Nagoya Grampus opened up a seven-point gap at the top of the J. League last weekend, but manager Dragan Stojkovic has been around the Japanese game far too long to start celebrating yet.
Grampus beat Montedio Yamagata 1-0 on Sunday to stretch their legs at the top with 12 games remaining, and having won their last three matches, the chances of a first title for the league's great underachiever are looking good.
If only things were so simple. In the five full seasons since the J. League switched to the single league format, the title has been decided on the final day each year. Commanding leads have been squandered with shocking regularity, with Urawa Reds' scarcely believable 2007 meltdown the most memorable — but not the only — example.