Kashiwa Reysol welcome Kawasaki Frontale to the Hitachi Kashiwa Stadium for a matchday 24 fixture in the J1 League on Saturday.
The home side come into the clash on the back of a 2-1 away victory over Vissel Kobe on Monday. Cristiano and Mao Hosoya scored second-half goals to give Reysol all three points.
Kawasaki Frontale picked up a routine 2-0 away victory over Oita Trinita on the same day. Leandro Damiao and Daiya Tono scored in each half to give the visitors the win.
That victory helped Frontale consolidate their spot at the summit of the table with 61 points garnered from 23 matches. Kashiwa Reysol are further down in 15th spot with 23 points picked from 23 matches.
Kashiwa Reysol vs Kawasaki Frontale Head-to-Head
The two sides have traded tackles on 40 occasions in the past and Kashiwa Reysol have a marginally better record with 18 wins to Kawasaki Frontale's 16. Six matches have ended in a draw.
Their most recent meeting came earlier in the current campaign when Akihiro scored a late goal to give Kawasaki Frontale a 1-0 home win in March.
The visitors have not suffered defeat in any competition since November 2020, a remarkable 38-game unbeaten run. They come into this game on the back of a 12-game winning run in all competitions.
Kashiwa Reysol have won three of their last five matches in all competitions.
Kashiwa Reysol form guide (all competitions): W-W-L-L-W
Kawasaki Frontale form guide (all competitions): W-W-W-W-W
Kashiwa Reysol vs Kawasaki Frontale Team News
Kashiwa Reysol
Hidekazu Otani is the only injury concern for the home side. There are no suspension worries for Kashiwa Reysol.
Injury: Hidekazu Otani
Suspension: None
Kawasaki Frontale
Koki Tsukagawa and Yu Kobayashi are doubts for the fixture. There are no suspension worries for the visitors.
Injuries: None
Doubtful: Koki Tsukagawa, Yu Kobayashi
Suspension: None
Kashiwa Reysol vs Kawasaki Frontale Predicted XI
Kashiwa Reysol Predicted XI (3-5-2): Seung-Gyu Kim (GK); Taiyo Koga, Takumi Kamijima, Emerson Santos; Richardson, Hiromu Mitsumaru, Keiya Shihashi, Cristiano, S. Takahashi; Yuki Muto, Raul Pedro
Kawasaki Frontale Predicted XI (4-3-3): Sung-Ryong Jung (GK); Kyohei Noborizato, Shogo Taniguchi, Jesiel, Miki Yamane; Joao Schmidt, Kento Tachibanada, Yasuto Wakizaka; Tatsuya Hasegawa, Leandro Damiao, Akihiro Ienaga
Kashiwa Reysol vs Kawasaki Frontale Prediction
Kawasaki Frontale's rampant form means that it is hard to see beyond a victory for the visitors. Kashiwa Reysol have enough quality to pose a threat and might get on the scoresheet but the difference in class between the sides is evident.
Toru Oniki's look unstoppable in their quest to retain their league title and we are predicting a comfortable victory for the Azzurro Nero.
Prediction: Kashiwa Reysol 1-3 Kawasaki Frontale