A goal by Leandro Damiao was enough for defending J. League champion Kawasaki Frontale to triumph 1-0 over 2018 Emperor's Cup winner Urawa Reds on Saturday at the Fuji Xerox Super Cup.
Played in front of a sold-out Saitama Stadium crowd in unseasonably mild February weather, the match had a celebratory atmosphere but little in the way of highlights in a one-sided affair largely dominated by Frontale, which outshot the Reds 12 to one.
"We weren't able to play well today. Frontale played an incredibly good match and deserved to win," said Urawa manager Oswaldo Oliveira. "I know our players and I'm confident that they can play better than they did today."