# 2018 Gamba Osaka season

The 2018 Gamba Osaka season was Gamba Osaka's 25th season in the J1 League and 31st overall in the Japanese top flight. It saw them compete in the 18 team J1 League as well as the J.League Cup and Emperor's Cup competitions.
Gamba began the season with a new manager in the shape of Brazilian, former Cerezo Osaka boss Levir Culpi who replaced long-standing manager Kenta Hasegawa who moved to FC Tokyo.
Culpi was fired after poor form saw Gamba sit in the J1 relegation zone at the halfway point of the season. He was replaced by Gamba Under-23 manager Tsuneyasu Miyamoto on July 23.

## Transfers

Prior to the end of 2017, Gamba announced the capture of young defenders; Tetsuya Yamaguchi and Riku Matsuda as well as midfielder Yuya Fukuda all straight out of high school. Meanwhile, midfielder Ren Shibamoto and attacker Haruto Shirai were promoted to the first team squad after impressing for Gamba's Under-23 side in J3 during 2017.
Shortly before Christmas the signings of attacking midfielder Shinya Yajima and former Gamba youth product, centre-back Shunya Suganuma were announced, with the duo arriving from Urawa Reds and Montedio Yamagata respectively. This news was followed a few days later with the news of the signing of Japan Under-17 midfielder Keito Nakamura from Tokyo-based Mitsubishi Yowa SC as well as the promotion of Under-23 goalkeeper Kosei Tani to the first team squad.
2 league games into the campaign and Gamba secured the signing of former Brazil Under-20 defensive midfielder Matheus Jesus on loan from Portuguese side Estoril. His contracted would run until the end of the year.
Long serving goalkeeper Yosuke Fujigaya, who had made over 250 league appearances for the club announced his retirement at the end of the 2017 season after spending the previous 3 years providing backup to established number 1, Masaaki Higashiguchi. Holding midfielder Tatsuya Uchida turned his loan move to Tokyo Verdy into a permanent one and he would be joined at the Tokyo club by young forward Hiromu Kori who had spent the previous season on loan with Gamba Under-23, scoring 3 goals in 17 appearances.
Additionally experienced Japanese-born but Korean passport holding centre-back Kim Jung-ya moved to Vegalta Sendai, while Kashima Antlers forward Shuhei Akasaki returned to his parent club following a disappointing loan spell which yielded only 2 goals. Another forward with a poor goalscoring record, Hiroto Goya moved to J2 League outfit Tokushima Vortis in an effort to rediscover his scoring touch, he would be joined in J2 by backup goalkeeper Ken Tajiri who extended his loan spell at Zweigen Kanazawa for a further season. Gamba U-23 centre back and sometimes central midfielder made the move to J3 side Grulla Morioka after making close to 50 appearances in J3 but failing to crack Gamba's senior side.
At the beginning of January, a press conference was held confirming that key central midfielder Yosuke Ideguchi would join English EFL Championship side Leeds United. The Japanese international would however join Spanish Segunda División outfit Cultural Leonesa on loan for the remainder of the 2017–18 European club season. In the day's following Ideguchi's departure it was confirmed that young utility player So Hirao had been allowed to join Avispa Fukuoka on loan for 2018 and centre-back / defensive midfielder Shogo Nakahara had completed his loan spell with the club and would return to his parent club, Consadole Sapporo. Veteran midfielder Takahiro Futagawa also announced that he would spend another year on loan with Tokyo Verdy in J2 having spend the previous 18 months in Japan's capital.
The first of February saw the announcement that young South Korean centre-back Bae Soo-yong would join J3 outfit Giravanz Kitakyushu on a season long loan. He spent the 2017 campaign with Gamba's Under-23 side, scoring once in 24 games and earning to red cards in the process.
During the mid-season transfer window, it was announced at the end of June that midfielders Shinya Yajima and Jin Izumisawa would spend the second half of the year on loan at Vegalta Sendai and Tokyo Verdy respectively. Both players had struggled for game time with the top team and had spent large chunks of the season playing with Gamba U-23 in J3. Their departures cleared the way for the arrival of Renofa Yamaguchi midfielder Kosuke Onose at the end of July.
Following the departure of Brazilian coach Levir Culpi in July, Matheus Jesus, who Culpi brought to the club on loan at the start of the season, found game time hard to come by and his loan from Portuguese side Estoril was cancelled by mutual consent. New head coach Tsuneyasu Miyamoto moved further to re-shape the squad by bringing in Vissel Kobe striker Kazuma Watanabe on a permanent deal while the tall Shun Nagasawa moved in the opposite direction on loan until the end of the year.

### In

| No. | Pos | Player | Transferred From | Fee | Date |
| 34 | MF | Yuya Fukuda | Higashi Fukuoka High School | Unknown | 11 Oct 2017 |
| 35 | DF | Tatsuya Yamaguchi | Sagami Senior High School | Unknown | 18 Oct 2017 |
| 36 | DF | Riku Matsuda | Maebashi Ikuei High School | Unknown | 28 Nov 2017 |
| 32 | MF | Ren Shibamoto | Gamba Osaka U-23 | Promotion | 28 Nov 2017 |
| 37 | FW | Haruto Shirai | Gamba Osaka U-23 | Promotion | 28 Nov 2017 |
| 13 | DF | Shunya Suganuma | Montedio Yamagata | Unknown | 21 Dec 2017 |
| 21 | MF | Shinya Yajima | Urawa Red Diamonds | Unknown | 21 Dec 2017 |
| 38 | FW | Keito Nakamura | Mitsubishi Yowa | Unknown | 26 Dec 2017 |
| 41 | GK | Kosei Tani | Gamba Osaka U-23 | Promotion | 26 Dec 2017 |
| 8 | MF | Matheus Jesus | Estoril | Loan | 7 Mar 2018 |
| 50 | MF | Kosuke Onose | Renofa Yamaguchi | Unknown | 31 July 2018 |
| 39 | FW | Kazuma Watanabe | Vissel Kobe | Unknown | 13 Aug 2018 |

