Kawasaki Frontale vs Oita Trinita 08/08/20

08 August 2020

Table-toppers Kawasaki Frontale welcome out-of-sorts Oita Trinita to the Kawasaki Todoroki Stadium, looking to maintain an unbeaten start to the 2020/21 J1 League campaign.

After being held to a goalless home draw to Sagan Tosu on the opening matchday of the season, the hosts have put together seven consecutive league triumphs to move five points clear of second-placed Cerezo Osaka. Notably, six of those wins saw Kawasaki score over 1.5 goals, and with 21 goals scored, they are the division’s best attacking side. Additionally, Kawasaki boast the division’s second joint-best home defensive record, having shipped just three goals in four matches on home turf so far. Interestingly, Toru Oniki’s men have won all three of their previous J1 League home fixtures despite a -1 handicap and are unbeaten in all nine of their competitive H2Hs held at this venue (W7, D2).

Although the visitors go into this fixture on the back of a 1-1 cup draw with Urawa, they have lost all four of their previous league matches, conceding an average of 3.25 goals across those defeats. Away from home in J1 League, Oita have lost three of four trips (W1), with the last three seeing over 2.5 goals and both teams score. Far more prolific in the second half, Tomohiro Katanosaka’s players have scored four of five away league goals after halftime. In turn, four of the six goals the ‘Trinita’ have ever scored against Kawasaki on the road arrived in the second half of play.