Albirex Niigata vs Sanfrecce Hiroshima

Albirex Niigata and Sanfrecce Hiroshima are set to face off against each other in a potentially high-stakes J1 League encounter at the Denka Big Swan Stadium.

An uneventful scoreless draw away to fellow bottom-half strugglers Kashiwa Reysol last time out condemned an underperforming Albirex Niigata side to a fifth successive J1 League match without winning (D2, L3). They’re still six points clear of rock-bottom Shonan Bellmare, but unless they can put their woeful winless run to bed, a dreaded relegation picture may soon loom larger. But considering three of their four league victories this season have come on home turf, ‘Albi’ have a legitimate claim here, even though they head into this matchday winless in their last three home matches in the J1 League (D1, L2). Even if they concede the opener, Rikizo Matsuhashi’s team may still have enough character to bounce back, as witnessed by their impressive seven-point return from six home league outings after falling behind (W2, D1, L3).

In the meantime, visiting Hiroshima cannot afford another slip-up if they’re to reignite their hopes of landing a top-three finish after a two-game losing league run opened up a six-point gap on third-placed Nagoya Grampus. Indeed, the visitors have suffered three defeats in their last four J1 League games (W1), succumbing to a single-goal margin on each occasion. That’s not to mention Michael Skibbe’s men have lost four straight away league outings since a 1-0 win at Cerezo Osaka in late April, netting an average of only 0.5 goals per match in this sequence. Luckily for Hiroshima, one goal could be enough to get them all three points, as they’ve kept a clean sheet on their last six competitive visits to Niigata (W3, D3).