Kashiwa Reysol Storm Machida After Red Card
Kashiwa Reysol produced a remarkable comeback at Machida Stadium, overturning a two-goal deficit to defeat the hosts 4-2 in J-League 1 action. The visitors, who had dropped behind twice through Yusuke Segawa's clinical finishing, rallied after Hokuto Shimoda's dismissal to take all three points. It was a result that shifted the momentum between two sides with similar records going into the match.
Machida started with purpose, and Yuki Soma gave them the lead in the 38th minute with a well-taken goal. The home side controlled the first half period, substituting Hinata Yamauchi and Shota Fujio at the break as they looked to maintain their advantage. Segawa then doubled their advantage in the 53rd minute, and it appeared the visitors would struggle to respond.
And here's the thing about football — you can dominate possession and still lose control of a game. Kashiwa pulled one back through Keita Endo just five minutes after the break, and then the match turned completely. Shimoda's red card in the 62nd minute changed everything, leaving the hosts with ten men and the visitors suddenly full of confidence. Yoshio Koizumi capitalised immediately, scoring in the 65th minute to level the contest.
The visitors didn't let up after that. They pressed forward with purpose, and Machida's defence, stretched thin by the numerical disadvantage, began to crack. Segawa got his second goal in the 88th minute, giving the hosts a glimmer of hope, but Koki Ogawa sealed the victory with a late strike in the 90+2nd minute. By then, the result was already decided.
The statistics told their own story. Kashiwa enjoyed 64 per cent possession and registered 10 shots on target compared to Machida's 2, while the hosts managed only 2 shots on target despite creating 2 big chances. Machida completed 356 passes against 657 for the visitors, and the difference in attacking output was stark — 113 attacks for Kashiwa versus 66 for the home side.
What this result means is that Machida remain second on 17 points from seven games, but now face a tougher run of fixtures. Kashiwa, sitting fifth with 15 points, showed character to come back after going two goals down, though they've now lost two of their seven matches. The gap between them in the table remains narrow, and both sides will be looking to consolidate their positions in the coming weeks.