### Out

| No. | Pos | Player | Transferred To | Fee | Date |
| 18 | GK | Yōsuke Fujigaya | retired | N/A | 28 Nov 2017 |
| 29 | FW | Hiromu Kori | Tokyo Verdy | End of Loan | 18 Dec 2017 |
| 6 | DF | Kim Jung-ya | Vegalta Sendai | Unknown | 21 Dec 2017 |
| N/A | MF | Tatsuya Uchida | Tokyo Verdy | Unknown | 21 Dec 2017 |
| 28 | MF | Shota Yomesaka | Grulla Morioka | Unknown | 25 Dec 2017 |
| 53 | FW | Shuhei Akasaki | Kashima Antlers | Loan Return | 26 Dec 2017 |
| 16 | GK | Ken Tajiri | Zweigen Kanazawa | Loan Extension | 27 Dec 2017 |
| 13 | FW | Hiroto Goya | Tokushima Vortis | Loan | 28 Dec 2017 |
| 8 | MF | Yosuke Ideguchi | Leeds United | Unknown | 4 Jan 2018 |
| 30 | DF | So Hirao | Avispa Fukuoka | Loan | 5 Jan 2018 |
| 23 | MF | Shogo Nakahara | Consadole Sapporo | Loan Return | 6 Jan 2018 |
| N/A | MF | Takahiro Futagawa | Tokyo Verdy | Loan Extension | 11 Jan 2018 |
| 42 | DF | Bae Soo-yong | Giravanz Kitakyushu | Loan | 1 Feb 2018 |
| 21 | MF | Shinya Yajima | Vegalta Sendai | Loan | 25 June 2018 |
| 39 | MF | Jin Izumisawa | Tokyo Verdy | Loan | 25 June 2018 |
| 8 | MF | Matheus Jesus | Estoril | Loan End | 11 Aug 2018 |
| 20 | FW | Shun Nagasawa | Vissel Kobe | Loan | 13 Aug 2018 |

## Coaching staff

The Coaching Staff for the 2018 J1 League season;
| Position | Staff |
| First-team Manager | Tsuneyasu Miyamoto |
| Head Coach | Sanjiyoshi Noritada |
| Goalkeeper Coach | Naoki Matsuyo |
| Physical Coach | Yi Chang-yeob |
| Coach | Arata Kodama |
| Coach | Satoshi Yamaguchi |

## First team squad

Appearances and goals as of the beginning of the 2018 season.
| No. | Name | Position(s) | Date of Birth (Age) | Height (cm) | Weight (kg) | Since | Previous Club | Games Played | Goals Scored |
| Goalkeepers |||||||||||
| 1 | Masaaki Higashiguchi | GK | (1986-05-12)12 May 1986 (aged 32) | 184 | 78 | 2014 | Albirex Niigata | 187 | 0 |
| 23 | Mizuki Hayashi | GK | (1996-09-04)4 September 1996 (aged 22) | 182 | 74 | 2015 | Gamba Osaka Youth | 0 | 0 |
| 31 | Ryota Suzuki | GK | (1994-02-10)10 February 1994 (aged 24) | 191 | 85 | 2017 | Tokyo Verdy | 1 | 0 |
| 41 | Kosei Tani | GK | (2000-11-22)22 November 2000 (aged 18) | 187 | 78 | 2018 | Gamba Osaka Youth | 0 | 0 |
| Defenders |||||||||||
| 2 | Takaharu Nishino | CB | (1993-09-14)14 September 1993 (aged 25) | 187 | 73 | 2017 | JEF United* | 69 | 6 |
| 3 | Fábio | CB | (1989-02-28)28 February 1989 (aged 29) | 186 | 78 | 2017 | Yokohama F. Marinos | 32 | 2 |
| 4 | Hiroki Fujiharu | LB | (1988-11-28)28 November 1988 (aged 30) | 175 | 60 | 2011 | Osaka University of H&SS | 281 | 12 |
| 5 | Genta Miura (captain) | CB / RB | (1995-03-01)1 March 1995 (aged 23) | 183 | 77 | 2017 | Shimizu S-Pulse | 45 | 3 |
| 6 | Ryo Hatsuse | RB / LB / RM | (1997-07-10)10 July 1997 (aged 21) | 175 | 64 | 2015 | Gamba Osaka Youth | 36 | 1 |
| 13 | Shunya Suganuma | CB | (1990-05-17)17 May 1990 (aged 28) | 182 | 78 | 2018 | Montedio Yamagata | 1 | 0 |
| 14 | Koki Yonekura | RB / RW | (1988-05-17)17 May 1988 (aged 30) | 176 | 68 | 2014 | JEF United | 133 | 8 |
