Sagan Tosu will be seeking to get back to winning ways after their seven-game unbeaten streak was ended last time out, when they welcome Cerezo Osaka to the Ekimae Real Estate Stadium on Saturday.
The visitors, meanwhile, will be aiming to close the gap on the top three of the J1 League, as they enter this weekend in fifth place.
Match preview
After an emphatic 6-0 victory over Shonan Bellmare on June 24, Sagan Tosu's seven-game unbeaten streak came to an end last week, courtesy of a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Urawa Reds.
Kenta Kawai's side took the lead after just eight minutes through Yoichi Naganuma's effort, before Jose Kante equalised three minutes later and Ken Iwao put the visitors in front shortly before the interval.
That defeat leaves Sagan in ninth place in the standings, with 26 points after 19 matches, six points behind their opponents this weekend.
Kawai's men have also recorded three wins, three draws and four losses in their 10 matches in front of their own fans this season, and Kawai will be eager to see his side claim victory here after losing the reverse fixture to Cerezo Osaka on March 12.
As for the visitors, their bid to break into the top three remains a tall order, as they currently sit in fifth place in the J1 League standings with 32 points, five behind Vissel Kobe in third.
Last week's defeat to Avispa Fukoka marked Cerezo Osaka's first defeat in the league since losing to Nagoya Grampus on June 3 and their seventh loss overall during the 2023 campaign.
Akio Kogiku's men have been one of the more entertaining teams to watch in the J1 League this season, either dominating in victory or struggling with defeat, having won 10 and lost seven with only two draws in between them.
Sakura have one of the better away records in the division, winning five of their nine matches on their travels, picking up 16 points – only four teams have a better record on the road.
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Team News
Kawai has one injury absentee to contend with coming into this match, as Fuchi Honda has been ruled out for the foreseeable future with a serious knee issue.
Yoichi Naganuma grabbed his sixth league goal of the season for the hosts, so he looks set to retain his place in the side here, while Yuji Ono will lead the line after his recent hat-trick against Shonan Bellmare.
As for the visitors, Hiroshi Kiyotake, Kim Jin-hyeon and Riku Matsuda have all been on the sidelines as of late for the hosts, which is likely to continue in this match.
Leo Ceara looks to be the main threat in front of goal, so he looks set to start in attack, hoping to add to his league tally of seven goals.
Sagan Tosu possible starting lineup:
Park; Harada, Hwang, Yamazaki, Kikuchi; Kawahara, Tezuka, Iwasaki, Moriya, Naganuma; Ono
Cerezo Osaka possible starting lineup:
Yang; Maikuma, Shindo, Toriumi, Funaki; Croux, Kida, Kagawa, Capixaba; Pereira, Leo Ceara
We say: Sagan Tosu 1-1 Cerezo Osaka
Despite both sides tasting defeat last week, they have both had solid records in recent weeks, so we can see this one being a closely-fought contest.
The two sides have scored and conceded a similar amount of goals so far this campaign, suggesting that there is not a lot to split the teams.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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