Match Report
On paper the standings were lopsided — Sanfrecce Hiroshima 3rd with 17 points, Urawa Reds 1st with 0, 17 apart.
Momentum sat with Sanfrecce Hiroshima, winners of their last three, having scored in 13 consecutive games.
10 previous meetings sit in the GioScore records — Urawa Reds 5, draws 2, Sanfrecce Hiroshima 3, at 2.2 goals per meeting. The pattern favours whoever hosts: home teams have won 70% of the meetings.
Saitama Stadium 2002 staged the fixture, a ground that holds 63,700. Sanfrecce Hiroshima led 2-1 at the break, and the second half added 2 goals for the 1-4 full-time score.
Goal scorers
Urawa Reds: Hayato Araki (22' og) · Sanfrecce Hiroshima: Akito Suzuki (16'), Tsukasa Shiotani (45'), Sébastien Haller (61'), Akito Suzuki (75')
Key stats
Possession: Urawa Reds 48% · Sanfrecce Hiroshima 52% · Total shots: 3-26 · On target: 1-9 · Corners: 1-11