| 16 | Hiroki Noda | CB | (1997-07-27)27 July 1997 (aged 21) | 181 | 73 | 2016 | Otsu High School | 1 | 0 |
| 22 | Oh Jae-suk | RB / LB | (1990-01-04)4 January 1990 (aged 28) | 178 | 74 | 2013 | Gangwon FC | 128 | 0 |
| 35 | Tatsuya Yamaguchi | LB | (2000-02-09)9 February 2000 (aged 18) | 171 | 70 | 2018 | Sagami Senior High School | 0 | 0 |
| 36 | Riku Matsuda | RB / CB | (1999-05-03)3 May 1999 (aged 19) | 175 | 60 | 2018 | Maebashi Ikuei High School | 0 | 0 |
| Midfielders |||||||||||
| 7 | Yasuhito Endō | CM / AM | (1980-01-28)28 January 1980 (aged 38) | 178 | 75 | 2001 | Kyoto Purple Sanga | 702 | 123 |
| 10 | Shu Kurata | RW / LW / CM | (1988-11-26)26 November 1988 (aged 30) | 172 | 68 | 2012 | Cerezo Osaka* | 294 | 46 |
| 15 | Yasuyuki Konno | CB / DM | (1983-01-25)25 January 1983 (aged 35) | 178 | 73 | 2012 | FC Tokyo | 252 | 23 |
| 17 | Mizuki Ichimaru | DM / CM | (1997-05-08)8 May 1997 (aged 21) | 174 | 66 | 2016 | Gamba Osaka Youth | 4 | 0 |
| 24 | Haruya Ide | RB / RW / LW | (1994-03-25)25 March 1994 (aged 24) | 171 | 66 | 2017 | JEF United | 5 | 1 |
| 25 | Jungo Fujimoto | RW / LW / AM | (1984-03-24)24 March 1984 (aged 34) | 173 | 69 | 2016 | Yokohama F. Marinos | 43 | 1 |
| 26 | Naoya Senoo | LM / AM | (1996-08-15)15 August 1996 (aged 22) | 172 | 60 | 2015 | Gamba Osaka Youth | 1 | 0 |
| 27 | Yuto Mori | RB / AM / RM | (1995-04-21)21 April 1995 (aged 23) | 173 | 68 | 2017 | Nagoya Grampus | 0 | 0 |
| 28 | Takahiro Ko | CM / DM | (1998-04-20)20 April 1998 (aged 20) | 172 | 67 | 2017 | Funabashi High School | 0 | 0 |
| 29 | Leo Takae | CM / LM | (1998-06-27)27 June 1998 (aged 20) | 171 | 60 | 2017 | Higashi Fukuoka High School | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | Ren Shibamoto | CM | (1999-07-22)22 July 1999 (aged 19) | 172 | 59 | 2018 | Gamba Osaka Youth | 0 | 0 |
| 34 | Yuya Fukuda | CM / LM | (1999-04-04)4 April 1999 (aged 19) | 176 | 70 | 2018 | Higashi Fukuoka High School | 0 | 0 |
| 50 | Kosuke Onose | RW / LW / AM | (1993-04-22)22 April 1993 (aged 25) | 176 | 65 | 2018 | Renofa Yamaguchi | 0 | 0 |
| Strikers |||||||||||
| 9 | Ademilson | AM / CF | (1994-01-09)9 January 1994 (aged 24) | 176 | 74 | 2016 | São Paulo | 72 | 19 |
| 11 | Hwang Ui-jo | AM / CF | (1992-08-28)28 August 1992 (aged 26) | 184 | 73 | 2017 | Seongnam FC | 15 | 3 |
| 18 | Akito Takagi | CF / RW | (1997-08-04)4 August 1997 (aged 21) | 175 | 68 | 2016 | Gamba Osaka Youth | 10 | 0 |
| 19 | Kazunari Ichimi | CF | (1997-11-10)10 November 1997 (aged 21) | 183 | 74 | 2016 | Otsu High School | 0 | 0 |
| 37 | Haruto Shirai | CF | (1999-10-23)23 October 1999 (aged 19) | 170 | 60 | 2018 | Gamba Osaka Youth | 0 | 0 |
| 38 | Keito Nakamura | AM / CF | (2000-07-28)28 July 2000 (aged 18) | 180 | 75 | 2018 | Mitsubishi Yowa | 0 | 0 |
| 39 | Kazuma Watanabe | CF | (1986-08-10)10 August 1986 (aged 32) | 182 | 79 | 2018 | Vissel Kobe | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | Ryotaro Meshino | AM / CF | (1998-06-18)18 June 1998 (aged 20) | 171 | 68 | 2017 | Gamba Osaka Youth | 0 | 0 |

