2019 Gamba Osaka season
The 2019 Gamba Osaka season was Gamba Osaka's 26th season in the J1 League and 32nd 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.
Transfers
Prior to the end of 2018, Gamba completed the signing of Kwansei Gakuin University fullback, Ryu Takao, who impressed in his side's shock win over Gamba in the Emperor's Cup in June. He was joined by young midfielder Kohei Okuno, who signed a full-time deal after spending 2 years with Gamba's Under-23 side in J3 League. It was also announced that Kansai University left-back Keisuke Kurokawa would join the club as a designated special player before signing permanently once he concluded his university studies in 2020.Roasso Kumamoto wide midfielder / wing-back, Tatsuya Tanaka was next to join, having performed well in a team that was relegated from J2 the previous season. Central midfielder Shinya Yajima returned from a loan spell with Vegalta Sendai where he spent the second half of the 2018 campaign while forward Hiroto Goya came back from J2 side Tokushima Vortis having only played 7 games due to injury. Goalkeeper Ken Tajiri also returned to the club following an 18 month loan spell with Zweigen Kanazawa.
In a surprise move, defender Naoyaki Aoyama joined the club following 4 seasons in Thailand with Muangthong United. Aoyama previously played with Shimizu S-Pulse, Yokohama F. Marinos and Ventforet Kofu in Japan. After his country's elimination from the 2019 AFC Asian Cup it was announced that South Korean defender Kim Young-gwon would sign from Chinese club Guangzhou Evergrande. He previously had spells in Japan with FC Tokyo and Omiya Ardija between 2010 and 2012.
At half time of the week 3 J.League fixture at home to Nagoya Grampus, it was announced that Spanish winger David Concha would join the club on loan from Real Sociedad. He was handed the number 11 jersey.
In mid-December, it was announced that defenders Fabio and Takaharu Nishino as well as midfielders Naoya Senoo and Yuto Mori had been released. Fabio played 31 times in J1 League during 2018, however Nishino, Senoo and Mori spent the majority of the season with Gamba U-23 in J3. Later on in December versatile full-back Ryo Hatsuse left for Vissel Kobe, he had filled in at left back during Hiroki Fujiharu's injury during the previous season but saw out the campaign playing J3 football with Gamba U-23. Attacking midfielder Haruya Ide left for J2 outfit, Montedio Yamagata, after 2 indifferent seasons in Osaka while young Korean defender Bae Soo-yong was again loaned out, this time to J3 side Kamatamare Sanuki. Giant forward Shun Nagasawa, who spent the second half of 2018 on loan at Vissel Kobe, left permanently for Vegalta Sendai at the end of December. On the same day, it was also announced that the versatile So Hirao, who had been with Avispa Fukuoka on loan in 2018 had signed a permanent deal with J2 side Machida Zelvia.
The beginning of 2019 brought with it the surprising news that attacking midfielder Jin Izumisawa, who'd spent the second half of 2018 on loan at J2 side Tokyo Verdy, would take the next step in his career in Poland with Pogoń Szczecin. A couple of days later it was announced that 4th choice goalkeeper, Ryota Suzuki, would join J2 side JEF United Chiba on a season-long loan. On the same day, promising forward Kazunari Ichimi, who was top scorer for Gamba U-23 in 2017 and 2018 joined Kyoto Sanga on loan for 2019. Club legend Takahiro Futagawa finally departed the club permanently in mid January. The 38 year-old had spent the previous 2 seasons out on loan in J2 with Tokyo Verdy and Tochigi.
Early on in the season young forward Hiroto Goya, who found himself well down the pecking order for a starting berth, was loaned out to J2 side V-Varen Nagasaki while Gamba U-23 captain Mizuki Ichimaru headed to FC Gifu on loan at the beginning of May. At the end of May another Gamba U-23 stalwart, centre-back Hiroki Noda also left on loan, this time to J2 outfit Montedio Yamagata.
Gamba kicked off the summer transfer window with the announcement that attacking midfielder Takashi Usami would return for a third spell at the club. The 27-times capped Japanese international had spent the 2018-2019 European season on loan at Bundesliga side Fortuna Düsseldorf on loan from Augsburg. Right-sided midfielder Yuto Suzuki also came in on loan from Kawasaki Frontale in mid-July and his arrival was followed by the loan signing of Patric from Sanfrecce Hiroshima. The striker previously enjoyed 4 seasons with Gamba and scored 9 times in their title-winning season in 2014. Continuing the theme of returns, midfielder Yosuke Ideguchi also rejoined the club after an injury plagued 18 months in Europe. The following week, Renofa Yamaguchi attacker, Daisuke Takagi, became the fifth arrival of the summer.
