Review: Urawa Reds 0-0 Cerezo Osaka (J1 MD22) | Official website

The rescheduled away match against Urawa ended in a scoreless draw despite a strong second-half push. Even so, Cerezo will look to build on the hard-earned point secured by a series of fine saves from goalkeeper Koki Fukui.

Three days after their Meiji Yasuda J1 League Matchweek 18 clash against Avispa Fukuoka, Cerezo traveled for an away fixture against Urawa Reds in Matchweek 22. Although Matchweek 22 was originally scheduled for late June, the fixture was brought forward due to Urawa’s participation in the FIFA Club World Cup 2025, which will be held from June to July. Cerezo made three changes to the starting lineup from the Fukuoka match. Kyohei Noborizato returned after six games, Thiago Andrade made his first start in five games, and Masaya Shibayama—who scored the opening goal in the previous match—was back in the league starting XI for the first time since Matchweek 3 against Kashiwa Reysol. The team also switched to a four-man backline, their first time doing so in the league in six matches.

Right from kickoff, Cerezo quickly looked to attack down the right side, with Lucas Fernandes delivering three crosses to create chances. In the 12th minute, they came close to opening the scoring. After receiving a pass from Ryuya Nishio, Lucas swung in a pinpoint cross that found Rafael Ratao, who rose to head it toward goal. Though he met the ball cleanly, directing it down between Urawa’s two center-backs, the effort narrowly missed the post. Just three minutes later, Urawa responded with a chance of their own. Starting from Takuro Kaneko on the right flank, they created an opportunity that saw Kaito Yasui unleash a powerful shot off a second ball from Ryoma Watanabe’s cross. However, goalkeeper Koki Fukui parried the attempt, and Nishio cleared the danger. Having survived that scare, Cerezo regained control of the match. They repeatedly threatened from the right side, earning several corners. In the 27th minute, Kida’s pass was laid off by Ratao to Masaya Shibayama, who had made a run behind the defense, but his shot was denied by goalkeeper Shusaku Nishikawa. Despite enjoying the majority of possession, Cerezo couldn’t break the deadlock, and from around the 35th minute, the momentum shifted toward Urawa. Cerezo began to lose the ball quickly after regaining it and were pinned deep in their own half. Then in the 45th minute, Urawa carved out a golden opportunity. Samuel Gustafson’s pass found Matheus Savio, who turned and struck a world-class volley on the spin. But once again, Fukui produced a brilliant save to deny the goal. The first half, full of fierce battles and momentum swings, ended 0-0, with both sides having created chances during their respective dominant spells.

In contrast to the first half, the second began with Urawa taking the initiative. With the home side dominating possession, Cerezo were pushed onto the back foot. Even when they won the ball, the team’s shape was stretched, making it difficult to connect passes and maintain possession. Pinned back and disjointed, Cerezo conceded a major chance in the 52nd minute. Once again, Takuro Kaneko was the catalyst, and his play set up Matheus Savio for a cross that found Hirokazu Ishihara, who headed toward goal. It looked like a certain goal, but Fukui stretched out his right hand to make a stunning save, stopping the ball just before it crossed the line. Manager Arthur Papas, noticing the poor spacing within Cerezo’s defensive block, responded decisively in the 58th minute with a double substitution. Masaya Shibayama and Tiago Andrade made way for Sota Kitano and Reiya Sakata. Kitano slotted into the attacking midfield role while Sakata took up the left wing. The change immediately shifted the momentum. Kitano began receiving the ball effectively between Urawa’s lines, allowing Cerezo to regain control and push the opposition back. Cerezo once again dominated possession with a proactive approach. As in the first half, the right flank combination of Lucas Fernandes and Hayato Okuda remained a key attacking channel, and in the second half, the left side also came alive. Sakata mixed direct dribbles with combinations involving Noborizato, providing a variety of attacking options. In the 76th minute, Cerezo created a golden opportunity from the left. Noborizato’s pass found Kida, whose powerful shot was parried by Nishikawa. Ratao pounced on the rebound and fired into the open goal, only for the ball to strike the post. Two minutes later, Noborizato received a pass from Kitano and unleashed a signature left-footed shot that flew with pace—but once again, it hit the post. Despite generating promising attacks, Cerezo couldn’t convert their chances. As is often the case in such situations, one missed opportunity can lead to danger at the other end. In the 84th minute, Cerezo’s right side was breached by Takahiro Sekine, whose cross found Tomoaki Okubo inside the box. His shot rattled the crossbar, giving Cerezo a scare. Surviving that threat, Cerezo held onto the ball and pressed for a winner in the closing stages. In the 84th and 87th minutes, the trio of Sakata, Kitano, and Noborizato combined to create chances down the left. In stoppage time, Kida latched onto a second ball from a corner and fired a well-placed shot on target, but Nishikawa made the save. Ultimately, Cerezo couldn’t find a breakthrough, and the match ended in a 0-0 draw—their first goalless game of the season.

“I think we deserved to win based on the content of the game. Honestly, I wanted to win,” said Shinji Kagawa. “We wanted to get all three points. I personally wanted to score, and as a team, we had to finish off the chances during the periods we pressed forward,” said Kida. As the two defensive midfielders who touched the ball frequently and kept the attacking rhythm throughout the match reflected, Cerezo pushed hard toward the end and the match unfolded in a way where they really wanted to break through Urawa’s defense and take all three points. Still, since there were also dangerous moments late in the first half and early in the second half where Urawa could have taken the lead, it was also true that it was “a positive 0-0,” as Fukui put it. As the manager said at the beginning of the post-match press conference, “It was a 0-0 result, but I think it was an exciting game,” with a fast pace and clean, high-quality football on display. “Today, both the team and I personally performed well, but what comes next is our challenge. We are being tested whether we can win next time. We want to be hungry for victory,” said Kagawa. In the next match at home against Shimizu S-Pulse, securing a solid win there would increase the value of the one point earned this time. This is the fifth match of a nine-game stretch, again with just three days between games, so the team will first focus on proper recovery and tackle the next game as one united squad.