3 Dec 2011(Sat)

With mere hours remaining until the last round of this season’s J1 matches kick off and the title race is finally decided, I simply cannot decide what is going to happen. So I decided to let my PlayStation do my predictions for me. Now, strictly speaking, FIFA 12 doesn’t have the rights to the J. League, but a sophisticated customisation feature and the dedication of a community of fans in Japan has enabled us to download all the teams and players we need from the internet. And very authentic they all look, too. In the interests of fairness, I let the computer control both sides in all three crucial games and watched the action from the comfort of my sofa. And so it’s over to the stadiums where our commentators are waiting...

 

 

Kick-off: Clive Tyldesley is fully aware of the importance of this occasion as he welcomes us to the Saitama Stadium for Urawa Reds v Kashiwa Reysol. “There has been plenty of tension surrounding this one; there is so much to play for.” That’s right, Clive, there is. Kashiwa go into the final day in first place but with only a single-point lead, while Urawa need a draw to make absolutely sure of survival. His co-commentator Andy Townsend, meanwhile, has apparently been looking forward to this one for weeks. That’s the spirit. Martin Tyler and Alan Smith, by contrast, seem a little bit subdued from their commentary positions, although that’s possibly something to do with the fact that they’ve been asked to cover both Albirex Niigata v Nagoya Grampus and Shimizu S-Pulse v Gamba Osaka at once. Football just got four-dimensional, and that’s bound to confuse anybody.

 

3 minutes: Early chance for Urawa! Tadaaki Hirakawa breaks down the left flank and cuts back to Naoki Yamada, who tries a shot from a tight angle which goalkeeper Takanori Sugeno does well to parry. The ball flies up into the path of Ranko Despotović, but it’s a difficult header and the ball sails harmlessly over. Let off for the league leaders.

 

10 minutes: Third-placed Gamba Osaka, who have chosen to give Shoki Hirai a rare start alongside Lee Keun-Ho up front in the absence of both Rafinha (suspended) and Shota Kawanishi (broken leg), are the only one of the three contenders to have begun well. Lee, who seems to be one of the few players whose name Tyler has bothered learning, squanders an early opportunity though his own hesitancy. Urawa remain on top in Saitama; clearly determined to ensure there is no way back in the survival battle for Ventforet Kofu. Niigata, meanwhile, are playing as if they are the ones going for the title against a nervy-looking Nagoya. As I say that, however, Joshua Kennedy hits the first real chance of the game just wide.

 

19 minutes: Hirakawa gets in a terrific last-ditch interception to deny Junya Tanaka! Kashiwa have looked second best so far but they were through on goal and looked certain to score there. Brilliant defending.

 

21 minutes: And now a chance for another Tanaka... no! He’s put it wide! Atomu Tanaka of Niigata did superbly to dribble past both Naoshi Nakamura and Marcus Tulio Tanaka, but just when he appeared to have done all the hard work, his hurried shot flew past the post with only Seigo Narazaki to beat. Grampus really ought to be behind.

 

23 minutes: GOAL! The first goal of the afternoon so far and it’s come at Nihondaira, where Yasuhito Endo has given Gamba Osaka the lead! Hirai carried the ball along the left-hand side of the Shimizu penalty area before passing to Endo, who turned inside Eddy Bosnar with a clever change of pace and fired a low shot across Kaito Yamamoto. It’s early days yet, but that strike puts them on top of the provisional table. Shimizu S-Pulse 0-1 Gamba Osaka

 

33 minutes: As if stung into action by the news from Shimizu, Kashiwa are starting to get into their game after being second best for the first quarter. A beautiful four-man passing move almost sets up a chance for top scorer Leandro Domingues, but Shunki Takahashi just about gets to the ball first and clears desperately. In Niigata, Atomu Tanaka looks to have picked up a knock from that earlier opportunity on goal.

 

35 minutes: Naohiro Takahara evades Hiroki Fujiharu’s attempted tackle and fires in a quick shot that Gamba custodian Yosuke Fujigaya does well to push behind. First real chance for a Shimizu equaliser.