In terms of summer departures, veteran full-back Oh Jae-suk left on loan to once again link up with former Gamba head-coach Kenta Hasegawa at FC Tokyo. Wing back Tatsuya Tanaka also left for fellow J1 side Oita Trinita, a mere 7 months after joining Gamba from Roasso Kumamoto. A few days later Korean forward Hwang Ui-jo departed for Bordeaux in France and he was followed out the exit door the following day by veteran attacking midfielder Jungo Fujimoto who joined J2 promotion chasers Kyoto Sanga on loan until the end of the season. Youngster Keito Nakamura who'd recently broken into the team playing on the left side of midfield earned a 2-year loan move to Dutch side FC Twente in mid July following in the footsteps of Ritsu Doan who joined Groningen in the Netherlands two years previously. The exodus continued when veteran midfielder Yasuyuki Konno, who had fallen out of favour in 2019, moved to J1 rivals Jubilo Iwata on a permanent deal. Young striker Akito Takagi, who bagged 11 goals in just 17 J3 games for Gamba U23 joined former team-mate Hiroki Noda on loan at J2 side Montedio Yamagata. A few days later, right full-back Koki Yonekura returned to his former club, JEF United Chiba, on loan until the end of the season. Young attacker Ryotaro Meshino later made the surprise move to English side Manchester City on a permanent deal and the following week central-midfielder, Takahiro Ko, joined J2 outfit Renofa Yamaguchi on loan until the end of the season.
In
| Player | Transferred From | Fee | Date | Source | ||
| 27 |  Ryu Takao | Kwansei Gakuin University | unknown | 22 Jun 2018 | ||
| 26 | Kohei Okuno | Gamba Osaka Youth | promotion | 18 Oct 2018 | ||
| 24 | Keisuke Kurokawa | Kansai University | 5 Dec 2018 | |||
| 6 | Tatsuya Tanaka | Roasso Kumamoto | unknown | 14 Dec 2018 | ||
| 21 | Shinya Yajima | Vegalta Sendai | return from loan | 23 Dec 2018 | ||
| 20 | Hiroto Goya | Tokushima Vortis | return from loan | 27 Dec 2018 | ||
| 31 | Ken Tajiri | Zweigen Kanazawa | return from loan | 7 Jan 2019 | ||
| 30 | Naoaki Aoyama |  Muangthong United | unknown | 7 Jan 2019 | ||
| 19 |  Kim Young-gwon |  Guangzhou Evergrande | unknown | 26 Jan 2019 | ||
| 11 |  David Concha | Real Sociedad | loan | 9 Mar 2019 | ||
| 33 | Takashi Usami |  Augsburg | unknown | 24 June 2019 | ||
| 17 | Yuto Suzuki | Kawasaki Frontale | loan | 18 July 2019 | ||
| 18 |  Patric | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | loan | 25 July 2019 | ||
| 15 | Yosuke Ideguchi |  Leeds United | unknown | 5 Aug 2019 | ||
| 20 | Daisuke Takagi | Renofa Yamaguchi | unknown | 13 Aug 2019 | ||
| 28 | Yuki Yamamoto | Kwansei Gakuin University | 6 Sept 2019 | |||
| 14 | Markel Susaeta | unattached | unknown | 9 Sept 2019 |
Out
| Player | Transferred To | Fee | Date | Source | ||
| 2 | Takaharu Nishino | Kamatamare Sanuki | free | 11 Dec 2018 | ||
| 3 | Fábio | released | N/A | 11 Dec 2018 | ||
| 26 | Naoya Senoo | Nagano Parceiro | free | 11 Dec 2018 | ||
| 27 | Yuto Mori | Mito HollyHock | free | 11 Dec 2018 | ||
| 6 | Ryo Hatsuse | Vissel Kobe | unknown | 17 Dec 2018 | ||
| 24 | Haruya Ide | Montedio Yamagata | unknown | 27 Dec 2018 | ||
| 42 | Bae Soo-yong | Kamatamare Sanuki | loan | 27 Dec 2018 | ||
| 20 | Shun Nagasawa | Vegalta Sendai | unknown | 29 Dec 2018 | ||
| 30 | So Hirao | FC Machida Zelvia | unknown | 29 Dec 2018 | ||
