Gamba Osaka ensured that Japanese football’s oldest trophy will remain in their possession for a second straight year after an emphatic 4-1 victory over Nagoya Grampus in the final of the 89th Emperor’s Cup.
National team midfielder Yasuhito Endo was the hero of the hour after dribbling past two defenders and firing home from the edge of the D to give Gamba a 2-1 lead 15 minutes from time. The holders had opened the scoring after just six minutes through Lucas, the star of Tuesday’s semi-final, but were pegged back five minutes before the interval when Naoshi Nakamura combined cleverly with Joshua Kennedy to head past the returning Naoki Matsuyo. An even-looking second half might have turned Nagoya’s way when Keiji Tamada went down in the penalty area, but the Japan striker received a yellow card for diving, and his exasperation was compounded by Endo’s spectacular intervention four minutes later.
Dragan Stojković responded by bringing on Alex Santos and Igor Burzanović to give Grampus greater presence up front, but the move ultimately played only into the hands of his opponents. Takahiro Futagawa finished off a rapid counterattacking move on 86 minutes to give Gamba a 3-1 advantage, and Endo capped off a fine day with another goal in stoppage time.
‘That’s life’ was Stojković’s pragmatic reaction to a result that he felt was little reward for the Nagoya players’ character, but for Gamba manager Akira Nishino, the New Year could barely have started much better. ‘We weren’t able to win any of the other titles this season,’ said Nishino, ‘but this just made us doubly determined to retain the Emperor’s Cup. We maintained a high standard of football throughout the competition, and I’m delighted that we managed to win through the Gamba way again today.’
The victory gives Gamba their sixth major trophy in the last five years, and the second Emperor’s Cup crown in their history following an extra-time victory over Kashiwa Reysol 12 months ago. With qualification for the 2010 AFC Champions League already guaranteed after finishing third in the league, the spot normally reserved for the cup winners will instead pass to Sanfrecce Hiroshima, the fourth-placed club in J1.
Emperor’s Cup final result
Gamba Osaka 4-1 Nagoya Grampus
Goals: Lucas (6), Endo (77, 90), Futagawa (86); Nakamura (40)
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