Cellar-dwellers Yokohama F. Marinos showed on Sunday that star power is not always the answer as they beat Vissel Kobe 2-0 on the road.
Second-half goals from Takefusa Kubo and Teruhito Nakagawa gave Marinos their seventh win of the season and first in three league and cup matches.
Kobe suffered its second heavy defeat in four days after Sagan Tosu handed it a 3-0 midweek cup loss, but unlike that match, Spanish midfield maestro Andres Iniesta played a full 90 minutes. However, even he could not sway the result at Noevir Stadium Kobe.