Gamba Osaka will be looking to get back to winning ways in this tournament, having lost 0-3 in their last J-League Cup match. Two Urawa Red Diamonds players, Bryan Linssen (8', 63') and Alex Schalk (86'), scored the goals.
Gamba Osaka's goal-scoring ability has looked weak recently, as they have only scored four goals in their last six games. In addition, they have conceded a total of 12 goals in those games. We'll have to see if this trend continues in the upcoming matches. However, despite this, Gamba Osaka still have a good advantage in their upcoming matches, as they are undefeated at home in their last five league games.
Niigata Swans played a 1-1 draw with Urawa Red Diamonds in a recent J1 League match. In that match, Niigata Swans had 63% of the possession and they attempted 9 shots, 2 of which were on target. The only goal scorer for Niigata Swans was Yota Komi (81'). Alexander Scholz (38') was the goal scorer for Urawa Red Diamonds as they attempted 8 shots, 2 of which were on target.
In the last six games containing Niigata Swans, there have been relatively few goals scored between them and their opponents. The average number of goals scored per game in this period is 1.83, while the average number of goals scored by Niigata Swans is 0.83.
A review of their last few meetings shows that since July 29, 2015, Gamba Osaka has won 3 of those matches, Niigata Swans has won 1, and the other 2 matches have been drawn. A total of 18 goals have been produced in these matches, with Gamba Osaka contributing 11 of them and Niigata Swan 7. The average number of goals per game is 3. The last time these two teams faced each other in a league match was on May 28, 2023 in the 15th round of the J1 League, with the final score being Niigata Swans 1-3 Gamba Osaka. In that match, Niigata Swans had 72% of the possession and they attempted 21 shots, 8 of which were on target. Their goal scorer was Michael Fitzgerald (48'). Gamba Osaka attempted 8 shots, 4 of which were on target. The goal scorers were Shu Kurata (2'), Juan Alano (43') and Keisuke Kurokawa (56').
Gamba Osaka's captains Genta Miura (broken foot) and Riku Handa (broken femur) will be unavailable for the match, as well as Kyung-won Kwon due to a ban. Niigata Swans head coach Rikizo Matsuhashi has no injury doubts ahead of the match.
Score prediction, Niigata Swans will need to work hard to score in this match as they will be facing a well-honed team like Gamba Osaka. I think Gamba Osaka will probably win this game by a score of 1-0.
