The Japanese top flight action continues this weekend and features this upcoming J-League clash between 8th placed Sagan Tosu and 7th placed FC Tokyo with just one point separating the two teams before their encounter at the Ekimae Real Estate Stadium on Sunday evening.
Sagan Tosu will be eager to return to the relative safety of their Ekimae Real Estate Stadium following last week’s 3-1 defeat away from home at Jubilo Iwata, especially as their three defeats in recent times have all been on the road.
Losses at Kyoto Sanga, Vissel Kobe and Jubilo Iwata have perhaps held back Sagan Tosu’s ambitions of achieving a possible top three finish and has left the hosts in 8th place and a significant nine points adrift of 3rd placed Kawasaki Frontale.
However, results at home have certainly been encouraging for Sagan Tosu as the hosts are unbeaten in their last seven games and have lost just once in their previous 13 matches on home soil.
The draw has also featured prominently though, as four of Sagan Tosu’s last seven home games have resulted in stalemate.
FC Tokyo also tasted defeat last time out in the Japanese top flight after they were handed a 2-0 defeat away at Shonan Bellmare which also scuppered the visitors’ plans of making up ground on the teams above them, and in particular, Kawasaki Frontale, who hold an eight-point buffer over FC Tokyo.
Results overall have been a fairly mixed bag for the visitors as they’ve registered recent victories over Shimizu S-Pulse and Kashima Antlers.
But they also slipped to three previous defeats on the trot, losing to Avispa Fukuoka, Sagan Tosu (at home) and Jubilo Iwata.
The bigger picture shows FC Tokyo have won 4, drawn 4 and lost 4 in their previous 12 matches overall in the J-League and underlines the visitors’ inconsistent streak and inability to put any sort of winning run together.
With just one win from their last six outings on the road, FC Tokyo may well be happy to settle for a point at Sagan Tosu.
The visitors look to claw their way further up the J-League table but this upcoming fixture looks to be a tricky one where both sides may have to be content with a point apiece.