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Vissel Kobe welcome Melbourne Victory to the Misaki Park Stadium in the playoffs stage of the AFC Champions League on Tuesday.
The winner of the match will be one of seven clubs to join the 33 direct entrants in the group stage of the competition that kicks off next month.
The home side have got off to a slow start in the J1 League and are winless in six games so far. They fell to a 2-0 loss at home to the Kashima Antlers in their previous outing and will be looking to redeem themselves with a win here.
Melbourne Victory travel to Japan on a three-game unbeaten streak and played out a 1-1 draw at Central Coast Mariners last Wednesday. Both clubs made it to the knockout stage of the competition in the 2020 edition but failed to qualify for the 2021 edition.
Vissel Kobe vs Melbourne Victory Head-to-Head
This will be the first competitive meeting between the two sides. While the visitors have faced a Japanese opponent 15 times so far (winning on just five occasions), this will be the first time the hosts face an Australian side.
Vissel Kobe form guide (J1 League): L-D-L-D-D
Melbourne Victory form guide (A-League): D-W-W-L-L
Vissel Kobe vs Melbourne Victory Team News
Vissel Kobe
Yoshinori Muto is the only injury concern for the home team ahead of this one-off playoff game.
Injury: Yoshinori Muto
Doubtful: None
Suspension: None
Melbourne Victory
The Boys in Blue have named a 22-man squad for this game, which includes Rai Marchan and Matt Spiranovic, two players struggling with fitness issues. The duo are unlikely to be named in the starting XI in this game.
Injury: None
Doubtful: Rai Marchan, Matt Spiranovic
Suspension: None
Vissel Kobe vs Melbourne Victory Predicted XI
Vissel Kobe Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Daiya Maekawa (GK); Gotoku Sakai, Yuki Kobayashi, Tomoaki Makino, Tetsushi Yamakawa; Sergi Samper, Hotaru Yamaguchi; Andres Iniesta, Daiju Sasaki, Yutaro Oda; Lincoln
Melbourne Victory Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Matt Acton (GK); Aisen Ishak, Leigh Broxham, Roderick, Stefan Nigro; Joshua Brilliante, Chris Ikonomidis; Robbie Kruse, Jake Brimmer, Lleyton Brooks; Francesco Margiotta
Vissel Kobe vs Melbourne Victory Prediction
The hosts are yet to find their groove this season and have scored just three times in six games. They are yet to score at home and could fall short against their Australian rivals, who have 20 goals from 14 league games.
The playoff game is expected to be a closely contested affair, but Vissel's poor form indicates that a win is on the cards for the visitors.
Prediction: Vissel Kobe 1-2 Melbourne Victory
