🏏 Sun, 24 May 2026 17:00 JST
Shimizu S-pulse
vs
Gamba Osaka
4-3-3 vs 4-2-3-1
Substitutes
Substitutes
Match Preview
- In Matchday 18 of the J1 League, 12th-placed Gamba Osaka (20 points, goal difference +3) face 13th-placed Shimizu S-Pulse (20 points, goal difference -1) in a direct mid-table-group clash. Trailing leaders Kashima by 17 points, both sides need three points to escape the relegation battle. The only meeting this season, in Matchday 4, ended 2-2 at Gamba Osaka's home, so a win in the rematch holds the key to climbing the table.
- Gamba Osaka's current captain and CB Genta Miura (No. 5, 183cm) faces his former club Shimizu, where he spent eight years from 2017. The former Japan international, who spent his high-school days at Osaka Toin and joined via Shimizu, has the defensive sense to read opponents' attacks and accurate distribution. Gamba's left-back Ryo Hatsuse (No. 21, 180cm), a Gamba Osaka academy product, also faces a former club and will look to score with the technique to use both feet with high precision.
- Shimizu line up in a 4-3-3 and Gamba in a 4-2-3-1, so which side seizes the numerical advantage in midfield will be key. Shimizu form a defensive midfield pairing of Zento Uno (a CDM nicknamed 'the world's ball hunter' who made his Japan debut at the E-1 Championship) and Brazilian Mateus Bueno (a CM with Portuguese experience). Gamba's midfield is supported by a young duo of defensive midfielder Tokuma Suzuki (via University of Tsukuba, a championship runner-up at Maebashi Ikuei High School) and Rin Mito (180cm, a Kwansei Gakuin University graduate).
- Up front for Shimizu, South Korea international Oh Se-hun (CF, 193cm, 2 goals in 7 games at the U-20 World Cup) creates chances with aerial play and hold-up. On the wings, Kai Matsuzaki (a left-footed dribbler signed from Urawa Reds) and Kazuki Kozuka (formerly of Suwon Samsung, with K League experience) provide pace and technique to drive the attack. Gamba field former Turkey international Deniz Humet (CF, 189cm, from the Swedish league) as a lone target man, with Takashi Usami (an SS with experience at four German clubs including Bayern Munich) dropping deeper to threaten goal.
- Gamba Osaka have one win, two draws and two losses in their last five (form: D-D-W-L-L), with back-to-back defeats to Nagoya (1-2) and Sanfrecce Hiroshima (0-1) since their 5-0 rout of Vissel Kobe in Matchday 14. Shimizu are also on one win, two draws and two losses in their last five (form: L-W-D-D-L), having been beaten 0-2 away at Fagiano Okayama last time out, so neither side has been able to catch an upward wave. Can either regain momentum in this game to right the ship?
- On Shimizu's left wing, Ryotaro Meshino (171cm, the 'Naniwa Messi' who returned to Gamba via Manchester City and spells in Scotland and Portugal) starts. A Gamba Osaka youth product, he faces his former club and will look to score a triumphant goal against his old mentor with his trademark dribbling down the left. On Shimizu's right, Ryoya Yamashita (164cm, signed from Yokohama FC) counters with overwhelming sprinting power, making the duel between the two sides' wide attackers a highlight.