Vissel Kobe Claim Emperor’s Cup in ‘Kansai Derby’ Final

The Japan News

18:00 JST, November 23, 2024

Closing in on a second straight J.League title, Vissel Kobe stopped on the way for some other silverware.

Vissel captured the Emperor’s Cup on Saturday, beating Gamba Osaka 1-0 at Tokyo’s National Stadium in the first “Kansai derby” in 71 editions of the prestigious nationwide tournament.

Forward Taisei Miyashiro broke the deadlock with an opportunistic goal in the 64th minute, poking in a loose ball after a defender failed to clear a cross from Yoshinori Muto.

“I never gave up running until the end,” Miyashiro said. “That led to the goal.”

The victory gave Vissel their second title, adding to the one they secured in the 2019 tournament (the final was played on New Year’s Day), while denying Gamba a sixth championship including those won during while as a corporate club team.

Vissel goalkeeper Daiya Maekawa turned in the clean slate as Gamba came up empty on six shots during the match.

“We were not able to play our style of soccer during the first half,” Kobe manager Takayuki Yoshida said. “But we were able to play patiently and persistently [in the second half] to come away with the victory.”

Kobe currently sits in first place in the J.League first-division standings with 68 points with two matches remaining, three ahead of second-place Sanfrecce Hiroshima.

“We are still up for the J.League title,” Yoshida said. “I want to bring back the [league title] plate to Kobe.”