Urawa vs Fagiano Okayama — Tips & Analysis

Under 2.5: These two do not give each other much room. The four meetings so far have all been tight, averaging under 2 goals a game. Urawa arrive on a four game winning run and will have most of the ball at Saitama. They score more than a goal a game, and they let in almost as many. Their wins come in scrappy games rather than easy ones. Okayama are the reason this one stays quiet. They let in less than a goal a game across their last 15 and they have not lost by 2 or more once in that run. They defend deep, give up the flanks and wait for one counter through the middle. That plan has already worked twice this year. Okayama took four points off Urawa, winning 2-0 on this ground in June and tying 1-1 in May. A 1-1 looks the most likely finish, and two goals is what a game of this shape usually gives you. The warning is real, though. Urawa's games average 3 goals and 8 of their last 17 had 3 or more, with recent scores of 3-2, 1-4 and 3-4. If their forwards keep that up, this gets away from us fast. We still think Okayama slow the game down, so we want the low-scoring afternoon.