Cerezo Osaka FC vs V-Varen Nagasaki, J. League 2026 REGULAR SEASON
Overview
Match Preview
Cerezo Osaka FC vs V-Varen Nagasaki — J. League at Yodoko Sakura Stadium.
- Cerezo Osaka FC 18 games · 31 pts (2026/27)
- V-Varen Nagasaki 18 games · 21 pts (2026/27)
Match Details
- Referee
- Assistant 1 Jun Mihara
- Assistant 2 Makoto Bozono (Japan)
Standings
| # | Team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vissel Kobe | 18 | 35 |
| 2 | Cerezo Osaka FC | 18 | 31 |
| 3 | Nagoya Grampus | 18 | 31 |
| 4 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | 18 | 30 |
| 5 | Gamba Osaka | 18 | 28 |
| 6 | Fagiano Okayama FC | 18 | 26 |
| 7 | Shimizu S-Pulse | 18 | 24 |
| 8 | Kyōto Sanga FC | 18 | 23 |
| 9 | V-Varen Nagasaki | 18 | 21 |
| 10 | Avispa Fukuoka | 18 | 21 |
| 11 | Kashima Antlers | 18 | 45 |
| 12 | FC Tōkyō | 18 | 37 |
| 13 | FC Machida Zelvia | 18 | 37 |
| 14 | Kawasaki Frontale | 18 | 28 |
| 15 | Tōkyō Verdy | 18 | 28 |
| 16 | Urawa Red Diamonds | 18 | 25 |
| 17 | Kashiwa Reysol | 18 | 20 |
| 18 | Yokohama F·Marinos | 18 | 20 |
| 19 | FC Mito Holly Hock | 18 | 18 |
| 20 | JEF United Ichihara Chiba | 18 | 12 |
Head-to-Head
Recent Form
| Date | Opponent | H/A | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 09 May | V-Varen Nagasaki | H | 3–2 | W |
| 06 May | Shimizu S-Pulse | A | 4–6 | L |
| 03 May | Avispa Fukuoka | H | 2–2 | D |
| 29 Apr | Vissel Kobe | A | 0–0 | D |
| 25 Apr | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | A | 1–2 | L |
| 18 Apr | Kyōto Sanga FC | H | 3–0 | W |
| Date | Opponent | H/A | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 09 May | Cerezo Osaka FC | A | 2–3 | L |
| 06 May | Fagiano Okayama FC | H | 2–1 | W |
| 03 May | Nagoya Grampus | H | 1–2 | L |
| 29 Apr | Shimizu S-Pulse | A | 2–1 | W |
| 25 Apr | Gamba Osaka | H | 6–7 | L |
| 18 Apr | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | A | 0–2 | L |
Season Stats
| Cerezo Osaka FC | V-Varen Nagasaki | |
|---|---|---|
| #2 | Position | #9 |
| 31 | Points | 21 |
| 18 | Played | 18 |
| 11 / 0 / 7 | W / D / L | 7 / 0 / 11 |
| 48 | Scored | 25 |
| 38 | Conceded | 33 |
| +10 | GD | -8 |
| 1.72 | PPG | 1.17 |
| 61% | Win % | 39% |
Key Stats
67%
Both Teams to Score
H2H (9 games)
H2H (9 games)
67%
Over 2.5 Goals
H2H history
H2H history
43%
Clean Sheets
Cerezo Osaka FC this season
Cerezo Osaka FC this season
14%
Clean Sheets
V-Varen Nagasaki this season
V-Varen Nagasaki this season
Cerezo Osaka FC are 2nd (31 pts). V-Varen Nagasaki are 9th (21 pts).
Goal Timing (This Season)
Cerezo Osaka FC
0-15
–/1
16-30
1/1
31-45
–/4
46-60
1/3
61-75
2/2
76+
1/1
■ Scored ■ Conceded
V-Varen Nagasaki
0-15
–/2
16-30
–/–
31-45
2/3
46-60
4/4
61-75
–/1
76+
3/4
■ Scored ■ Conceded
Top Scorers (This Season)
Cerezo Osaka FC
| Solomon Sakuragawa | 3 G |
| Yumeki Yokoyama | 1 G |
V-Varen Nagasaki
| Matheus Jesus | 3 G |
| Thiago Santana | 3 G |
| Tenmu Matsumoto | 2 G |
Events
Match Events
- 0' Here we go! The referee blows the whistle and Cerezo Osaka FC launch into their encounter with V-Varen Nagasaki.
- 5' Dion Cools has been disciplined this evening — perhaps mindful of those 0 cards already picked up this season.
- 10' Cerezo Osaka FC are deployed in a 4-2-3-1 today, looking to exploit space against V-Varen Nagasaki's 3-4-2-1 shape.
- 15' Masaya Shibayama, a Japan , has 1 bookings this season and will need to keep his discipline tonight.
- 20' With 0 assists to his name this season, Shunta Tanaka is clearly more than just a goal scorer for V-Varen Nagasaki.
- 25' with the perfectly-timed delivery and Ryogo Yamasaki makes no mistake. 0-1!
- 28' What a strike from Thiago Andrade! The score is 1-1.
- 33' Matchday of the Array and both teams know exactly what is at stake tonight.