## J1 League

On 13 January, Gamba's first 2 fixtures for the season were announced, at home to Nagoya Grampus and away to Kashima Antlers. The dates for the remaining games were made public on January 24.
Gamba endured something of a roller coaster ride during the 2018 season, a disastrous start under Brazilian coach Levir Culpi, including 5 losses in their first 6 games, saw Gamba spend most of the year facing the very real prospect of relegation to J2. Fortunately after Culpi was replaced by Gamba U-23 coach and club legend Tsuneyasu Miyamoto, their fortunes began to change. Miyamoto's arrival initially brought better performances if not results, but along with returning injured players, midfield general Yasuyuki Konno and Brazilian attacker Ademilson as well as the arrival of the experienced forward Kazuma Watanabe from Vissel Kobe and winger Kosuke Onose from Renofa Yamaguchi, Gamba started to build a head of steam culminating in a 9-game winning streak which propelled them to the top half of the standings and a final position of 9th.
| Round | Date | Time* | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance | League position |
| 1 | 24 February 2018 | 14:30 | Nagoya Grampus | H | 2-3 | Endō 13', Nagasawa 79' | 28,681 | 14th |
| 2 | 3 March 2018 | 16:00 | Kashima Antlers | A | 0-1 | | 24,545 | 17th |
| 3 | 10 March 2018 | 13:00 | Kawasaki Frontale | A | 0-2 | | 22,520 | 18th |
| 4 | 18 March 2018 | 15:00 | Kashiwa Reysol | H | 2-2 | Hwang 21', 86' | 21,758 | 18th |
| 5 | 31 March 2018 | 15:00 | FC Tokyo | A | 2-3 | Hwang (pen.) 45'+2, 58' | 21,940 | 18th |
| 6 | 8 April 2018 | 15:00 | Vissel Kobe | H | 0-1 | | 20,606 | 18th |
| 7 | 11 April 2018 | 19:00 | Júbilo Iwata | H | 2-0 | Fábio 4', Hwang 86' | 12,615 | 18th |
| 8 | 14 April 2018 | 14:00 | V-Varen Nagasaki | A | 0-3 | | 8,745 | 18th |
| 9 | 21 April 2018 | 19:00 | Cerezo Osaka | H | 1-0 | Hwang (pen.) 41' | 35,242 | 17th |
| 10 | 25 April 2018 | 19:00 | Shonan Bellmare | A | 0-1 | | 8,002 | 17th |
| 11 | 29 April 2018 | 16:00 | Sagan Tosu | H | 3-0 | Kurata 68', Hwang 82', Matheus 90+2' | 18,642 | 16th |
| 12 | 2 May 2018 | 19:00 | Vegalta Sendai | H | 1-0 | Kurata 62' | 11,824 | 15th |
| 13 | 5 May 2018 | 14:00 | Consadole Sapporo | A | 0-2 | | 12,382 | 16th |
| 14 | 12 May 2018 | 19:00 | Yokohama F. Marinos | A | 1-1 | Fujimoto 52' | 21,576 | 16th |
| 15 | 19 May 2018 | 14:00 | Urawa Red Diamonds | H | 0-0 | | 25,361 | 16th |
| 16 | 18 July 2018 | 19:00 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | A | 0-4 | | 7,835 | 16th |
| 17 | 22 July 2018 | 19:00 | Shimizu S-Pulse | H | 1-2 | Hwang 75' | 17,542 | 16th |
| 18 | 28 July 2018 | 19:00 | Kashima Antlers | H | 1-1 | Yonekura 70' | 28,534 | 16th |
| 19 | 1 August 2018 | 19:00 | Júbilo Iwata | A | 1-1 | Hwang 82' | 13,015 | 16th |
| 20 | 5 August 2018 | 18:00 | Nagoya Grampus | A | 2-3 | Ademilson (pen.) 22', Fujimoto 37' | 22,615 | 17th |
| 21 | 10 August 2018 | 19:00 | FC Tokyo | H | 2-1 | Fábio 34', Ademilson 90+5' | 24,879 | 17th |
| 22 | 15 August 2018 | 19:00 | Consadole Sapporo | H | 1-1 | Kurata (pen.) 18' | 21,203 | 18th |
| 23 | 19 August 2018 | 19:00 | Vegalta Sendai | A | 1-2 | Watanabe 27' | 16,110 | 17th |
| 24 | 26 August 2018 | 19:00 | Sagan Tosu | A | 0-3 | | 20,060 | 17th |
| 25 | 1 September 2018 | 19:00 | Kawasaki Frontale | H | 2-0 | Watanabe 7', Fábio 55' | 19,683 | 17th |
| 26 | 15 September 2018 | 19:00 | Vissel Kobe | A | 2-1 | Kurata 52', Hwang 68' | 25,485 | 17th |
| 27 | 21 September 2018 | 19:30 | Shimizu S-Pulse | A | 2-1 | Hwang 1', 26' | 14,790 | 17th |
| 28 | 29 September 2018 | 16:00 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | H | 1-0 | Hwang 84' | 34,660 | 13th |
| 29 | 6 October 2018 | 14:00 | Cerezo Osaka | A | 1-0 | Ademilson 45' | 34,303 | 12th |
| 30 | 20 October 2018 | 15:00 | Yokohama F. Marinos | H | 2-1 | Hwang 71', Onose 86' | 26,630 | 10th |
| 31 | 3 November 2018 | 16:00 | Urawa Red Diamonds | A | 3-1 | Onose 42', Hwang 62', Ademilson 69' | 43,943 | 9th |
| 32 | 10 November 2018 | 15:00 | Shonan Bellmare | H | 1-0 | Hwang 60' | 23,576 | 9th |
| 33 | 24 November 2018 | 14:00 | V-Varen Nagasaki | H | 2-1 | Onose 10', Nakamura 52' | 27,806 | 8th |
| 34 | 1 December 2018 | 14:00 | Kashiwa Reysol | A | 2-4 | Watanabe 28, Ademilson 79' | 13,067 | 9th |
* = all times Japan Standard Time.

