State of the J: Yokohama FC

The previous installments of this series have looked at teams in the top tier of Japanese football, but now we’re going to switch lanes and look at a team that is threatening to gatecrash the playoff party in the second tier. A party to which, conventional wisdom went, they weren’t to receive an invite for. […]

State of the J: Yokohama F. Marinos

Yokohama F.Marinos were a mystery before the season started, and have continued on the mysterious trajectory, combining some excellent performances such as their opening day win against Urawa with some pretty average ones – the defeat at Sagan Tosu springs to mind. I could have asked around 40 questions to Yokohama F.Marinos supporter Tony Dee, […]

State of the J: Sanfrecce Hiroshima

With the emphasis on “state” – because that is what Sanfrecce Hiroshima are in. Currently in the bottom three with just two wins from their thirteen games so far, this is a pale imitation of the purple clad teams of the past decade. So what is going on? Is it just cyclical? Were we wrong […]

State of the J: Kawasaki Frontale

Often the “trendy pick” amongst the football hipsters in Japan (or have I just imagined that?) Kawasaki Frontale have flattered to deceive on many occasions. Under previous boss Yahiro Kazama they played a brand of football that was beautiful on the eye, but short on quantifiable success. Players like Kengo Nakamura, Yoshito Okubo & Yu […]

State of the J: Urawa Reds

Urawa Reds, as usual, are in and around the business end of the J1 table. Urawa Reds, as usual, mix in tremendous performances with performances the leave supporters scratching their heads in confusion. So is it business as usual at Saitama Stadium? Or are there any signs that this year might be the year that […]

State of the J: Vegalta Sendai

Vegalta Sendai are a bit anonymous in J1. They don’t challenge for honours, but always do enough to see them clear of the relegation spaces and their Yurtec stadium is one of the most atmospheric places in the J.League when full & jumping. To learn a bit more about Vegalta in 2017, Regista turned to […]

J1 Weekend preview

He once told me that his weekly previews would start off long and then get gradually shorter – but no sign of that just yet as @JTalkPod goes deep into the J1 fixture list for this weekend. Strap yourself in…. With Matchday 3 of the ACL group stage taking place this midweek, and the Nabisco […]

5 Things I think I think

1. I think that we need to understand where J.League clubs are in relation to other Asian teams in regard to the Asian Champions League and not overreact to every win & defeat. After matchday 1, where Japanese teams teams won three and drew one of their four games, Japanese football supporters would have […]

J1 preview – Week 3

Back by popular demand, @JTalkPod gives us the lowdown on the weekend’s J1 action, which, somewhat excitingly, starts on Friday night this week….. Four teams lead the way with a perfect two wins from two after J1 Matchday 2, but with Kashima, Urawa and Gamba Osaka all getting their campaigns rolling with first wins […]

5 Things I think I think….

I’m shamelessly lifting this segment from the MMQB American Football site (quite simply, the best sports site on the web) and using it to give a quick overview of the weekend’s football in Japan. 1. I think DAZN has to get its act together pronto. Judging by the uproar over the buffering/lack of stream […]