Saturday, June 21

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Sports Mole previews Saturday's J1 League clash between Yokohama F Marinos and Fagiano Okayama, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Aiming to bounce back to winning ways and move closer to escaping the bottom of the J1 League table, Yokohama F Marinos will welcome Fagiano Okayama to the Nissan Stadium on Saturday.

The hosts find themselves five points adrift of 19th spot after 19 games, while their visitors sit 13th following a defeat last time out.

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Match preview

Yokohama F Marinos return to action on Saturday aiming to give their J1 League survival hopes a much-needed boost following a midweek managerial departure.

After following up their fifth top-flight triumph in 2022 with second and ninth-placed finishes, the Marinos find themselves heavily threatened by relegation, currently sitting at the bottom of the table having only earned 14 points from their first 19 outings.

They did look to have bounced back from a particularly dismal start with back-to-back convincing victories in late May, though, beating Kashima Antlers 3-1 at home and Machida Zelvia 3-0 away, but Patrick Kisnorbo's side would fail to kick on.

An Emperor's Cup exit at the hands of ReinMeer Aomori followed, before they most recently visited fellow strugglers Albirex Niigata last Sunday and fell to an 11th league defeat of the season as Danilo Gomes netted the only goal for the hosts 17 minutes from time.

That result spelled the end of Kisnorbo's tenure, and now sitting 20th, five points behind 19th spot and six adrift of safety at the halfway stage of the campaign, Yokohama F Marinos will hope for a fresh start on Saturday and a victory to kick off a climb out of the bottom three.

Their visitors, meanwhile, make the trip at the weekend aiming to end their slide towards the bottom end of the table and return to top-half contention after a slow spell.

After winning promotion to the J1 League for the first time in their history last year, Fagiano Okayama have enjoyed a creditable start, initially picking up 17 points from their first 10 matches.

They have hit a tougher patch since, though, adding just one more notch to their wins column and seven more points in the last 10 attempts, with the solitary triumph coming at home to Albirex Niigata in mid-May.

Then on the back of a pair of draws and an Emperor's Cup defeat, Takashi Kiyama's side most recently hosted Avispa Fukuoka last weekend and came away empty-handed as Tomoya Ando netted the only goal in the second half.

Now finding themselves 13th at the halfway mark of the campaign, two points outside of the top half and five above the relegation zone, Fagiano Okayama will aim to get back on track and begin moving back up the table with a win on Saturday.

Yokohama F Marinos J1 League form:

Yokohama F Marinos form (all competitions):

Fagiano Okayama J1 League form:

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Fagiano Okayama form (all competitions):

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Team News

Yokohama F Marinos will remain without Takuto Kimura, Ryo Miyaichi, Reno Noguchi and Kosei Suwama at the weekend due to ongoing injuries.

Anderson Lopes should continue to lead the attack, having struggled for form in recent months after hitting nine goals and five assists in 10 games in the 2024-25 AFC Champions League until their exit in April.

Brazilian Compatriot Yan Matheus will offer further support from the wing, while Takuya Kida should again get the nod alongside mainstay Riku Yamane in the engine room.

Fagiano Okayama may again be without key midfielder Ryo Tabei, who has missed their last two outings, meaning Yuta Kamiya should again partner Ibuki Fujita in the engine room.

Yugo Tatsuta is a mainstay in a back three and should again be joined by Daichi Tagami and Kota Kudo.

Kazunari Ichimi should continue to lead the attack, while 18-year-old Ryunosuke Sato tops their scoring charts with four goals so far this season.

Yokohama F Marinos possible starting lineup:

Iikura; Kato, Matsubara, Deng, Suzuki; Yan, Kida, Yamane, Tono; Amano, Lopes

Fagiano Okayama possible starting lineup:

Brodersen; Tatsuta, Tagami, Kudo; Sato, Fujita, Kamiya, Kato; Kimura, Ichimi, Esaka

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We say: Yokohama F Marinos 2-1 Fagiano Okayama

 

Needing to turn a corner under new management and kickstart their survival, Yokohama F Marinos may spot a good opportunity on Saturday and use their quality to get past an out-of-sorts visiting side following Kisnorbo's departure.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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