Avispa Fukuoka and Urawa Red Diamonds met in the fifth round of the J-League 1 at Best Denki Stadium on Tuesday evening, and the visitors claimed a 2:3 victory with two goals in the closing stages. Both sides entered the fixture on three points after four matches, sitting 15th and 17th in the table respectively. It was a game that looked settled at 2:1 before Urawa found a way back into it.
Matheus Sávio opened the scoring for the visitors in the seventh minute, but Avispa responded quickly through Shosei Usui in the 24th. Shu Morooka then gave the hosts the lead in the 34th minute, and for a spell it seemed they had the measure of their opponents. To be fair, Avispa controlled possession in fragments, though they lacked the composure to see out the advantage.
The momentum shifted after the break when Urawa brought on Ryoma Watanabe in the 45th minute. Kotaro Hayashi equalised in the 83rd minute, and Ado Onaiwu was on hand to complete the turnaround two minutes later. By then, Avispa had already made three changes, including both scorers, but the substitutions came too late to alter the outcome.
There were plenty of changes on both sides, with Urawa making four substitutions to Avispa's three. Tomoya Miki came off in the 64th minute after picking up a yellow card 16 minutes earlier, while Yuma Tsujioka also went off after the booking in the 65th. Tatsuki Seko made a late appearance for Urawa in the 88th minute as the visitors managed the game out.
The statistics tell a story of two different approaches. Urawa held 63 per cent possession and completed 411 passes compared to Avispa's 196, yet the hosts registered eight shots on target against six. Avispa created three big chances while Urawa managed two, and the visitors took fewer shots overall but converted them when it mattered.
Both teams remain on three points after four games, though the result leaves Avispa in 15th place and Urawa in 17th. The visitors had lost three of their previous four matches before this victory, while Avispa's form has been inconsistent with only one win in five league games. It was not a match that demanded much from either side in terms of ambition, but the late goals made all the difference.