### Match Day Line-Ups

The following players appeared for Gamba Osaka during the 2018 J1 League:
Player Appearances – 2018 J1 League :
| Round | Opponent | GK | RB | LB | CB | CB | CM | CM | ACM | RW | LW | CF | | | |
| 1 | Nagoya Grampus | Higashiguchi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Fukuda | Ichimaru | Endō | Hwang | Kurata | Nagasawa | Yajima | Nakamura | Izumisawa |
| 2 | Kashima Antlers | Higashiguchi | Yonekura | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Yajima | Ichimaru | Endō | Hwang | Kurata | Nagasawa | Ide | Fukuda | Nakamura |
| 3 | Kawasaki Frontale | Higashiguchi | Yonekura | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Ichimaru | Ide | Nakamura | Ademilson | Nagasawa | Hwang | Fukuda | Izumisawa |
| 4 | Kashiwa Reysol | Higashiguchi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Konno | Ichimaru | Endō | Hwang | Izumisawa | Nagasawa | Hatsuse | Ide | Nakamura |
| 5 | FC Tokyo | Higashiguchi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Matheus | Kurata | Hwang | Ide | Nagasawa | Hatsuse | Mori | Nakamura |
| 6 | Vissel Kobe | Higashiguchi | Oh | Hatsuse | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Matheus | Kurata | Hwang | Meshino | Nagasawa | Yonekura | Fujimoto | |
| 7 | Júbilo Iwata | Higashiguchi | Yonekura | Hatsuse | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Matheus | Kurata | Hwang | Meshino | Nagasawa | Ide | Fujimoto | Nakamura |
| 8 | V-Varen Nagasaki | Higashiguchi | Yonekura | Hatsuse | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Matheus | Kurata | Fujimoto | Meshino | Hwang | Oh | Ide | Nakamura |
| 9 | Cerezo Osaka | Higashiguchi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Takae | Matheus | Endō | Fujimoto | Kurata | Hwang | Yonekura | Hayashi | Nakamura |
| 10 | Shonan Bellmare | Hayashi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Suganuma | Takae | Matheus | Endō | Fujimoto | Kurata | Hwang | Yonekura | Nakamura | Meshino |
| 11 | Sagan Tosu | Hayashi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Matheus | Fujimoto | Yonekura | Kurata | Hwang | Nakamura | Meshino | |
| 12 | Vegalta Sendai | Hayashi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Matheus | Fujimoto | Yonekura | Kurata | Hwang | Konno | Nakamura | Meshino |
| 13 | Consadole Sapporo | Hayashi | Yonekura | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Konno | Matheus | Endō | Fujimoto | Kurata | Hwang | Nagasawa | Oh | Nakamura |
| 14 | Yokohama F. Marinos | Higashiguchi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Suganuma | Fábio | Matheus | Konno | Hwang | Endō | Nagasawa | Kurata | Fujimoto | Nakamura |
| 15 | Urawa Red Diamonds | Higashiguchi | Yonekura | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Matheus | Kurata | Hwang | Fujimoto | Nagasawa | Meshino | | |
| Round | Opponent | GK | RB | LB | CB | CB | CM | CM | CM | ACM | CF | CF | | | |
| 16 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | Higashiguchi | Yonekura | Hatsuse | Miura | Fábio | Takae | Endō | Matheus | Kurata | Hwang | Ademilson | Suganuma | Nakamura | Meshino |
| 17 | Shimizu S-Pulse | Higashiguchi | Yonekura | Hatsuse | Miura | Suganuma | Takae | Endō | Matheus | Kurata | Hwang | Ademilson | Nagasawa | Fujimoto | Meshino |
| Round | Opponent | GK | RB | LB | CB | CB | CM | CM | RM | LM | CF | CF | | | |
| 18 | Kashima Antlers | Higashiguchi | Oh | Hatsuse | Miura | Fábio | Ko | Endō | Yonekura | Kurata | Hwang | Ademilson | Nagasawa | Fujimoto | Meshino |
| 19 | Júbilo Iwata | Higashiguchi | Oh | Hatsuse | Miura | Fábio | Ko | Takae | Fujimoto | Kurata | Hwang | Nagasawa | Endō | Ademilson | Yonekura |
| 20 | Nagoya Grampus | Higashiguchi | Yonekura | Oh | Miura | Fábio | Ko | Endō | Fujimoto | Kurata | Hwang | Ademilson | Nagasawa | Ide | Onose |
| 21 | FC Tokyo | Higashiguchi | Miura | Oh | Suganuma | Fábio | Ko | Endō | Fujimoto | Kurata | Ichimi | Ademilson | Yonekura | Takae | Onose |
| 22 | Consadole Sapporo | Higashiguchi | Miura | Oh | Suganuma | Fábio | Ko | Endō | Fujimoto | Kurata | Ichimi | Ademilson | Fujiharu | Yonekura | Takae |
| 23 | Vegalta Sendai | Higashiguchi | Miura | Oh | Suganuma | Fábio | Ko | Endō | Onose | Kurata | Watanabe | Ademilson | Fujiharu | Fujimoto | Meshino |
| 24 | Sagan Tosu | Higashiguchi | Yonekura | Fujiharu | Miura | Suganuma | Ko | Endō | Fujimoto | Kurata | Watanabe | Ademilson | Ichimi | Takae | Onose |
| Round | Opponent | GK | RB | LB | CB | CB | CB | CM | CM | RW | LW | CF | | | |
| 25 | Kawasaki Frontale | Higashiguchi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Suganuma | Endō | Konno | Kurata | Onose | Watanabe | Yonekura | Ichimi | Ko |
| Round | Opponent | GK | CB | CB | CB | RWB | LWB | CM | CM | ACM | CF | CF | | | |
| 26 | Vissel Kobe | Higashiguchi | Konno | Fábio | Miura | Onose | Fujiharu | Endō | Takae | Kurata | Watanabe | Hwang | Ichimi | Oh | Ko |
| Round | Opponent | GK | RB | LB | CB | CB | CM | CM | RW | LW | CF | CF | | | |
| 27 | Shimizu S-Pulse | Higashiguchi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Konno | Onose | Kurata | Watanabe | Hwang | Suganuma | Yonekura | Ko |
| 28 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | Higashiguchi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Konno | Onose | Kurata | Watanabe | Hwang | Ademilson | Yonekura | Fujimoto |
| 29 | Cerezo Osaka | Higashiguchi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Konno | Onose | Kurata | Watanabe | Ademilson | Yonekura | Ichimi | Ko |
| Round | Opponent | GK | CB | CB | CB | RWB | LWB | CM | CM | RW | LW | CF | | | |
| 30 | Yokohama F. Marinos | Higashiguchi | Miura | Fábio | Suganuma | Oh | Fujiharu | Endō | Konno | Onose | Kurata | Watanabe | Ademilson | Hwang | Hayashi |
| Round | Opponent | GK | RB | LB | CB | CB | CM | CM | RW | LW | CF | CF | | | |
| 31 | Urawa Red Diamonds | Hayashi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Konno | Onose | Kurata | Ademilson | Hwang | Ichimi | Nakamura | Watanabe |
| 32 | Shonan Bellmare | Higashiguchi | Yonekura | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Konno | Onose | Kurata | Ademilson | Hwang | Hatsuse | Ichimi | Watanabe |
| 33 | V-Varen Nagasaki | Higashiguchi | Yonekura | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Konno | Onose | Nakamura | Watanabe | Hwang | Ademilson | Fujimoto | Ko |
| 34 | Kashiwa Reysol | Higashiguchi | Yonekura | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Konno | Onose | Kurata | Watanabe | Ademilson | Ichimi | Fujimoto | Nakamura |

## Emperor's Cup

Gamba entered the 2018 Emperor's Cup at the 2nd round stage where they were drawn at home to Kwansei Gakuin University on 6 June. The match ended in an embarrassing 2-1 defeat after extra time.
| Round | Date | Time* | Opponents | H / A | Result F-A | Scorers | Attendance |
| 2nd round | 6 June 2018 | 19:00 | Kwansei Gakuin University | H | 1-2 aet | Miura 89' | 3,103 |

### Match Day Line-Ups

Player Appearances – 2018 Emperor's Cup :
| Round | Opponent | GK | RB | LB | CB | CB | CM | CM | RM | LM | CF | CF | | | | |
| 2 | Kwansei Gakuin | Hayashi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Matheus | Kurata | Fujimoto | Hwang | Nagasawa | Senoo | Mori | Nakamura | Meshino |
= Substitute on, = Substitute Off, = Number of goals scored, = Yellow Card and = Red Card.

