Consadole Sapporo vs Sanfrecce Hiroshima prediction, preview, team news and more | J League Cup 2022

Consadole Sapporo and Sanfrecce Hiroshima will take a break from J1 League action this weekend as they face off at the Sapporo Dome on Saturday in the first leg of their League Cup playoff tie.

The home team had mixed results in the group stages with a balanced record of two wins, two draws and two losses in six games to finish second in Group C with eight points.

Consadole Sapporo have never won the J League Cup, coming closest back in 2019 where they finished runner-up after losing on penalties to Kawasaki Frontale in the final. They will be looking to go a step further this time around.

Sanfrecce Hiroshima enjoyed a stronger group stage run than their weekend hosts as they won four of their six games, finishing top of their group with 12 points.

Like their hosts, they are yet to lift the domestic cup, making it to the final back in 2014 before losing 3-2 to Gamba Osaka after surrendering a two-goal lead. They have exited the competition in the group stages in back-to-back seasons and will be delighted to have broken that duck this year.

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Consadole Sapporo vs Sanfrecce Hiroshima Head-to-Head

There have been 16 meetings between Consadole Sapporo and Sanfrecce Hiroshima. The hosts have won four of those games while the visitors have won seven times. There have been five draws between the two teams, including their most recent meeting which ended 1-1.

Consadole Sapporo Form Guide (J League Cup): D-L-W-L-W

Sanfrecce Hiroshima Form Guide (J League Cup): L-W-W-L-W

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Consadole Sapporo vs Sanfrecce Hiroshima Team News

Consadole Sapporo

The hosts are set to be without the services of Tomoki Takamine, Tsuyoshi Ogashiwa and Shinzo Koroki on Saturday as all three men are injured.

Injured: Tomoki Takamine, Tsuyoshi Ogashiwa, Shinzo Koroki

Doubtful: None

Suspended: None

Sanfrecce Hiroshima

Ezequiel and Shun Ayukawa are both injured and will not feature at the weekend, while Tsukasa Morishima is a doubt.

Injured: Ezequiel, Shun Ayukawa

Doubtful: Tsukasa Morishima

Suspended: None

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Consadole Sapporo vs Sanfrecce Hiroshima Predicted XI

Consadole Sapporo Predicted XI (3-4-3): Kojiro Nakano; Daihachi Okamura, Hiroki Miyazawa, Toya Nakamura; Lucas Fernandes, Kazuki Fukai, Takuma Arano, Daiki Suga; Ryota Aoki, Yoshiaki Komai, Takuro Kaneko

Sanfrecce Hiroshima Predicted XI (3-3-2-2): Keisuke Osako; Sho Sasaki, Hayato Araki, Tsukasa Shiotani; Yoshifumi Kashiwa, Gakuto Notsuda, Tomoya Fujii; Kosei Shibas, Makoto Mitsuta; Junior Santos, Nassim Ben Khalifa

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Consadole Sapporo vs Sanfrecce Hiroshima Prediction

Consadole Sapporo are on a run of back-to-back defeats and have won just one of their last five games across all competitions, scoring five goals and conceding 15 in that period.

Sanfrecce Hiroshima are in much better form than their opponents, winning their last three games on the bounce and losing just one of their last six. The visitors should win this one.

Prediction: Consadole Sapporo 1-2 Sanfrecce Hiroshima