Since the Osaka Derby was cancelled due to Typhoon No. 10, Gamba will be competing in the EMPEROR'S CUP quarterfinals, their first official match in 18 days. Head Coach Poyatos revealed his true feelings, saying, "I wanted to play a good game," but the team is refreshed both physically and mentally ahead of the Hiroshima match. Under the coach's guidance, Gamba has continued to brush up on both offense and defense, saying, "I asked the players to work on perfecting what they have been doing up until now."

Gamba has a busy schedule with a league match against Urawa in three days, but the first thing they must overcome is a match against Hiroshima, where a spot in the top four for the first time in four seasons is at stake.
Hiroshima has won seven straight league games, overtaking Machida to take the lead, while Gamba has yet to win in five league games. However, the match against Hiroshima will be a great opportunity for Gamba to regain momentum as the season draws to a close.
"Since our opponents are on a winning streak in the league, if we can stop them in the EMPEROR'S CUP, it will give us confidence and make this match a big challenge," Fukuoka said, speaking for the team.

Although they came from behind to win 2-1 in a Pre-season Match, they drew 1-1 in an away league match, so this will be their second meeting in an official match this season.
In the league, where there are fewer games played, Gamba is tied with Machida for the fewest number of goals conceded in the league, but in the most recent official matches, they have conceded two goals in three consecutive matches. Since this is a match after an interval, careless conceding goals is a no-no, but Fukuoka is also on their guard, saying, "If we concede a goal first, we will have to play catch-up and rush forward to attack, so it will be important not to concede goals in the match against Hiroshima."

Gamba has clearly shown signs of improvement in the way they move the ball and their ball possession rate in the opposition's half, but Hiroshima's style is characterized by high intensity and speedy attacks, with Usami expressing his caution, saying, "It's similar to Kobe, but with speed up the pitch and the way the situation changes in an instant."
Hiroshima uses an aggressive three-back formation and applies a man-to-man pressing style that is almost full court, so any careless loss could lead to an immediate goal being conceded.

Usami has a strong desire to revive Gamba's winning streak, but he is also full of energy for the match against Hiroshima, saying, "Everyone wants to win the title, and the chances are increasing." Usami led the attack as an attacking midfielder in the match against Fukuoka, but he will surely take the lead in defeating Hiroshima.

Meanwhile, Hiroshima lost to Nagoya in a penalty shootout after extra time in the quarterfinals of the Levain Cup on the 8th, bringing their winning streak in official matches to an end at 10. Although they will have a busy schedule with only 2nd year of junior high school, they will likely be highly motivated to take on this match, as they still have a chance of winning the double, just like Gamba.
The lineup is unclear due to the consecutive matches, but Tolgay Ali Arslan(TOLGAY ARSLAN) and former Portuguese national team player Gonzalo Paciencia have joined the team this summer. They will also need to be careful of the powerful individual strikes of foreign players.
"No matter who plays, Hiroshima will undoubtedly be a strong team," said Usami. That's why this will be the perfect stage for Gamba to show off their true strength.