🏏 Wed, 21 Oct 2026 19:00 JST
Yokohama F. Marinos
vs
Tokyo Verdy
4-2-3-1 vs 3-4-2-1
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- Eighth plays 20th, with 12 points between them. Yokohama F. Marinos have won four, drawn four and lost two for 16 points, scoring 13 and conceding nine for a goal difference of +4. Tokyo Verdy are still looking for their first win of the campaign: no wins, four draws, six defeats, four goals scored, 18 conceded and a goal difference of -14, all while leaders Sanfrecce Hiroshima have pulled clear on 23 points.
- Marinos have kept three straight clean sheets. They beat Mito Hollyhock 2-0 at home in round 8, then drew 0-0 away at Cerezo Osaka in round 9 and 0-0 away at JEF United Chiba in round 10. The W-D-W-D-D run means they are unbeaten in five, but it also means two consecutive blanks at the other end. Ending that drought falls largely to centre-forward Kaina Tanimura, 28, a late developer who played in midfield at university before rediscovering himself as a striker at Iwaki FC.
- Verdy arrive on a three-match losing run. They were beaten 3-1 at Urawa Reds in round 8, lost 2-0 at home to leaders Hiroshima in round 9 and were hammered 4-0 at home by FC Tokyo in round 10. A record of no wins, four draws and six defeats tells the story: they can hang on for a point but rarely threaten, and four goals in 10 matches is the root of the problem.
- The goalkeeping contrast is striking. Marinos start 40-year-old Hiroki Iikura, an academy product with more than 16 years at the club who returned after three and a half seasons at Vissel Kobe and is known for aggressive sweeping and sharp shot-stopping. Verdy counter with 189cm Brazilian Matheus Vidotto, 33, a Corinthians youth graduate who played all 42 J2 matches in 2023 as the club ended a 16-year wait for promotion.
- Ryo Miyaichi, 33, takes the right flank for Marinos. He joined Arsenal at 18 and went on to play for Feyenoord, Bolton Wanderers, Wigan Athletic, Twente and St. Pauli, and his explosive pace has survived a string of serious knee injuries. Facing him is 22-year-old left wing-back Shuhei Mizoguchi, a Kashima Antlers academy graduate and age-group international whose left foot is his calling card. It is a severe test.
- The rest of the Marinos attacking band is equally distinctive. Jordy Croux, 32, is a left-footed Belgian right winger who once ran away with the J2 assist charts and now wears the vice-captain's armband. Behind the striker sits Daiya Tono, 27, a 166cm second striker with a genuine nose for goal who came through Honda FC before spells at Avispa Fukuoka and Kawasaki Frontale earned him a Japan call-up.
- The Marinos double pivot is an unusual pairing. Kei Chinen, 31, was converted from centre-forward into midfield and went on to top the J1 duel charts, with Kashima Antlers, Kawasaki Frontale and Oita Trinita on his CV. Alongside him, 22-year-old Kosuke Matsumura is still enrolled at Hosei University, made his J1 debut in April 2025 as a designated special player and has already agreed to join permanently from 2027.
- Verdy's midfield is stocked with technicians. Rei Hirakawa, 26, was labelled a prodigy in the FC Tokyo academy, played at the U-17 World Cup and sets the tempo by mixing short and long passing. Kosuke Saito, 29, arrived after a long stay at Yokohama FC and supplies through balls and decision-making in the final third, doubling as the senior voice in a notably young squad.
- Verdy lead the line with 182cm Kazunari Ichimi, 28, a hold-up striker who began at Gamba Osaka before moving through Tokushima Vortis, Kyoto Sanga and Yokohama FC. He runs into a tall Marinos back line built around 187cm, 86kg Colombian Jeison Quinones, 29, with 186cm Kosei Suwama, 23, and 183cm Taisei Inoue, 24, alongside him. That size is a big reason they have conceded only nine in 10 games.
- There is quality in reserve too. Marinos can introduce 35-year-old Jun Amano, whose left-footed free kicks once earned him comparisons with Shunsuke Nakamura, club captain since 2019 Takuya Kida, 32, and Thomas Deng, 29, a member of Australia's 2022 World Cup squad. Verdy hold back one-club captain and number 10 Koki Morita, 26, Kai Shibato, 30, who has played for Urawa Reds and Machida Zelvia, and 20-year-old Shizuoka Gakuen graduate Soma Kanda.