The last few weeks have whittled down the list of genuine contenders for this year's J. League title, but choosing a winner with eight games left is still far from straightforward.

Urawa Reds lead the way with a four-point cushion in first place, with Kashima Antlers moving into second one point ahead of Kawasaki Frontale and three clear of Gamba Osaka. Reds' momentum may have been checked by a 1-0 loss to Cerezo Osaka on Saturday, but having scored 18 goals in their previous five games, Mihailo Petrovic's men will clearly take some stopping.

Reds built the foundations of their title challenge on a defense that set a new J. League record of seven consecutive clean sheets earlier in the season, but there has been a fluency about the Saitama side in recent weeks that suggests they may have that extra something needed to go the distance.