Vissel Kobe vs Yokohama F. Marinos

Vissel Kobe and Yokohama F. Marinos are set to trade tackles at the Noevir Stadium in a mouth-watering AFC Champions League knock-out tie.

Despite their ongoing battle against the drop in J1 League, star-studded Vissel Kobe passed through AFC Champions League Group J without losing a single encounter (W2, D2). And while Kobe’s scoring woes continue to trouble interim head coach Takayuki Yoshida in the domestic championship, the ‘Ushi’ bagged 2+ goals in three of their four Group J outings. Kobe’s prolificacy in continental action comes in handy as they look to defy an abysmal H2H home record against Yokohama that has seen them lose three of their last four top-flight home H2Hs by an identical 2-0 scoreline (D1). But after losing back-to-back home games in the build-up to this clash, Koge are justified for fearing for their chances of advancing to the next knock-out stage.

On the other hand, Yokohama F. Marinos are leading the way in J1 League despite losing 2-1 to reigning champions Kawasaki Frontale last time out. Equally impressive at a continental level, the ‘Marinos’ finished top of AFC Champions League Group H with four wins from six matches (D1, L1). A 1-1 draw away to Jeonbuk Motors on Matchday 6 arrested Yokohama’s eye-catching streak of three Champions League victories ‘to nil,’ which has been the case in three of their last four competitive visits to Kobe. However, the visitors have won none of their four competitive away matches in the build-up to this trip (D2, L2), conceding 2+ goals on each occasion. Indeed, you’d have to go back to late May for Yokohama’s last clean sheet on the road.