This year's J. League title race has been so unpredictable that nothing can be ruled out until the final whistle, but it would take a mighty twist in the tale for Kashima Antlers to be denied the championship on Saturday.
Kashima needs only a point from its game at already-relegated Consadole Sapporo, while even defeat would deliver the title if Nagoya Grampus and Kawasaki Frontale both fail to win their matches.
Triumph for Antlers would bring a sixth championship to the Kashima trophy cabinet — hot on the heels of last year's league-and-cup double — but that does not mean success was a foregone conclusion at the start of this season.