Cerezo Osaka beats Kashiwa 2-1 for top spot in J-League

By AP
Published

TOKYO (AP) Kenyu Sugimoto and Souza scored second-half goals on Saturday as Cerezo Osaka beat Kashiwa Reysol 2-1 to move top of the J-League.

Kosuke Taketomi gave Kashiwa the lead in the 41st minute but Sugimoto equalized midway through the second half and Souza sealed the win with the Brazilian's third goal of the season in the 70th minute.

Cerezo won its third straight and improved to 38 points, one ahead of Kashima Antlers which was held to a 2-2 draw by FC Tokyo.

Yu Kobayashi scored the winner in the 62nd as Kawasaki Frontale moved into third place on 35 points after a 3-2 win over Sagan Tosu.

In other matches, Shimizu S-Pulse beat Gamba Osaka 2-0 and Vissel Kobe beat Vegalta Sendai 3-0.