Kawasaki Frontale wrapped up their second-straight J-League championship and their fourth overall on Wednesday after a 1-1 home draw with Urawa Reds.
The result at Todoroki Stadium snapped Frontale's seven-game win streak but moved them to 85 points from 34 rounds, with four games left to play in this season's expanded J1. Second-place Yokohama F Marinos remained on 72 points after a 1-0 home loss to Gamba Osaka.
Frontale's titles, all coming in manager Toru Oniki's five seasons, equal Marinos' four. Only Kashima Antlers, with eight, have won more. Frontale achieved their latest title with four rounds remaining, as they did in 2020.
"We had so many tough games this year, just like the game today," said Oniki, whose team has lost just one league game all season. "The guys fought hard today. Even though it was a draw, the great effort was there for all to see."
"The players gave their all, as did the staff. That made us very hard to beat. And when things went against us, we never lost cohesion."
Against Reds, Frontale were missing a beat early on with many mistimed passes, but their back line daunted the visitors at every turn, and the defending champs were eventually able to battle through Reds' aggressive midfield play and score the opening goal.
The second of two goal-mouth scrambles in quick succession at the half-hour mark set Brazilian defender Jesiel up to poke home a loose ball after a corner kick for his first goal of the season.
Time after time, Reds were thwarted by the speed and timing of Frontale's defenders, who blocked shot after shot, rarely letting the ball even get to keeper Jung Sung Ryong.
A late error, however, appeared to undo all that hard work. A poor pass from Frontale after a throw-in close to their goal line set up Reds' 89th-minute equalizer.
An Ataru Esaka back-heel released Atsuki Ito into space. His fearsome drive was punched away by Jung, but fell to Hiroki Sakai, who steered his shot past Frontale captain Shogo Taniguchi and Jung.
Frontale responded with a furious assault on Reds goal but could not hit the target in the final minutes and were forced to wait a few minutes after the final whistle for the end of the Marinos-Gamba game before they could celebrate.
"I'm relieved," Taniguchi said. "From the outside it might have looked like we were cruising, but for those doing the work, each and every game was hard. We maintained our desire to excel."
Frontale were undefeated through their first 25 games, as they overran opponents by maintaining an accurate high-tempo passing game despite Oniki shifting players in and out of his starting lineups.
They had to battle hard during the summer, when Taniguchi and young Tokyo Olympic forward Reo Hatate were hurt, while Olympians Ao Tanaka and Kaoru Mitoma moved abroad.
An Aug. 25 loss ended Frontale's record unbeaten run of 30 games dating back to last season, and for a brief time the club's lead over Marinos slipped to just one point.
Oniki, however, added important depth by relying on untried youngsters. Midfielder Kento Tachibanda moved straight into a key role in his first pro season out of university, while 20-year-old forward Ten Miyagi also made several starts.
At Nissan Stadium, Shu Kurata's 55th-minute goal consigned Marinos to second place.
Elsewhere, third-place Vissel Kobe beat struggling Vegalta Sendai 4-2 to remain in line for an Asian Champions League berth with 64 points. Fourth-place Nagoya Grampus, 2-0 winners over Kashiwa Reysol are two ahead of Antlers. Kashima, 4-1 winners at Sanfrecce Hiroshima, are on 59 points and lead Reds on goal difference.
A 0-0 home draw with Sagan Tosu gave Yokohama FC hope of escaping relegation, while Cerezo Osaka kept Tokushima Vortis rooted in the drop zone with a 1-0 away win.
Oita Trinita, also in danger of relegation, lost 1-0 at Kyushu rival Avispa Fukuoka. Shonan Bellmare moved two points clear of the relegation zone with a 1-1 draw at Consadole Sapporo.
Related coverage:
Football: Grampus down Cerezo for 1st Levain Cup title
Football: Last J-League side Grampus eliminated in ACL q'finals
Football: Moriyasu admits Japan in tough place, must beat Australia