## J.League Cup Results

Having failing to qualify for the 2018 Asian Champions League, Gamba joined the J.League Cup at the group stage for the first time since 2014 when they went on to win the competition. The format was rejigged prior to the season with groups of 7 being replaced with groups of 4. Gamba were drawn in Group C along with Urawa Reds, Sanfrecce Hiroshima and Nagoya Grampus playing each team home and away.
Despite losing all three home group stage games, including two 4-1 reverses, Gamba qualified for the playoff round by virtue of 3 wins on the road and were paired with Júbilo Iwata. Home and away victories secured a passage to the quarter-finals where they faced off against Yokohama F. Marinos. A 4-0 hammering in the home leg was followed by a 3-1 defeat in Yokohama to send Gamba crashing out 7-1 on aggregate.
| Round | Date | Time* | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
| 1 | 7 March 2018 | 19:00 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | H | 0-4 | | 10,058 |
| 2 | 14 March 2018 | 19:30 | Urawa Red Diamonds | A | 4-1 | Hwang 10', Nagasawa 41', 54', Nakamura 87' | 21,897 |
| 3 | 4 April 2018 | 19:00 | Nagoya Grampus | A | 4-1 | Nagasawa 5', 16', 29', 41' | 10,122 |
| 4 | 18 April 2018 | 19:00 | Urawa Red Diamonds | H | 0-1 | | 9,516 |
| 5 | 9 May 2018 | 19:00 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | A | 3-2 | Meshino 52', Senoo 65', Nishino 70' | 7,083 |
| 6 | 16 May 2018 | 19:00 | Nagoya Grampus | H | 1-4 | Nagasawa 20' | 9,907 |
| Playoff | 2 June 2018 | 16:00 | Júbilo Iwata | H | 1-0 | Hwang 7' | 8,519 |
| Playoff | 9 June 2018 | 16:00 | Júbilo Iwata | A | 3-2 | Hwang 26', 50', 66' | 10,518 |
| QF | 5 September 2018 | 19:00 | Yokohama F. Marinos | H | 0-4 | | 5,792 |
| QF | 9 September 2018 | 19:00 | Yokohama F. Marinos | A | 1-3 | Ichimi 52' | 11,207 |
* = all times Japan Standard Time.

### Match Day Line-Ups

Player Appearances – 2018 J.League Cup :
| Round | Opponent | GK | RB | LB | CB | CB | CM | CM | ACM | RW | LW | CF | | | |
| 1 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | Higashiguchi | Yonekura | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Fukuda | Ichimaru | Endō | Hwang | Kurata | Ademilson | Nagasawa | Yajima | Nakamura |
| 2 | Urawa Red Diamonds | Higashiguchi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Ichimaru | Izumisawa | Ademilson | Hwang | Nagasawa | Hatsuse | Yonekura | Nakamura |
| 3 | Nagoya Grampus | Higashiguchi | Oh | Hatsuse | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Matheus | Kurata | Hwang | Ide | Nagasawa | Yajima | Fujimoto | Mori |
| 4 | Urawa Red Diamonds | Hayashi | Yonekura | Oh | Suganuma | Nishino | Ichimaru | Takae | Ide | Fujimoto | Izumisawa | Nakamura | Takagi | Fukuda | Meshino |
| 5 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | Tani | Oh | Hatsuse | Suganuma | Nishino | Ichimaru | Takae | Nakamura | Izumisawa | Meshino | Nagasawa | Senoo | Mori | |
| 6 | Nagoya Grampus | Hayashi | Yonekura | Hatsuse | Miura | Suganuma | Takae | Matheus | Kurata | Fujimoto | Hwang | Nagasawa | Mori | Nakamura | Meshino |
| | | GK | RB | LB | CB | CB | CM | CM | RW | LW | CF | CF | | | |
| Playoff | Júbilo Iwata | Hayashi | Yonekura | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Matheus | Fujimoto | Kurata | Hwang | Nagasawa | Oh | Takae | Meshino |
| Playoff | Júbilo Iwata | Hayashi | Oh | Fujiharu | Miura | Fábio | Endō | Matheus | Fujimoto | Kurata | Hwang | Nagasawa | Mori | Takae | Meshino |
| QF | Yokohama F. Marinos | Hayashi | Yonekura | Hatsuse | Noda | Suganuma | Ko | Ichimaru | Fujimoto | Ide | Ademilson | Ichimi | Takae | Nakamura | Onose |
| | | GK | RB | LB | CB | CB | CB | CM | CM | RW | LW | CF | | | |
| QF | Yokohama F. Marinos | Suzuki | Oh | Fujiharu | Noda | Fábio | Suganuma | Endō | Konno | Ademilson | Kurata | Ichimi | Takae | Nakamura | Onose |
= Substitute on, = Substitute Off, = Number of goals scored, = Yellow Card and = Red Card.