- 38' The midfield battle is intense right now. Both Cerezo Osaka FC and V-Varen Nagasaki are fighting for every inch of the pitch.
- 43' Rikito Inoue is putting in a real shift tonight. He has covered more ground than anyone else for V-Varen Nagasaki so far.
- 48' The home supporters are growing impatient. Cerezo Osaka FC must find a spark to ignite this game.
- 53' V-Varen Nagasaki are happy to let the opposition have the ball in their own half. The trap is set.
- 58' Both keepers have barely been tested. Cerezo Osaka FC and V-Varen Nagasaki are cancelling each other out in the centre of the park.
- 63' Shunta Tanaka doubles the advantage! 2-1 and this game is slipping away from the opposition.
- 68' V-Varen Nagasaki has dominated the recent head-to-head record, winning 0 of the last 1 meetings.
- 72' GOAL! Matheus Jesus scores on 72.
- 77' It looks surprising V-Varen Nagasaki does not make any changes. Masahiro Sekiguchi has some obvious troubles when approaching to the goal.
- 82' Although teams showed high tempo form the start, they seem to slow down a bit. Both sides really need to catch a fire. Otherwise, we have another goalless match.
- 86' A meaty challenge results in booking for Riku Yamada on 86.
- 90' A meaty challenge results in booking for Kosuke Nakamura on 90.
- With this win, Cerezo Osaka FC is likely to improve its situation in the overall team standings.
Lineups
Cerezo Osaka FC Lineups
4-2-3-1Starting XI
- 27
- 44
- 23
- 13
- 10
- 11
- 4
- 18
- 16
- 48
- 14
Bench
- 8
- 6
- 2
- 5
- 7
- 3
- 21
- 19
- 9
Coach
Arthur Papas
V-Varen Nagasaki Lineups
3-4-2-1Starting XI
- 4
- 22
- 23
- 18
- 5
- 13
- 48
- 24
- 41
- 11
- 3
Bench
- 10
- 9
- 21
- 25
- 1
- 17
- 6
- 34
- 33
Coach
Takuya Takagi
H2H
H2H Top Scorers
| Player | Goals |
|---|---|
| Yusuke Maruhashi | 2 |
| Matheus Jesus | 2 |
| Yusuke Maruhashi | 2 |
| Yoichiro Kakitani | 1 |
| Shunta Tanaka | 1 |
| Kota Mizunuma | 1 |
| Thiago Andrade | 1 |
| Keita Nakamura | 1 |
Head to Head
Cerezo Osaka FC Form
V-Varen Nagasaki Form
2026-05-09
Cerezo Osaka FC
3–2
V-Varen Nagasaki
L
2026-05-06
V-Varen Nagasaki
2–1
Fagiano Okayama FC
W
2026-05-03
V-Varen Nagasaki
1–2
Nagoya Grampus
L
2026-04-29
Shimizu S-Pulse
1–2
V-Varen Nagasaki
W
2026-04-25
V-Varen Nagasaki
6–7
Gamba Osaka
L
2026-04-18
Sanfrecce Hiroshima
2–0
V-Varen Nagasaki
L
Predictions
Prediction accuracy
3 / 4
2.55
Cerezo Osaka FC xG
Expected Goals
Dixon-Coles · Bivariate Poisson · Neg. Binomial · Elo
1.35
V-Varen Nagasaki xG
I would bet for:
Over 2.5 goals 73% + Both teams to score 68%
Match Result
✓ CorrectActual: Cerezo Osaka FC win
Both Teams to Score
✓ Correct
Avg goals/match: 3.9
Actual: Yes — both scored
Over / Under Goals
✓ O/U 2.5| Line | Over | Under | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ± 0.5 | 97% |
|
3% |
| ± 1.5 | 90% |
|
10% |
| ± 2.5 | 73% |
|
27% |
| ± 3.5 | 53% |
|
47% |
| ± 4.5 | 35% |
|
65% |
Double Chance
Cerezo Osaka FC or Draw
81%
Draw or V-Varen Nagasaki
39%
Cerezo Osaka FC or V-Varen Nagasaki
80%
Half-Time Result
✗ WrongActual: Draw at HT
Correct Score
✓ In top 12
2 – 1
8.7%
1 – 1
7.8%
3 – 1
7.2%
2 – 0
6.7%
2 – 2
5.7%
3 – 0
5.5%
1 – 0
4.9%
3 – 2
Actual
1 – 2
4.6%
4 – 1
4.6%
4 – 0
3.5%
0 – 0
3.2%
Asian Handicap — Cerezo Osaka FC
| Handicap | Cerezo Osaka FC covers | Push | V-Varen Nagasaki covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| -2.5 | 24% | — | 76% |
| -2 | 24% | 18% | 58% |
| -1.5 | 42% | — | 58% |
| -1 | 42% | 20% | 38% |
| -0.5 | 62% | — | 38% |
| +0.5 | 82% | — | 18% |
| +1 | 82% | 11% | 8% |
| +1.5 | 92% | — | 8% |
| +2 | 92% | 5% | 3% |
| +2.5 | 97% | — | 3% |
Clean Sheet
Cerezo Osaka FC keeps clean sheet
27%
✓
V-Varen Nagasaki keeps clean sheet
9%
✓
Predictions are statistical estimates based on season form, H2H history, and a Poisson model. Not financial advice.