 

HALF-TIME: Gamba retain their composure to see out the half despite some good late pressure from S-Pulse. Still goalless in the other two games, but Kashiwa have recovered to gain control after a shaky opening. Nagoya, meanwhile, look out of sorts in the face of a really excellent 45 minutes of football from Niigata, for whom the only criticism can be their failure to turn territory into shots. Provisional table: 1) Gamba 70 (+26), 2) Kashiwa 70 (+21), 3) Nagoya 69 (+30)

 

Second half: Albirex’s Tanaka is indeed struggling and he hasn’t returned for the second half; Yuta Mikado is his replacement. Kashiwa look to step things up a gear with the introduction of old hero Hideaki Kitajima for Masato Kudo. No changes at Nihondaira, but Gamba are quickly out of the blocks and create two decent chances in the opening five minutes of the half; both thanks to good work on the right flank by Takahiro Futagawa. Unfortunately neither Lee nor Kim (Seung-Yong), another generic Korean name that Tyler seems to be familiar with, are able to get the ball onto their stronger feet and two almost identically tame shots are comfortably collected by Yamamoto.

 

47 minutes: Ooh... perhaps let’s call that a three-quarters chance for Kitajima just minutes after coming on. The 33-year-old did brilliantly to turn his marker, Mitsuru Nagata, but in doing so he loses balance and screws his shot just wide. Positive start from Reysol nonetheless.

 

51 minutes: PENALTY TO URAWA! What was I saying?! The home side break down to the other end, Genki Haraguchi collects the ball from Despotović and flicks it past the last defender, Hiroki Sakai. The Japan U22 teammates collide... but on a second look it’s a clear trip from Sakai and he’s probably fortunate to avoid a red card. Referee spot on with the decision and Marcio Richardes is spot on with the penalty... GOAL! Hard, low, and central. The J2 champions suddenly have a mountain to climb. Urawa Reds 1-0 Kashiwa Reysol

 

55 minutes: Kashiwa have clearly decided that, if they’re going to have to score twice in 40 minutes, they’d better make a move on. Brilliant skill from Leandro Domingues only rewarded with a corner, which comes to nought as Nagata rises highest to clear. Two minutes later, Tanaka bursts through but shoots just wide of Nobuhiro Kato’s left-hand post. Tyldesley and Townsend are absolutely loving this.

 

60 minutes: PENALTY TO GAMBA! Silly, silly play from Kosuke Ota as he throws out an arm to meet Kim’s cross before Lee can get a head to it. S-Pulse try to play mind games by immediately introducing Fredrik Ljungberg, who Tyler has most definitely heard of, for Alex Brosque. Using the rather unsporting interlude for a bit of discussion, Hirai takes the ball from earlier goalscorer Endo. The striker has had a season to forget but he’s clearly determined to at least go out with a bang. And he does! GOAL! Sweetly struck low to Yamamoto’s left. Half an hour left, and Gamba are very much in the driving seat – both in this game, and in terms of the table. Shimizu S-Pulse 0-2 Gamba Osaka

 

62 minutes: GOAL! Or are they?! Out of absolutely nowhere, Nagoya string together their first passing move of the game and they are ahead. It was both started and finished by Danilson, who continued his run forward from deep to receive the ball from Kennedy and smash home a really impressive effort from inside the Niigata D. Alan Smith would have been proud of that one. So he says. Either way, it is now Grampus who go on top by a point over Gamba. Albirex Niigata 0-1 Nagoya Grampus

 

65 minutes: Shimizu’s best chance for some time as Genki Omae’s crossed free kick is headed well over by Calvin Jong-a-Pin. In Niigata, the hosts win a corner as they look to hit back immediately, but Naoya Kikuchi can’t connect cleanly with his header. Kashiwa, meanwhile, remain in hot pursuit of an equaliser, with Jorge Wagner causing all sorts of problems down the left wing but his teasing cross is headed away well by Nagata.

 

68 minutes: Another corner for Niigata. Another headed opportunity goes begging.

 

75 minutes: Gamba are passing the ball around for fun, prompting a delighted succession of olés from the away end. They are well on top, with Ljungberg utterly anonymous were it not for the constant name checks he receives from Tyler. The three points are in the bag, you would have thought, but the Osaka side are still reliant on an equaliser for Albirex, who are dominant but Bruno Lopes’s skills are still not turning into genuine chances.