## Squad statistics

| No. | Pos. | Name | J1 League | J1 League | Emperor's Cup | Emperor's Cup | J.League Cup | J.League Cup | Total | Total | Discipline | Discipline |
| No. | Pos. | Name | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | | |
| 1 | GK | Masaaki Higashiguchi | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 32 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 2 | DF | Takaharu Nishino | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 3 | DF | Fábio | 31 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 38 | 3 | 5 | 1 |
| 4 | DF | Hiroki Fujiharu | 23(2) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 29(2) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 5 | DF | Genta Miura (c) | 34 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 41 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 6 | DF | Ryo Hatsuse | 7(3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4(1) | 0 | 11(4) | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 7 | MF | Yasuhito Endō | 33(1) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 40(1) | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | Matheus Jesus | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 18 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 9 | FW | Ademilson | 13(4) | 5 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 17(4) | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | MF | Shu Kurata | 30(1) | 4 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 37(1) | 4 | 6 | 0 |
| 11 | FW | Hwang Ui-jo | 25(2) | 16 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 32(2) | 21 | 5 | 0 |
| 13 | DF | Shunya Suganuma | 9(2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 14(2) | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 14 | DF | Koki Yonekura | 16(10) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5(1) | 0 | 21(11) | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 15 | MF | Yasuyuki Konno | 13(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 14(1) | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 16 | DF | Hiroki Noda | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 17 | MF | Mizuki Ichimaru | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 18 | FW | Akito Takagi | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0(1) | 0 | 0(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | FW | Kazunari Ichimi | 2(7) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4(7) | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | FW | Shun Nagasawa | 10(4) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6(1) | 7 | 17(5) | 8 | 1 | 0 |
| 21 | MF | Shinya Yajima | 1(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0(2) | 0 | 1(3) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | DF | Oh Jae-suk | 21(3) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6(1) | 0 | 28(4) | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 23 | GK | Mizuki Hayashi | 5(2) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 11(2) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 24 | MF | Haruya Ide | 2(5) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5(5) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | MF | Jungo Fujimoto | 12(9) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5(1) | 0 | 18(10) | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 26 | MF | Naoya Senoo | 0 | 0 | 0(1) | 0 | 0(1) | 1 | 0(2) | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | MF | Yuto Mori | 0(1) | 0 | 0(1) | 0 | 0(4) | 0 | 0(6) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 28 | MF | Takahiro Ko | 7(5) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8(5) | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 29 | MF | Leo Takae | 6(3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3(4) | 0 | 9(7) | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 31 | GK | Ryota Suzuki | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | MF | Ren Shibamoto | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 34 | MF | Yuya Fukuda | 1(2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1(1) | 0 | 2(3) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 35 | DF | Tatsuya Yamaguchi | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 36 | DF | Riku Matsuda | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 37 | FW | Haruto Shirai | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 38 | FW | Keito Nakamura | 2(15) | 1 | 0(1) | 0 | 2(5) | 1 | 4(21) | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 39 | MF | Jin Izumisawa | 1(2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4(2) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 39 | FW | Kazuma Watanabe | 10(2) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10(2) | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | FW | Ryotaro Meshino | 3(8) | 0 | 0(1) | 0 | 1(4) | 1 | 4(13) | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 41 | GK | Kosei Tani | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 50 | MF | Kosuke Onose | 11(3) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0(2) | 0 | 11(5) | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| — | — | Own goals | – | 1 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | 1 | – | – |
Statistics accurate as of match played on 1 December 2018

### Goalscorers

    As of 1 December 2018
| Rank | Position | Name | J1 League | Emperor's Cup | J.League Cup | Total |
| 1 | FW | Hwang Ui-jo | 16 | 0 | 5 | 21 |
| 2 | FW | Shun Nagasawa | 1 | 0 | 7 | 8 |
| 3 | FW | Ademilson | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 4 | MF | Shu Kurata | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 5 | DF | Fábio Aguiar | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 5 | MF | Kosuke Onose | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 5 | FW | Kazuma Watanabe | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 8 | MF | Jungo Fujimoto | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 8 | FW | Keito Nakamura | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 10 | MF | Yasuhito Endō | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 10 | FW | Kazunari Ichimi | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 10 | MF | Matheus Jesus | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 10 | FW | Ryotaro Meshino | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 10 | DF | Genta Miura | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 10 | DF | Takaharu Nishino | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 10 | MF | Naoya Senoo | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 10 | DF | Koki Yonekura | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | Total | Total | 41 | 1 | 17 | 59 |

### Assists

    As of 1 December 2018
| Rank | Position | Name | J1 League | Emperor's Cup | J.League Cup | Total |
| 1 | MF | Yasuhito Endō | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| 2 | MF | Shu Kurata | 4 | 0 | 2 | 6 |
| 3 | MF | Jin Izumisawa | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| 4 | MF | Jungo Fujimoto | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 4 | DF | Oh Jae-suk | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 4 | MF | Kosuke Onose | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 7 | FW | Ademilson | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 7 | DF | Hiroki Fujiharu | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 7 | DF | Ryo Hatsuse | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 7 | FW | Hwang Ui-jo | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 7 | MF | Takahiro Ko | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 7 | FW | Keito Nakamura | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 13 | MF | Yasuyuki Konno | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 13 | FW | Shun Nagasawa | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 13 | DF | Shunya Suganuma | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 13 | MF | Leo Takae | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 13 | DF | Koki Yonekura | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | Total | Total | 31 | 0 | 11 | 42 |

