The reigning champion vs the team which has the most probability of dethroning the champions is itself an intriguing affair. Yokohama F. Marinos might be the 2019 J1 League champion but have started poorly in this campaign. Before the weekend fixture against Kawasaki Frontale, Yokohama based club lingered in the 6th spot with 21 points from 14 games having played two more games than its direct opponents just below them.
Frontale is on course to win another J1 League with Toru Oniki. The Kawasaki based club leads the second-placed Cerezo Osaka by eight points though played one game more than its direct rival.
The weekend fixture was supposed to be a statement win for Frontale as well as to keep their lead intact. However, Frontale won it quite comprehensively after going a goal down in early minutes.
In this tactical analysis, we will discuss the tactics that led to Kawasaki Frontale’s comprehensive win.
Line-up
Toru Oniki started with his preferred 4-3-3 formation but made a wholesale of changes from their previous J1 League fixture as well as the J-League Cup on Wednesday. Jung Sung-Ryong started between the sticks as usual. He was well protected by Miki Yamane, Jesiel, Shogo Taniguchi, and Shintaro Kurumaya in defence. Yasuto Wakizaka, Hidemasa Morita, and Ryoto Oshima manned the midfield. Akiro Ienaga and Kaoru Mitoma positioned themselves on either side of Leandro Damião (former Real Betis player) on the wings.
Angelos Postecoglou, former Melbourne Victory gaffer, followed his compatriot in making numerous changes due to fixture congestion. The formation reads 4-4-1-1 in the above picture but it constantly varied, both in possession and out of possession owing to the way Marinos approach the game.
Thiago Martins was brought back to the line-up. Jun Amano partnered Takahiro Ogihara in the midfield. Eitaro Matsuda replaced the star of the previous J1 League fixture for the Marinos, Teruhito Nakagawa. Júnior Santos started as the lone striker instead of Erik who was shifted to the left-wing.
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