Consadole Sapporo can keep themselves in the battle for survival in the J1 League if they secure a victory over Albirex Niigata when they come face to face on Saturday.
The visitors, on the other hand, will be looking to increase their current six-point lead over the drop zone and could move as high as 13th if they take all three points.
Match preview
Long-term manager Mihailo Petrovic has never been able to replicate the fourth-placed finish he achieved with the club in his debut season in 2018, instead finishing in 10th on three occasions and 12th twice.
This season, however, Consadole have had a torrid time and currently sit at the foot of the table with just 11 points from 20 fixtures, recording two wins and five draws.
They have not taken a single point since a 1-0 victory against Jubilo Iwata in mid-May, leaving them on a run of six straight defeats in the J1 League heading into this one.
Despite struggling in the league, Consadole remain in both domestic cup competitions, and Petrovic will be looking for his side to reproduce their cup form in the league in the coming weeks.
Consa currently sit six points adrift of safety, albeit 17th-placed Sagan Tosu also hold a game in hand, and with just 18 games left to bridge the gap, Petrovic's men desperately need victories.
Their opponents Albirex Niigata come into this one with a six-point lead over the drop zone, largely owing to their recent form that has seen them lose just two of their last seven league fixtures.
After finishing 10th in their first season back in the top flight following promotion as champions from the J2 League in 2022, Rikizo Matsuhashi will be looking for his side to build upon their current seven-game unbeaten run across all competitions and move further away from the drop zone.
While the recent results will be seen as a positive by Matsuhashi, he will want his side to bring an end to a run of three successive draws in the league by taking all three points here.
A victory for Albirex Niigata could see them move to as high as 13th in the division depending on results elsewhere, and they will be confident of getting a result here having not lost to Consadole in any of their last 10 meetings.
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Team News
Despite falling to defeat in their most recent game against FC Tokyo, Petrovic's side gave a strong account of themselves and the manager could name the same 11 for this one.
Top scorer Yuya Asano, who scored the goal in their last victory in the J1 League, is expected to remain unavailable for this one, leaving Consadole looking to Tatsuya Hasegawa and Musashi Suzuki to score the goals.
The visitors are carrying a number of injury issues into this game that could leave them without no fewer than four players.
Eiji Miyamoto will remain out of the team until at least August after suffering a fractured eye socket, while both Yuji Hoshi and Riita Mori have also been unavailable for a series of weeks.
Koji Suzuki is also not expected to feature having been forced off with an injury 22 minutes after entering the field in the 1-1 draw with Sanfrecce Hiroshima in the last game.
Consadole Sapporo possible starting lineup:
Sugeno; Takao, Okamura, Nakamura; Baba; H Tanaka, K Tanaka, Komai, Suga; Suzuki, Hasegawa
Albirex Niigata possible starting lineup:
Abe; Fujiwara, Deng, Inamura, Hayakawa; Akiyama, Shimada; Matsuda, Hasegawa, Taniguchi; Komi
We say: Consadole Sapporo 0-2 Albirex Niigata
The hosts have failed to score in any of their last three matches and have not recorded a victory against Albirex Niigata in any of the last 10 meetings between the two sides, leading us to believe the visitors will take all three points from this one.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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