FC Tokyo vs Sagan Tosu 01/08/20

01 August 2020

FC Tokyo welcome out-of-sorts Sagan Tosu to the Ajinomoto Stadium this weekend, looking to extend an unbeaten J1 League run to five games (W2, D2).

It’s been a decent start to the season for Tokyo, who have avoided defeat in six of their opening seven J1 League fixtures (W4, D2), despite shipping the opening goal in five. Four of their five results (wins/losses) this term have produced a full-time margin of at least two goals, with two of Tokyo’s four wins seeing them come from behind to seal three points. Kenta Hasegawa’s men enter the clash as favorites according to the bookies after losing only once in their last six H2Hs across various competitions (W3, D2). Notably, the hosts have kept a clean sheet in five of those clashes, with two of their three triumphs yielding the identical 1-0 scoreline.

On the other hand, the visitors remain the only side yet to pick up a win after the opening seven rounds (D3, L4), which gives them a little comfort ahead of a trip to Tokyo, where they’ve failed to win in seven of their previous competitive visits (D4, L3). Frustratingly for Sagan, they drew a blank in six of those trips, which has been true in five of their J1 League matches this season. Indeed, Kim Myung-hwi’s players lament the division’s worst goalscoring record, having netted only two goals for the entire campaign so far. Subsequently, each of their seven top-flight outings this season featured under 2.5 goals, with six yielding the same 0-0 halftime score.