Vissel Kobe will look to extend their 100% run to four matches when they face Urawa Red Diamonds in the J1 League. The hosts are the only team left with a 100% record in the league. Urawa Red Diamonds, on the other hand, registered their first win of the season in the last game. They will also look to continue their winning run.
Vissel Kobe have won three matches this season. The team has scored eight goals and only conceded one. Vissel Kobe have averaged 1.77 xG in the first three matches. Their recent match was a thumping 4-0 win against Gamba Osaka.
Urawa Red Diamonds made a poor start to the season. They lost the first two matches by a scoreline of 2-0. Urawa Reds won their last match 2-1 against Cerezo Osaka. They have a low average xG rate of 0.96 and will look to improve this in this important match for both teams.
We further look at some of the stats and visuals that could help in predicting the outcome of the match.
Vissel Kobe’s threat from central zones
Vissel Kobe have been the top-goalscorers in the first three games of the J1 League 2023 season. The team averages 33.33 positional attacks and 2.33 counterattacks per match. In the last match, they created 35 positional attacks and the highest xG was generated from attacks through the central zones. The first viz above shows the 31 positional attacks created by them in the second match. One again they created decent number of chances from the centre.
Vissel Kobe averages 13 shots per match and have a high accuracy rate of 46.2%. They scored seven goals from inside the penalty box and one from the edge of the box. By looking at the above ball progression chart we can observe that most of the attacking displays have come from the left side. There are more progressive runs from that particular side.
Can Urawa Reds find their attacking touch?
After failing to score a goal in the first two matches, Urawa Red Diamonds scored two in their last match.
Urawa Red Diamonds average 28.33 positional attacks and one counterattack per match. They created 31 positional attacks in the last match and the majority were created from the centre. Both teams will look to stretch the play in this match.
The visitors only average 8.67 shots per match. They have an accuracy rate of 26.9%. By looking at the xG map we can observe that Urawa Red Diamonds have failed to take chances from inside the penalty box. They have attempted a few shots but most of them have been skied over the bar. The ball progression chart shows that Urawa can progress with the ball from any side. They have made more progressive runs than their opponents but have failed to convert them into a chance. Urawa Reds need to be more clinical in this match.
Key players
Vissel Kobe have a few players who have played in Europe. One of them is their 32-year-old striker Yuya Osako. The Japanese international has scored two goals in the last two matches. His xG map shows that all five shots have been attempted from similar positions inside the opposition penalty box. He will look to add his third goal of the season.
Yoshinori Muto is another player who has played in Europe. The 30-year-old features on the right side and has one goal and four assists to his name. He will be another key player in the attack for Vissel Kobe.
Betting analysis
Vissel Kobe are the slight favourites to win the match. As per the 1×2 betting odds, they have an odds rate of 2.6 to win the match. Urawa Red Diamonds are also in contention for winning the match. They have an odds rate of around 2.8. As for the over/under lines, the match is expected to be a tight one. The under lines are expected to thrive in this game.
Vissel Kobe have the advantage in this game. They have scored more goals and are tight in the defence. Urawa Red Diamonds will look to stop their opponents but they will have a difficult task in hand.
Visuals via Wyscout and the TFA data viz engine
