6 Feb 2003(Thu)

I know this is an early time to be making a prediction about a season which is still seven weeks away, but here is my choice to win the 2003 J.League championship.

Wait for it.....

I am tipping Gamba Osaka!

OK, so you think I must be crazy picking a team that has never won a stage, never mind the championship.

But I got good vibes from Gamba last season, and feel that, under Akira Nishino, they can continue to improve.

I honestly thought they were good enough to win the title last season. In fact they should have won the first stage, and if they'd done that they would have had a 50-50 chance of taking the overall crown.

I was one of the fortunate few thousand to witness one of the best games the J.League has ever produced.

Gamba led Jubilo 4-2 at Iwata with eight minutes to go, but lost 5-4 in sudden-death extra time to an unfortunate own goal by the unlucky Miyamoto.

If Gamba had held on to win that match in 90 minutes, I am convinced they would have had the momentum and the motivation to go on and clinch the first-stage championship.

At the end of last season they replaced two of their three foreign players, and I really like the signing of veteran Paraguay international Francisco Arce, from Brazil's Palmeiras.

I think he is a super player, far more than just the dead-ball expert he is made out to be.

This will give Gamba added strength on the wings, as the 31-year-old Arce is expected to replace Morioka on the right side of Nishino's 3-5-2 formation. With the stylish Araiba on the left, Gamba's "Little and Large" front two of Yoshihara and Magrao should have plenty of crosses to feed off in the penalty box.

Although Marcelinho Carioca was used as a substitute in the second half of the season, often coming off the bench and on to the right wing with good results, it was no surprise he was released. If a foreign player cannot command a regular first-team place, he is a waste of money.

But I was a little surprised Gamba did not give Fabinho another season. I quite liked him alongside Endo in the middle of the park.

Gamba's second new foreign player, Marcus Aurelio Galeano, is a 30-year-old Brazilian journeyman, latterly of Botafogo.

If he does a steady job, Gamba can be a very strong team.

With Yamaguchi, Miyamoto and Kiba at the back, and the under-rated Futugawa playing behind the top two, Gamba can challenge for the title.

They still have to find a place for the Asian Games hero Nakayama.

The trouble is: Do Gamba themselves believe they can win the championship?

There seemed to be a mental block when they led Jubilo 4-2 last season. They did not appear to believe they could actually win the match, and Jubilo pounced on this weakness in typically ruthless style.

Jubilo and Antlers, of course, can never be written off.

Urawa Reds could be dynamite with Emerson and Edmundo together, and so could Yokohama F Marinos under Takeshi Okada and with Kubo in the forward line and Cafu, eventually, on the right.

Nagoya Grampus have made a great signing in Fujimoto from relegated Sanfrecce, and might be ready to show some consistency in Verdenik's second year as coach.

But watch out for Gamba!

And remember where you read it first....

ends