month they probably can’t win the league but their last three will have a big say in who does, and Yokohama will be hoping for some
help from them.
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15th & 16th
15. Kofu 34, GD -11;
2 Home 1 Away
- They’re safe. Just need a point
from the last three or a Shonan loss to confirm it.
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16. Shonan 25, GD -25; 1 Home 2 Away
FC Tokyo (7th) A, Hiroshima (3rd) A, Omiya (13th) H
- It’s as simple as this: They
MUST win all three and Kofu must lose all of their’s. But then they’ll still be relegated on
goal difference.
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