 

77 minutes: GOAL! Don’t count Reysol out of this race just yet! Sakai and Tanaka combine skilfully on the right flank to win a corner off Mizuki Hamada. Leandro Domingues sends in an absolute pearler for that man Kitajima to beat his marker and head past Kato at the near post. Game on – one more goal for Kashiwa will seal the title regardless of the other two results. Urawa Reds 1-1 Kashiwa Reysol

 

83 minutes: It’s a familiar story at the Big Swan Stadium as Niigata get forwards in wide areas yet again but Cho Young-Cheol can’t quite get a solid header to a left-footed cross from the industrious Mikado. In Saitama, Kashiwa are piling men forwards but their attacks are encountering a similar problem – plenty of nice passing but no end result. Wagner, Leandro, and Hidekazu Otani all take turns to pass from promising positions before Kitajima decides that if you want a job done, it’s best to do it yourself. It’s saved, though, by Kato.

 

86 minutes: Rare bit of possession for Shimizu, only to all end badly when Omae and Jong-a-Pin fall over one another in comical fashion. Pretty well sums up their afternoon. Meanwhile, Nagoya look to buy a bit of time by replacing goalscorer Danilson with Kensuke Nagai, but it’s still all Niigata.

 

90 minutes: Virtually everyone in the Urawa half as Kashiwa search desperately for that goal that will seal their historic championship. But disaster! Wagner concedes possession and Urawa are quite happy to play a bit of keep-ball, moving slowly forwards but with all the intent of that easy blue I managed to bounce out of the jaws of one central pocket and across the table into the other while playing snooker on Thursday. Three minutes of added time there, two in Niigata, and only one in Shimizu.

 

91 minutes: Full-time at Nihondaira, but this one’s been over for a long time. The Gamba players celebrate and salute their fans, who cheer back enthusiastically but the atmosphere remains tinged with tension and, dare we say, resignation as they pray for a miracle in Niigata.

 

92 minutes: GOAL! IN NIIGATA!!! But... don’t get too excited if you’re a Gamba supporter. Incredibly, and completely against the run of play, it’s gone the way of Grampus. After all that Albirex attacking, Kennedy managed to break away on the counter and hit a low shot that Hideaki Ozawa can only palm behind. Then, in the home defenders’ haste to clear away the resulting corner, the ball strikes Yusuke Murakami on the forearm and the referee points to the spot. Niigata can’t believe it and rightly so. That’s a ridiculously harsh decision from the officials and, while it probably won’t have changed the overall outcome, a real shame that such a tense encounter should end in real controversy. Kennedy doesn’t care – he smashes the ball down the middle to secure the golden boot – and perhaps the title? – with his 20th league goal of the campaign. Full time. Albirex Niigata 0-2 Nagoya Grampus

 

93 minutes: Frustration upon frustration for Kashiwa as they simply cannot win the ball back. Urawa are protecting their point and Yosuke Kashiwagi carries the ball to the corner, eventually winning a corner kick for his troubles. There’s even a late chance for the hosts as a result as Takahashi beats Naoya Kondo to force a fine save out of Sugeno, but the men in yellow look shattered. It’s all over. NAGOYA GRAMPUS ARE THE CHAMPIONS!

 

The Danilson (in white, shooting from the D) goal that set Nagoya on their way

 

So there we have it. According to FIFA 12, Nagoya Grampus and Gamba Osaka will both achieve 2-0 wins while Kashiwa Reysol are held in Saitama, meaning a second straight title for Dragan Stojković’s side after trailing behind in the standings for most of the season and, indeed, the final day. Their victory in Niigata may have been overwhelmingly against the run of play, but they took their chances when they arrived and, in doing so, finally demonstrated the cutting edge that made them comfortable champions in 2010. The final standings: 1) Nagoya 71 (+32), 2) Gamba 70 (+27), 3) Kashiwa 70 (+21)

 

Of course, real life rarely provides the same levels of drama as a computer game. Fortunately, in Japan it usually offers even more...