Gamba Osaka will host Yokohama F. Marinos at Panasonic Stadium on Friday in a rescheduled matchday six fixture in the J1 League.
The home side come into the game on the back of a narrow 1-0 away victory over Vegalta Sendai on Tuesday. Patric scored the match winner in the 35th minute.
Yokohama F. Marinos have not been in action since picking up a routine 2-0 victory over Avispa Fukuoka a month ago. Ado Onaiwu's strike and an own goal by Tatsuki Nara helped Marinos pick up all three points.
The J1 League had been on a break due to the staging of the Olympics over the last few weeks but action will return to the Japanese top-flight in the coming days.
Gamba Osaka currently sit in 13th place in the table, having picked up 26 points from 21 matches so far. Yokohama F. Marinos are in second spot with 46 points from 20 games.
Gamba Osaka vs Yokohama F. Marinos Head-to-Head
Yokohama F. Marinos have 15 wins from their last 37 matches against Gamba Osaka. Osaka have eight wins to their name, while 14 previous matches ended in draws.
Their most recent meeting came in October 2020 when an own goal by Kim Young-Gwon and Takashi Usami's penalty saw both sides play out a 1-1 draw.
Gamba Osaka form guide: W-W-W-L-L
Yokohama F. Marinos form guide: W-W-W-W-L
Gamba Osaka vs Yokohama F. Marinos Team News
Gamba Osaka
The hosts have three players ruled out with injuries. Haruto Shirai (cruciate ligament), Jun Ichimori (hamstring) and Won-ho Shin (collarbone) have all been sidelined by fitness issues.
Furthermore, Yuya Fukuda is a doubt for the visit of Marinos.
Injuries: Jun Ichimori, Won-ho Shin, Haruto Shirai
Suspension: None
Doubtful: Yuya Fukuda
Yokohama F. Marinos
There are no known injuries or suspension concerns for the visitors.
Injuries: None
Suspension: None
Gamba Osaka vs Yokohama F. Marinos Predicted XI
Gamba Osaka Predicted XI (3-4-3): Masaaki Higashiguchi (GK); Young-Gwon Kim, Shunya Suganuma, Genta Mura; Keisuke Kurokawa, Yuki Yamamoto, Kohei Okuno, Kosuke Onose; Takashi Usami, Shinya Yajima, Patric
Yokohama F. Marinos Predicted XI (4-3-3): Yohei Takaoka (GK); Takuya Wada, Yuki Saneto, Thiago Martins, Ryuta Koke; Takahiro Ogihara, Tomoki Iwata, Jun Amano; Teruhito Nakagawa, Elber, Kata Matanabe
Gamba Osaka vs Yokohama F. Marinos Prediction
Gamba Osaka have been in action over the last few weeks in order to clear their backlog of fixtures. This gives them an edge over Marinos, who have not had competitive action in almost a month.
The home side have rediscovered their best form after initial struggles and will be looking to keep their run going. However, Yokohama F. Marinos have been consistent throughout the season and are capable of getting the job done away from home. We are predicting a share of the spoils with goals to be scored at both ends.
Prediction: Gamba Osaka 1-1 Yokohama F. Marinos