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Pre-match review
Urawa Red Diamonds entered the FIFA Club World Cup with inconsistent form in the J1 League, having managed just two wins, three draws and two defeats in their last seven matches.
Falling into group E with the participation of Inter Milan, River Plate and Monterrey, the Japanese representative is not highly appreciated and in fact, that assessment is completely justified when they entered the final round without winning any points.
Urawa opened their campaign with a 3-1 defeat to River Plate, before suffering a bitter 2-1 defeat to Inter Milan – a match in which they took the lead, but were equalised in the 78th minute and conceded the decisive goal in the second minute of stoppage time through Valentin Carboni.
Two consecutive defeats left Urawa Red Diamonds at the bottom of Group E with 0 points, 4 points behind the top two teams and certain to be eliminated.
However, coach Maciej Skorza still aims to win honorably in the final match, especially when each victory at the FIFA Club World Cup brings a bonus of up to 1.5 million pounds.
On the opposite side, Monterrey of coach Domenec Torrent is aiming to win all 3 points to compete for a ticket to the knockout round. Although being rated lower than Inter Milan and River Plate, two consecutive draws against these two opponents have opened up a great opportunity for the Mexican representative.
Monterrey are currently on two points, two points behind the top two teams heading into the final round of matches. With River Plate and Inter Milan set to face off, a win over Urawa would virtually guarantee Monterrey a top two spot.
If River and Inter go toe-to-toe, Monterrey will need only a win to secure their place in the next round. In the event of a draw, Monterrey could still advance if they win by a better goal difference.
Form, head-to-head history
The two teams have never met in the past.
In the last 5 matches, Urawa Red Diamonds won 1, drew 1 and lost 3. Meanwhile, Monterrey won 2, drew 1 and lost 2.
Force information
Despite a regrettable loss to Inter Milan in the last match, Urawa's defense played quite solidly for most of the time and coach Skorza can continue to keep this frame intact.
Up front, Ryoma Watanabe and Takuro Kaneko both impressed on the wings, especially when combining to create goals, and will likely continue to start.
For Monterrey, midfielder Jorge Rodriguez will be absent due to receiving two yellow cards in the first two matches. His replacement could be Nelson Deossa, who will partner Oliver Torres in the center of midfield.
Veteran defender Sergio Ramos continues to be the mainstay of Monterrey's defence and was also the one who scored their only goal of the tournament. He will continue to wear the captain's armband.
Urawa Red Diamonds (4-2-3-1): Nishikawa; Ishihara, Boza, Hoibraten, Naganuma; Yasui, Gustafson; Kaneko, Matsumoto, Watanabe; Matsuo
Monterrey (4-2-3-1): Andrada; Aguirre, Medina, Ramos, Arteaga; Deossa, Torres; Corona, Canales, Ocampos; Berterame
Score prediction: Urawa Red Diamonds 1-2 Monterrey
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Source: https://tienphong.vn/nhan-dinh-urawa-red-diamonds-vs-monterrey-08h00-ngay-266-menh-lenh-phai-thang-post1754339.tpo
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