Kashiwa Reysol vs Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo

A place in the Emperor’s Cup quarter-finals is up for grabs as Kashiwa Reysol and Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo go head-to-head at the Sankyo Frontier Kashiwa Stadium.

Goals on either side of halftime catapulted Kashiwa Reysol to a 2-0 win over second-tier Tukushima in the last Emperor’s Cup round, helping them move one step closer to lifting their first title in the tournament since 2012. However, that also remains Kashiwa’s only triumph in their last seven outings across all competitions (D2, L4), casting doubt on their bid to overcome Sapporo. Adding to this sentiment, Masami Ihara’s team ended on the wrong side of a 5-4 scoreline in their most recent H2H, which halted their three-match winning H2H streak. Nonetheless, with three of those four encounters seeing over 2.5 goals and both sides on the scoresheet, this promises to be a treat for the neutrals.

Meanwhile, Consadole Sapporo thrashed lower-league Verspah Oita 5-2 in the previous Emperor’s Cup tie, netting multiple goals on either side of the interval. But like in Kashiwa’s case, that remains their solitary win in seven competitive fixtures (D2, L4), with ‘Consa’ failing to score in three of those six winless contests. Moreover, after three consecutive away wins, the visitors have gone three straight competitive travels without a victory (D2, L1), all of which saw both teams on the scoreboard. Despite their recent form woes, Sapporo can draw confidence from emerging victorious in three of their last four away meetings with Kashiwa (L1), bagging 2+ goals in each triumph.