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Vissel Kobe and Urawa Red Diamonds go toe-to-toe in round 16 of the J1 League Cup at the Kobe Wing Stadium on Sunday.
The hosts head into this game off the back of a 1-1 draw against Sagan Testt in the J1 League, while the visitors were held to a goalless draw by Nagoya Grampus Eight.
With eight points from six games, Vissel Kobe progressed from Group B of the J1 League Cup after finishing in second place.
Vissel Kobe have had a decent campaign in the J1 League so far. They have picked up seven wins and seven draws from 17 games while scoring 22 goals.
Atsuhiro Miura's men currently occupy sixth position in the league standings, one point behind fifth-placed Avispa Fukuoka and level on points with Sunday’s visitors.
Uwara Red Diamonds, on the other hand, claimed two wins and three draws from their six games in the group stages.
This saw them finish at the top of Group C, one point ahead of second-placed Shonan Bellmare.
Coming off a 10th-placed finish in the league last season, Uwara Red Diamonds will be satisfied with their performances so far.
They are currently on a seven-game unbeaten run and will aim to carry on that momentum and progress into the quarter-finals.
They have picked up 28 points from 17 games in the league and are currently seventh in the log, only behind Vissel Kobe on goal difference.
Vissel Kobe vs Urawa Red Diamonds Head-To-Head
This will be the 35th meeting between the two sides. With 18 wins from their previous encounters, Urawa Red Diamonds hold a slight upper hand in this tie. Vissel Kobe have picked up 11 wins, while five games have ended in draws.
They last met on 22 May, when Urawa Red Diamonds claimed a comfortable 2-0 win.
Vissel Kobe Form Guide (all competitions): D-W-L-W-D
Urawa Red Diamonds Form Guide (all competitions): W-W-W-D-D
Vissel Kobe vs Urawa Red Diamonds Team News
Vissel Kobe
The hosts remain without the services of forward Junya Tanaka, who has been out since March with an injury.
Injured: Junya Tanaka
Suspended: None
Urawa Red Diamonds
With no injuries or suspension concerns, Urawa Red Diamonds head into Sunday's tie with a full strength squad.
Injured: None
Suspended: None
Vissel Kobe vs Urawa Red Diamonds Predicted XI
Vissel Kobe Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Daiya Maekawa; Gotoku Sakai, Thomas Vermaelen, Rhuho Kikuchi, Tetsushi Yamakawa; Hotaru Yagamuchi, Yuta Goke; Kyogo Furuhashi, Andres Iniesta, Daiju Sasaki; Shion Inoue
Urawa Reds Predicted XI (4-4-2): Zion Suzuki; Takahiro Akimoto, Tomoaki Makino, Takuya Iwanami, Daigo Nishi; Yoshio Koizumi, Yuki Abe, Kai Shibato, Tatsuya Tanaka; Kasper Junker, Yuki Muto
Vissel Kobe vs Urawa Red Diamonds Prediction
Looking at both sides' performances in the league, we predict this will be a closely fought contest as they are currently evenly matched.
However, looking at Urawa Red Diamonds' recent upturn in form, we are tipping them to maintain their impressive run of results and claim a narrow victory.
Prediction: Vissel Kobe 0-1 Urawa Red Diamonds
