Kaoru Mitoma once again proved himself to be the difference for Kawasaki Frontale as the defending J.League 1 champions edged out Cerezo Osaka 3-2 on Wednesday’s rescheduled J1 match at the Todoroki Athletics Stadium. Veteran Yoshito Okubo had given visitors Cerezo the lead twice only for Kawasaki’s Leandro Damiao to equalize twice as well, keeping everyone at the Todoroki up on their toes before Mitoma slammed home the winning goal deep into the second half.
38-year old Okubo, a former Kawasaki man who etched himself in the history books as the J1’s all-time top scorer, returned to his first club Cerezo over the off-season from second-tier side Tokyo Verdy and he made an immediate impact in his return to the Todoroki, capping off a Cerezo counterattack with a long-ranged screamer that went past Kawasaki goalie Jung Sung-ryong in the 5th minute.
It took the defending champions just one minute to hit back and former Internacional man Damiao restored parity with a powerful close-ranged volley that left Cerezo custodian Kim Jin-hyeon utterly stunned.
Okubo went back to haunt his former side in the 22nd minute, taking advantage of a cross from Indonesia national team hopeful Riku Matsuda to once again leave Jung utterly defeated, this time from close-range.
While Cerezo managed to retain their lead all the way into half-time, their one-goal advantage was snuffed out just two minutes into the second half. Damiao once again brought the scoreline back into level terms with a powerful header from inside the area, seizing a Shogo Taniguchi cross to once again beat Jin-hyeon.
Cerezo were then left to rue their inability to kill things off in the first half as Mitoma showed off once again why he’s the man of the occasion for Kawasaki, finishing off a sublime back-heel from Damiao to slot the ball past Jin-hyeon from pointblank range in the 62nd minute.
The closely-contested 3-2 win meant that Kawasaki have taken over the J1 summit from Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo with six points, with the Northerners having only played one game so far.
Wednesday’s other rescheduled J1 match between Nagoya Grampus and Cerezo’s city rivals Gamba Osaka was postponed due to COVID-19 cases within the Gamba camp.
Northerners continue fine form with J.League Cup Matchweek 1 win
Having beaten Yokohama FC 5-1 in the opening day of this year’s J1, Consadole continued their fine form in Matchweek 1 of the J.League Cup, edging out Avispa Fukuoka 3-2 at the Best Denki Stadium in Fukuoka.
Despite having to travel all the way down South from Sapporo, Consadole managed to drew first blood in the 15th minute thanks to a penalty from Douglas. However, Avispa managed to elicit cheers from their supporters after Nigerian-Japanese defender Kennedy Egbus Mikuni scored the equalizer for the Wasps in the 18th minute.
Avispa’s equalizer set off something within Consadole as they ran rampant for the remainder of the first half, with Douglas completing his brace in the 35th minute before 18-year old rookie Taika Nakashima wrapped things up for the Mihailo Petrovic’s men in the 41st minute.
Veteran Hisashi Jogo’s 88th minute goal for Avispa would proved to be a mere consolation for the Wasps as Consadole returned home with all three points.
Wednesday’s J.League Cup action also saw 1-0 wins for the Yokohama clubs, with FC edging out Kashiwa Reysol away at Chiba Prefecture and F. Marinos coming out on top over Vegalta Sendai at the NHK Mitsuzawa Spring Stadium. Kashima Antlers managed to bag themselves a huge 3-0 win at home over Sagan Tosu, while FC Tokyo ended Tokushima Vortis’ brave resistance with a 1-0 win at the Ajinomoto Stadium. Last but not least, both Sanfrecce Hiroshima and Shimizu S-Pulse played out a goalless draw at the Hiroshima Big Arch.