Sports Mole previews Saturday’s J1 League clash between Albirex Niigata and Kawasaki Frontale, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Albirex Niigata will attempt to continue their recent form of five unbeaten matches in all competitions into Saturday when they host Kawasaki Frontale in their latest J1 League match.
Much like their hosts, the visitors sit in the bottom half of the table and are looking for consistent results to pull away from the relegation zone.
Match preview
Albirex Niigata have struggled to pick up victories at home this season, managing just two out of their nine matches so far, with inconsistency being an issue across the entire campaign.
Despite that, Rikizo Matsuhashi‘s men head into this weekend on the back of five unbeaten performances across all competitions, proving that they can string together a run of results.
However, the focus for them now is to do that purely in the J1 League to ensure that they begin moving up the division, especially since a win on Saturday would guarantee they leapfrog above their opponents.
Currently, Alibrex Niigata sits in 15th, and with just six points between them and the relegation zone, there is very little margin for error at the moment.
A win could take them as high as 12th depending on other results though, but they will need to hold onto a lead which they were unable to do during their most recent outing against Kashima Antlers.
© Imago
The visitors are level on points with Albirex Niigata, with a slightly stronger goal difference being the only thing that separates them at the moment.
Kawasaki Frontale did boast their own five-match unbeaten streak until last weekend when they were beaten 1-0 by Vissel Kobe.
The loss highlighted their major flaw so far this season, which has been away performances as they have only managed to win once on the road throughout this campaign.
That has been their stumbling block to this point, and turning that around will be crucial if Kawasaki Frontale stands any chance of progressing up the division.
Averaging just one goal per game on the road, there is pressure on the attacking members of the squad to deliver more to help the team through this period.
Albirex Niigata J1 League form:
Kawasaki Frontale J1 League form:
Team News
Eiji Miyamoto is unavailable for the hosts at the moment due to a fractured eye socket, and is not expected back until August at the earliest.
Albirex Niigata will also be without Yuji Hoshi and Riita Mori, although the latter is set to return in the near future.
Kento Tachibanada will have to sit this game out for the visitors due to suspension as he has accumulated too many yellow cards, which will force a change to the midfield.
The visitors are also without Shintaro Kurumaya as he remains a long-term absentee because of a meniscus issue.
Albirex Niigata possible starting lineup:
Kojima; Fujiwara, Fitzgerald, Deng, Hayakawa; Taniguchi, Shimada, Akiyama, Komi; Okumura, Suzuki
Kawasaki Frontale possible starting lineup:
Jung; Ominami, Jesiel, Takai, Sasaki; Tono, Ricardo, Wakizaka; Yamauchi, Lenaga, Gomis
We say: Albirex Niigata 1-1 Kawasaki Frontale
There is very little to split these teams in terms of their league position, and that is likely to be reflected in the match this weekend.
Both need to get three points to push themselves away from the relegation zone, but the cautious approach of not wanting to lose could lead to them sharing the spoils.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.