J1 League mid-table contenders Yokohama F Marinos and Tokyo Verdy will face off in gameweek 21 at the Nissan Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
These two are separated by just one point in the league standings, with the visitors currently on 27 points and in 11th place, although they have played a game more than the hosts.
Match preview
After finishing each of the last three seasons in the top two places, including as runners-up to Vissel Kobe last term, Yokohama FM have endured a difficult first half of the current league campaign.
Marinos have managed just 26 points in 19 games this term, posting a record of seven wins, five draws and seven losses, with the most recent defeat coming in midweek against Avispa Fukuoka on the road.
However, despite the struggles that Harry Kewell's side have faced this season, the major positive for the team is that they have managed to score goals, currently with the fourth-best return in the division of 30, six behind top-scorers Sanfreece.
On the flip side, one of the main issues they need to address if they are to move up the table is their away record. FM have earned 14 points in 11 games on the road and have won just one of their last six league outings.
At home though, Tricolor have been decent (W3 D3 L2), and they will fancy their chances of bouncing back to victory in this one, having beaten this opponent 2-1 in the opening match of the season.
Meanwhile, Tokyo Verdy's return to the top flight has been an impressive one, as they have got themselves comfortably into mid-table, currently 11 points clear of Shonan Bellmare, who are the first side below the dotted line.
Verdy conceded their fifth league loss of the top-flight campaign in midweek, beaten 3-0 by fellow newly-promoted outfit Jubilo Iwata, who finished ahead of them on goal difference in the J2 League last season.
Notably of Verdy's five losses this season, four have come in away matches, and three of those were in their last four outings alone, with all three ending with a losing margin of three or more goals.
Hiroshi Jofuku's side have conceded a total of 19 goals in away games to date, which is the third-most of any side in the top flight, and their total of 33 goals conceded home and away is the fourth-worst overall.
In 11 previous meetings, Tokyo Verdy have only ever beaten this opponent twice, with the most recent being a 3-2 victory back in May 2008, which was the same season that they were relegated from the top flight.
Team News
Veteran striker Anderson Lopes has been Yokohama's main man this season and took the outright lead in the league's top-scorer standings by netting his 12th of the term in the win against Consadole Sapporo last week.
Yan Matheus scored a brace against Sanfreece but was rested for the midweek loss to Avispa and he will likely be brought back into the starting 11 here alongside Lopes and Ryo Miyaichi in attack.
Naoki Hayashi opened the scoring with an own-goal against Jubilo Iwata and was withdrawn 10 minutes later, which may indicate that he will start on the bench this week, with Hiroto Taniguchi being the most likely to replace him in defence.
Yuta Arai looked bright in the final 30 minutes of the last match and will be hoping to earn a spot in the starting 11, potentially for Yuan Matsuhashi, who was hooked at the hour-mark in midweek.
Yokohama F Marinos possible starting lineup:
Popp; Matsubara, Kamijima, Dudu, T. Watanabe; Amano, Kida, K. Watanabe; Yan, Lopes, Miyaichi
Tokyo Verdy possible starting lineup:
Vidotto; Taniguchi, Chida, Miyahara; Onaga, Saito, Tsunashima, Arai; Someno, Miki; Kimura
We say: Yokohama F Marinos 3-1 Tokyo Verdy
While Yokohama have not been in full flight this season, they do still possess one of the most talented squads in the division and their record at home is significantly better than their away stats.
Tokyo Verdy have made a very promising return to the top flight, but we feel they will struggle to keep up with the AFC Champions League runners-up in this one.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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