Yokohama F·Marinos retained their place atop the Meiji Yasuda J1 League table, but who is their top challenger for the crown? And what happened in the relegation fight? Find out everything from Matchweek 29 right here:
Yokohama F·Marinos 1, Avispa Fukuoka 0
Anderson Lopes finished a great bit of passing to give Marinos a lead after 14 minutes and that was all they needed to hold control of first place.
Kawasaki Frontale 4, Sanfrecce Hiroshima 0
The mega battle to determine who is the top challenger in the title race was all Frontale, with Akihiro Ienaga scoring twice, Yasuto Wakizaka adding another and Kei Chinen converting from the spot for a dominant victory that takes the champions to only three points back of the leaders in second place.
Kyoto Sanga 1, Kashima Antlers 1
Ryogo Yamasaki scored in the first half to put the home side in front and while Diego Pituca equalized for Kashima after the break, Sanga picked up a vital point in their relegation fight.
Cerezo Osaka 2, Sagan Tosu 1
The Sakura left it late once again, but Jean Patric got free at the back post and headed home the winner three minutes into stoppage time to send Cerezo up to fifth in the table.
Urawa Reds 4, Kashiwa Reysol 1
Urawa kept their terrific form going as Yusuke Matsuo, Alex Schalk, Tetsuya Chinen and Alexander Scholz all found the back of the net to make it 11 results in the Reds’ last 12 matches.
Gamba Osaka 0, F.C.Tokyo 0
Gamba’s defense has let them down this season, but they were up to the task as they kept FCT off the scoreboard to pick up a crucial point that took them out of the relegation zone.
Vissel Kobe 0, Nagoya Grampus 0
The Ushi nearly picked up a gigantic win in their relegation fight, but their several second-half chances were denied by either bad luck or the excellent Mitchell Langerak in goal, leaving them to settle for a single point.
Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo 4, Júbilo Iwata 0
Consa put in a total performance, scoring twice within the first 21 minutes, drawing a 65th minute red card and then adding two more goals in stoppage time to put some space between them and the drop zone.
Shimizu S-Pulse 1, Shonan Bellmare 1
Thiago Santana’s marvelous form continued with an early goal, but Wellington was Shonan’s stoppage-time hero, netting a last gasp equalizer to split the points. Yet another late show from the Hiratsuka side.