The Semi-finals in the 96th Emperor's Cup All Japan Football Championship will be held on Thursday 29 December. Yokohama F・Marinos will meet Kashima Antlers at Yanmar Stadium Nagai in Osaka and Omiya Ardija will play against Kawasaki Frontale at Nissan Stadium in Yokohama.

Yokohama F・Marinos vs Kashima Antlers

Yokohama F・Marinos succeeded in reaching the semi-finals for the first time since 2013, when they went on to win the championship. They will play against the J champions Kashima to book a place in the final, aiming to earn their eighth title, including those when the team was known as Nissan Motor.

The team ended in 11th place in the first stage and in 7th place in the second stage of the J.League this season, annually in 10th place. However, they beat Gamba Osaka, who were eager to win three consecutive Cups, 2-1 in the quarterfinal and succeeded in booking a place in the semi-final.

The midfielder AMANO Jun struck deciding goals during second-half injury time in two matches in a row, including the Round of 16, when the team beat Albirex Niigata 1-0. The midfielder SAITO Manabu, who were chosen for the J.League best eleven this season, also performed excellently. The defender NAKAZAWA Yuji led the team in a solid defence.

Kashima, on the other hand, have reached the semi-finals for the first time since 2012, and are aiming to win their fifth championship since 2010. The team ended in 11th place in the second stage after earning the title in the first stage of the J.League this season. However, they showed their tenacity at the end of the season and won the J.League Championship. The team, then, got through to the final of the FIFA Club World Cup as the first Asian team, and played competitively against the European champions Real Madrid in overtime, which has brought them some confidence.

The midfielder OGASAWARA Mitsuo and the defender SHOJI Gen have been performing well, and the midfielder SHIBASAKI Gaku, who had did not play in the quarterfinal due to injury, is expected to be back on the pitch. The forward AKASAKI Shuhei, who had struck the deciding goal in the quarterfinal win against Sanfrecce Hiroshima 1-0, commented: ‘our team have improved hugely through the Club World Cup. We’d like to go as far as possible to win this Cup.’

Kashima’s record against Yokohama in J.League is 27 wins, 19 losses, and 8 draws, including one win and one draw this season.

Erick MOMBAERTS, the coach of Yokohama, who seemed to be satisfied with the performance in the quarterfinals, noted: ‘by the look of the final of the Club World Cup, I believe Kashima can perform systematically. Having said that, we are not intending to change our strengths. We’d like to perform better, increasing the speed and flexibility of our passing.’ He further commented: ‘although I expect a tough game, we’d like to enjoy the semi-final since we have come this far.’

AMANO expressed his enthusiasm: ‘there cannot be anything more meaningless than losing a semi-final. It’s essential to mentally overwhelm the opponent. We’d like to think through and prepare well as a team.’

Omiya Ardija vs Kawasaki Frontale

Although Kawasaki F finished the first stage of the J.League in second place and the second stage in third place, earning third place for the season, they lost to Kashima in the semi-final in the J.League Championship, and ended in third place overall. The team have advanced to the semi-final for the first time since 2007, and are aiming to win the championship for the first time.

Kawasaki F’s strength is attack, which enabled them to be the top-scoring team with 68 goals in total. Both forwards OKUBO Yoshito and KOBAYASHI Yu scored 15 each, which was the highest number among Japanese players this season. OKUBO Yoshito have been performing well in this Cup, striking goals in every game from the 2nd Round against Blaublitz Akita to the quarterfinal against F.C. Tokyo (2-1). He has scored five goals so far, contributing to the team’s victory with the midfielder NAKAMURA Kengo, who was chosen as the MVP of the J.League this year.

OKUBO expressed his enthusiasm: ‘one more win will take us to the final. We’ll play hard to earn the title.’ The coach KAZAMA Yahiro, who has announced his retirement after this season, noted: ‘we are strong enough to become the top this year. We’ll perform each coming game with full strength in order to reach the top.’

Omiya, who have reached the semi-finals for the first time since 2005, aim to win their first Cup.

The team achieved fifth place in the J.League this season, which was the best result since they had been promoted to the league in 2005. The number of goals they conceded this season, 36, was the third lowest in the league. The team managed to keep a clean sheet from the 2nd Round to the Round of 16. In the quarterfinal, they played overtime against Shonan Bellmare, whose had a player sent off, and won the game 4-2 with counter-attacks and the defender KIKUCHI Kosuke’s two goals. The team succeeded in getting through to the semi-finals in the J.LEAGUE YBC Levain CUP.

Omiya’s record against Kawasaki F in the league, including the J2, is 14 wins, 22 losses and 6 draws. Although Omiya lost an away game to Kawasaki F 2-0 in June, they managed to grab a win at home (Kumagaya) 3-2 with the midfielder ESAKA Ataru’s goal just before the final whistle. The team found their rhythm in the latter half of the season, playing 10 games, including one against Kawasaki F, without a loss until the final Sec. of the second stage.

The midfielder IZUMISAWA Jin and the forward MRDJA Dragan have been playing well, and the midfielder IENAGA Akihiro, who was in bad condition, is expected to recover.

The coach of Omiya, SHIBUYA Hiroki, pointed out the players’ carelessness in the quarterfinal when they had a numerical advantage: ‘we have to avoid the same situation in the semi-final.’ The captain and also former Kawasaki F player KIKUCHI noted: ‘as it’s a one-shot deal, we’d like to prepare well to perform well and get a good result.’

The match between Yokohama F・Marinos and Kashima Antlers will kick off at 13:05 and the one between Omiya Ardija and Kawasaki Frontale will be at 15:05 on 29 December. The winners will meet on Sunday 1 January at Suita City Football Stadium for the final.

Semi-finals (12/29)

Fixtures and Results (Japanese version only)

96th Emperor's Cup All Japan Football Championship

2016-8-27(Sat.)〜2017-1-1(Sun.)

More Information
Ticket Information (Japanese version only)