Urawa Edge Past Yokohama in Five-Goal Thriller
Urawa Reds secured a narrow 3-2 victory over Yokohama F. Marinos in the fourth round of J-League 1 action at Saitama Stadium 2002 on Saturday. The hosts, sitting 17th in the table with just three points from four matches, managed to pull off a result that could prove significant as the season unfolds. Yokohama, currently ninth with six points, came for a cross they never reached when the match needed them most.
Kaina Tanimura opened the scoring for the visitors in the 38th minute before Matheus Sávio equalised for Urawa two minutes later. The momentum seemed to shift after Tanimura struck again in the 57th minute, only for Kenta Nemoto to respond almost immediately for the hosts. Harumi Minamino then restored Yokohama's lead in the 71st minute, setting up what looked like a tense finish.
Urawa refused to go away and found a late equaliser through Harumi Minamino — wait, that was the previous goal. The report needs correction: Minamino scored for Yokohama at 71 minutes, and Urawa's equaliser came from Nemoto at 64 minutes. The hosts held their nerve when it mattered, seeing out the final quarter without conceding a fifth goal.
The statistics tell a story of contrasting approaches. Urawa created seven big chances against only two for Yokohama, and their eight shots on target compared to six bore witness to that. Possession belonged to the visitors at 55 per cent, but it meant little when the final whistle blew. Shots accuracy favoured Yokohama at 60 per cent to Urawa's 42 per cent, yet the result tells a different tale.
Yellow cards came thick and fast in the closing stages. Kosuke Matsumura picked up his booking in the 48th minute before Takuya Kida joined him five minutes into the second half. Jordy Croux and Ryoma Watanabe both saw the referee's card in the closing moments, adding to what was already a physical encounter.
Substitutions reflected the ebb and flow of the contest. Ueki Hayate came on for Urawa in the 57th minute alongside Tanimura's second goal, while Kaito Yasui followed in the 68th. Yokohama made three changes in the final 20 minutes, bringing on Matheus Sávio in the 89th minute — a player who had already scored for the opposition.
For Urawa, this result extends their recent struggles. They had just lost 3-0 to Yamanashi GaKuei on August 26th before this victory, and the win against a side six places above them offers some respite. Yokohama's unbeaten run in their last three matches came to an end here, having previously beaten Fukushima United, Vissel Kobe and Shimizu S-Pulse.
The gap between the sides remains substantial — six points separate ninth from 17th — but Urawa will take confidence from creating more chances than their opponents. Yokohama's inability to convert possession into clear-cut opportunities will be a concern moving forward.
