GW 480 J1 League Preview- Final

Intro

We have a couple of J1 league games coming up this midweek GW!

YFM are wanting to bounce back from ACL disappointment tomorrow night. Also have a pesky Friday night just before the deadline

Fixtures

The below are the fixtures coming up this GW:

Main Points

• YFM lost in the ACL final on Saturday and only flew back from the UAE on Sunday night. Rotation is expected as the final was v draining. Hatanaka also went off with an injury.

• Popp got sent off. He will not be suspended in the J1 league.

• Kashiwa played well at the wkend and unlucky not to get the win against Kawasaki. Diego returns from suspension in this game.

• Kashiwa keeper Matsumoto was subbed off late on with concussion and is out. Morita is fav to take over but Sasaki and Saruta also options.

• For Sagan Tosu defenders Harada and Kim Tae Hyeon are suspended.

• They didnt play on the wkend so team will be well rested.

• FC Tokyo lost 1-0 at home to Gamba. Brandon in general got plaudits for making some big saves in the game

• Matsuki was benched after the cup game a few days earlier.

• FC Tokyo have lots of options in offense with players like Endo and Nakagawa also potential starters

• Theres only 7 games this GW in the Contender Region involving licensed teams. The prize pools are relatively good if able to get a team out especially the in-season divs

Predicted Lineups

Important to note the %s used here. If no %, it means I see them as a starter and no known risks. For sorare, its about there scorer potential so check out KEY PLAYERS even subs have a way :)

When 75% or below - there is some risk involved. My main aim with these is to show where risk/potential DNPs are lurking.

I base these %s on info I read from various sources including comments from the manager and reading a lot of local Japanese news coverage/message boards. Saying that, there will always be unknowns including last minute injury/illness of a player etc.

Always do your own research when making picks. For SO5, it can make sense to take some calculated risks depending on the potential score and the rest of your team/prize pool.

YFM vs Kashiwa

YFM

• Lost in ACL final on Saturday night in the UAE

• Poor form in league. Winless in 6 games and down in 14th place (with some games in hand)

• Hatanaka likely out after going off with injury. Watanabe also likely out. Players like Saneto and Yamamura can play as CBs

• No training or player info yet which is a bit odd. Only returned to Japan on Monday. Very hard to know conditions of players outside will be tired.

• Low confidence on this lineup prediction atm. They are behind in the league so need to catch up ie go strong but at same time player condition unknown + have game vs Kashima Antlers on Saturday too.

• Usually get some training info before deadline, will post on Discord.

Kashiwa

• Unbeaten in 5 games. Currently 10th in the table.

• Diego returns from suspension.

• Kinoshita started and scored in the previous game. Has been in an out of the starting lineup even though is top scorer with 6 goals.

• A few options in mid with Shimamura/Shirai and Toshima fighting for spots

• Keeper Matsumoto has concussion and out. Morita likely this game and did pre game press conference.

• Takamine remains injured and out

Sagan vs FC Tokyo

• In 17th and another season fighting relegation likely.

• Defenders Tae Hyeon and Harada both suspended.

• Form in recent games has in improved. Ryan the top scorer with 7 goals.

FC Tokyo

• Lost 1-0 at home to Gamba and dropped down to 9th in the table.

• Brandon started in nets and did well. I reckon should start but still some uncertainty and I dont consider there to be set number 1 at Tokyo.

• Matsuki should return after being rested last game. Endo also got mins after injury and can play multiple positions

• Formation has been changing from 4-2-3-1 and 4-3-3 depending on opposition. Lots of options and I see it Ko + Koizumi as their main defensive/box to box mids. Ahead of them there are lots of options

SO5

Best Attack - YFM (xG 1.5)

Best Defense - FC Tokyo - (Clean Sheet - 30%)

The bookies have YFM favs for their game with good chance of goals. I personally think the game will be much tighter than it looks with YFM mentally drained and unknown condition of players. Kashiwa are a hard to beat so the most likely outcome is another 1-1 :D. I will be using Kashiwa players like Savio in my main teams and think they could get a result here.

FC Tokyo have a decent fixture against a struggling Sagan. They have been playing lots of different combos, however in a small GW like this, I will be taking more risks than normal and even playing 4 players in spots as i dont expect it to be that competitive. If you get the right captain choice, you can get a reward

This GW we also have the Underdog Special

Can use this for more speculative lineups eg

Finish

I hope you found this useful!

Im hoping for more YFM info and will post on Discord if it comes before the deadline.

For this wkends games, I will also be doing a giveaway for Tier 2 and Tier 1 Patreons. More info to follow in the next few days!

Any questions, just give me a shout! GL