## Gamba Osaka Under-23

Gamba Osaka's Under-23 side compete in the J3 League where they are allowed to name 3 overage players of which one must be a goalkeeper. On January 24, their fixtures for the 2018 J3 League season were announced. Due to there being only 17 teams in the league, rounds 17 and 22 were bye rounds while the round 8 fixture against FC Tokyo Under-23 was played at a later date so as to fall on a national holiday. The round 15 game against Thespakusatsu Gunma was postponed until August due to a large earthquake that occurred in Osaka in late June.
| Round | Date | Time* | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance | League position |
| 1 | 11 March 2018 | 14:00 | Grulla Morioka | H | 3-2 | Meshino 66', 89', Ichimi 79' | 1,330 | 3rd |
| 2 | 17 March 2018 | 13:00 | Kagoshima United FC | A | 1-4 | Suganuma 19' | 2,223 | 11th |
| 3 | 21 March 2018 | 14:00 | Blaublitz Akita | H | 2-1 | Fukuda 15', Ichimi 79' | 1,224 | 4th |
| 4 | 25 March 2018 | 13:00 | YSCC Yokohama | A | 0-0 | | 1,509 | 5th |
| 5 | 1 April 2018 | 14:00 | Fujieda MYFC | H | 4-1 | Ichimi 24', Meshino 26', 77', Ko 80' | 1,398 | 4th |
| 6 | 8 April 2018 | 13:00 | Kataller Toyama | A | 0-3 | | 1,704 | 5th |
| 7 | 15 April 2018 | 14:00 | AC Nagano Parceiro | H | 1-1 | Ide 36' | 1,575 | 6th |
| 9 | 3 May 2018 | 18:00 | FC Ryukyu | A | 1-2 | Takagi 89' | 1,824 | 9th |
| 10 | 6 May 2018 | 14:00 | Azul Claro Numazu | H | 3-0 | Takagi 63', Senoo 70', Ichimi 88' | 1,254 | 9th |
| 11 | 20 May 2018 | 14:00 | Giravanz Kitakyushu | A | 4-0 | Izumisawa 31', Senoo 63', Ko 70', Shirai 88' | 4,363 | 5th |
| 8 | 26 May 2018 | 14:00 | FC Tokyo U-23 | H | 2-4 | Izumisawa 36', Nakamura 77' | 1,596 | 5th |
| 12 | 2 June 2018 | 14:00 | Cerezo Osaka U-23 | A | 1-1 | Shirai 75' | 4,551 | 5th |
| 13 | 10 June 2018 | 16:00 | Fukushima United FC | H | 1-1 | Ichimi (pen) 90+4' | 974 | 7th |
| 14 | 16 June 2018 | 17:00 | Gainare Tottori | A | 0-1 | | 2,456 | 7th |
| 16 | 30 June 2018 | 17:00 | SC Sagamihara | A | 3-2 | Own goal 18', Ko 32', Mori 50' | 3,256 | 5th |
| 18 | 16 July 2018 | 17:30 | Kagoshima United FC | H | 0-0 | | 1,054 | 7th |
| 19 | 22 July 2018 | 15:00 | Grulla Morioka | A | 1-2 | Ide 82' | 3,115 | 11th |
| 15 | 18 August 2018 | 17:00 | Thespakusatsu Gunma* | H | 4-0 | Nakamura 16', Senoo 25', Nishino 56', Fukuda 71' | 1,050 | 6th |
| 20 | 26 August 2018 | 19:00 | YSCC Yokohama | H | 3-0 | Konno 3', Takagi 33', Ide 78' | 568 | 4th |
| 21 | 2 September 2018 | 19:00 | Thespakusatsu Gunma | A | 0-1 | | 3,358 | 8th |
| 23 | 15 September 2018 | 18:00 | FC Ryukyu | H | 2-0 | Takagi 45', Meshino 67' | 804 | 5th |
| 24 | 23 September 2018 | 13:00 | Blaublitz Akita | A | 1-1 | Senoo 65' | 3,418 | 7th |
| 25 | 30 September 2018 | 13:00 | FC Tokyo U-23 | A | 2-2 | Nakamura 6', Shibamoto 60' | 1,178 | 7th |
| 26 | 7 October 2018 | 14:00 | Gainare Tottori | H | 2-0 | Ichimi 3', Ide 71' | 1,778 | 5th |
| 27 | 13 October 2018 | 13:00 | Fujieda MYFC | A | 1-2 | Mori 31' | 945 | 6th |
| 28 | 21 October 2018 | 13:00 | Azul Claro Numazu | A | 2-1 | Ide 60', Nakamura 77' | 4,041 | 5th |
| 29 | 28 October 2018 | 14:00 | SC Sagamihara | H | 2-1 | Fukuda 33', Ichimi 60' | 1,310 | 5th |
| 30 | 4 November 2018 | 14:00 | Kataller Toyama | H | 1-1 | Nishino 66' | 1,105 | 5th |
| 31 | 11 November 2018 | 13:00 | Nagano Parceiro | A | 1-2 | Senoo 75' | 2,828 | 5th |
| 32 | 18 November 2018 | 13:05 | Fukushima United FC | A | 3-4 | Shibamoto 68', Senoo 80', Shirai 90+3' | 1,055 | 6th |
| 33 | 25 November 2018 | 14:00 | Giravanz Kitakyushu | H | 2-1 | Ichimi 50', Takagi 90+1' | 1,334 | 6th |
| 34 | 2 December 2018 | 13:00 | Cerezo Osaka U-23 | H | 0-2 | | 3,753 | 6th |
* = all times Japan Standard Time.

## U-23 Squad statistics

| No. | Pos. | Name | J3 League | J3 League | Discipline | Discipline |
| No. | Pos. | Name | Apps | Goals | | |
| 2 | DF | Takaharu Nishino | 25 | 2 | 4 | 0 |
| 6 | DF | Ryo Hatsuse | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 13 | DF | Shunya Suganuma | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 14 | DF | Koki Yonekura | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | MF | Yasuyuki Konno | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | DF | Hiroki Noda | 25(1) | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 17 | MF | Mizuki Ichimaru | 18(2) | 0 | 7 | 1 |
| 18 | FW | Akito Takagi | 27(5) | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | FW | Kazunari Ichimi | 21 | 8 | 3 | 0 |
| 21 | MF | Shinya Yajima | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | GK | Mizuki Hayashi | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | MF | Haruya Ide | 14(2) | 5 | 2 | 0 |
| 26 | MF | Naoya Senoo | 15(12) | 6 | 2 | 1 |
| 27 | MF | Yuto Mori | 11(11) | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| 28 | MF | Takahiro Ko | 20 | 3 | 4 | 0 |
| 29 | MF | Leo Takae | 15(1) | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| 31 | GK | Ryota Suzuki | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | MF | Ren Shibamoto | 13(9) | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 34 | MF | Yuya Fukuda | 8(14) | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 35 | DF | Tatsuya Yamaguchi | 29(2) | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 36 | DF | Riku Matsuda | 23(1) | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 37 | FW | Haruto Shirai | 1(20) | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| 38 | FW | Keito Nakamura | 10(5) | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 39 | MF | Jin Izumisawa | 7(1) | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | FW | Ryotaro Meshino | 12(3) | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 41 | GK | Kosei Tani | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 42 | GK | Yukihiro Komai | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 43 | MF | Tsubasa Adachi | 0(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 44 | MF | Sho Iwamoto | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 45 | DF | Tetta Kawai | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 46 | MF | Kohei Okuno | 0(2) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 47 | DF | Sho Nishimura | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 48 | MF | Naoya Takahashi | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| — | — | Own goals | – | 0 | – | – |
Statistics accurate as of match played on 2 December 2018