Cerezo Osaka vs Yokohama FC

Yodoko Sakura Stadium sets the stage for the first leg of Cerezo Osaka’s exciting YBC Levain Cup last-16 tie against Yokohama FC. 

Cerezo Osaka demonstrated sheer dominance in their previous Levain Cup outing, beating fellow top-flight rivals Kyoto 4-1 on the road to inch closer to their first cup triumph since 2017. They’ve continued in a similar vein in three subsequent J1 League fixtures (W2, D1), putting four goals past Shimizu S-Pulse in a scintillating 4-2 romping last weekend. That was their third consecutive home victory and the second to see them score 2+ goals, setting them up nicely for this traditionally welcoming contest. Indeed, Arthur Papas’ men have defeated Yokohama in their last three H2Hs on home turf via an aggregate score of 6-1, including a comfortable 2-0 league win toward the end of May. 

In the meantime, Yokohama’s underwhelming J1 League campaign continued with a 2-1 away loss to Urawa Reds last weekend, marking their second defeat in four league games (W1, D1) while leaving them level on points with 18th-placed FC Tokyo. Therefore, they may find this Levain Cup clash a welcome distraction after ousting Machida Zelvia on penalties in the last round. As such, Shuhei Yomoda’s men could make history this season, as Yokohama have never won the Levain Cup title. Though this may seem like a step too far, they can actually take confidence from a 2-0 home win against Cerezo in March, which saw them halt a six-game losing H2H streak.