| 39 | Jin Izumisawa |  Pogoń Szczecin | free | 5 Jan 2019 | ||
| 31 | Ryota Suzuki | JEF United Chiba | loan | 7 Jan 2019 | ||
| 19 | Kazunari Ichimi | Kyoto Sanga FC | loan | 7 Jan 2019 | ||
| N/A | Takahiro Futagawa | FC TIAMO Hirakata | unknown | 18 Jan 2019 | ||
| 20 | Hiroto Goya | V-Varen Nagasaki | loan | 22 Mar 2019 | ||
| 17 | Mizuki Ichimaru | FC Gifu | loan | 1 May 2019 | ||
| 2 | Hiroki Noda | Montedio Yamagata | loan | 30 May 2019 | ||
| 22 | Oh Jae-suk | FC Tokyo | loan | 8 July 2019 | ||
| 6 | Tatsuya Tanaka | Oita Trinita | unknown | 10 July 2019 | ||
| 16 | Hwang Ui-jo |  Bordeaux | unknown | 14 July 2019 | ||
| 25 | Jungo Fujimoto | Kyoto Sanga FC | loan | 15 July 2019 | ||
| 38 | Keito Nakamura |  FC Twente | loan | 16 July 2019 | ||
| 15 | Yasuyuki Konno | Júbilo Iwata | unknown | 17 July 2019 | ||
| 18 | Akito Takagi | Montedio Yamagata | loan | 25 July 2019 | ||
| 14 | Koki Yonekura | JEF United Chiba | loan | 29 July 2019 | ||
| 40 | Ryotaro Meshino | Manchester City | unknown | 9 August 2019 | ||
| 28 | Takahiro Ko | Renofa Yamaguchi | loan | 15 Aug 2019 |
Coaching staff
The Coaching Staff for the 2019 J1 League season;| Position | Staff |
| First-team Manager | Tsuneyasu Miyamoto |
| Head Coach | Satoshi Yamaguchi |
| Goalkeeper Coach | Naoki Matsuyo |
| Coach | Arata Kodama |
| Physical Coach | Toni Gil Puerto |
First team squad
Appearances and goals as of the beginning of the 2019 season.- indicates player returned to Gamba Osaka from a loan spell with this club.
J1 League
| Round | Date | Time* | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance | League position |
| 1 | 22 February 2019 | 15:00 | Yokohama F. Marinos | H | Onose 1', Fujiharu 88' | 27,064 | 14th | |
| 2 | 2 March 2019 | 14:00 | Shimizu S-Pulse | A | Onose 28', Ademilson 58', 70', Hwang 73' | 15,820 | 5th | |
| 3 | 9 March 2019 | 15:00 | Nagoya Grampus | H | Nakatani 36', Ademilson 67' | 26,865 | 11th | |
| 4 | 17 March 2019 | 15:00 | Kawasaki Frontale | A | Miura 90+1' | 23,982 | 9th | |
| 5 | 30 March 2019 | 17:00 | Vissel Kobe | H | Ademilson 10', Hwang 24', Kurata 72' | 37,076 | 11th | |
| 6 | 6 April 2019 | 14:00 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | A | 13,331 | 15th | ||
| 7 | 14 April 2019 | 16:00 | Urawa Red Diamonds | H | 27,870 | 15th | ||
| 8 | 20 April 2019 | 16:00 | Oita Trinita | H | Endō 71' | 17,727 | 15th | |
| 9 | 28 April 2019 | 13:00 | Vegalta Sendai | A | Kim 32' | 16,004 | 15th | |
| 10 | 4 May 2019 | 16:00 | FC Tokyo | H | 33,905 | 15th | ||
| 11 | 11 May 2019 | 14:00 | Sagan Tosu | A | Meshino 90+2' | 14,789 | 16th | |
| 12 | 18 May 2019 | 19:00 | Cerezo Osaka | H | Kurata 55' | 35,861 | 14th | |
| 13 | 25 May 2019 | 14:00 | Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo | A | 15,690 | 16th | ||
| 14 | 1 June 2019 | 19:00 | Kashima Antlers | H | Meshino 13' | 30,495 | 15th | |
| 15 | 15 June 2019 | 19:00 | Júbilo Iwata | A | 12,352 | 17th | ||
| 16 | 22 June 2019 | 19:00 | Shonan Bellmare | H | Meshino 90+1' | 19,162 | 14th | |
| 17 | 29 June 2019 | 18:00 | Matsumoto Yamaga | A | Hwang 26', 82', Kurata 63' | 15,690 | 13th | |
| 18 | 7 July 2019 | 19:00 | FC Tokyo | A | Onose 5' | 28,209 | 14th | |
| 19 | 13 July 2019 | 19:00 | Shimizu S-Pulse | H | Yajima 88' | 25,719 | 11th= | |
| 20 | 20 July 2019 | 18:00 | Nagoya Grampus | A | Ademilson 8', Usami 90+1' | 42,975 | 11th | |
| 21 | 2 August 2019 | 19:00 | Vissel Kobe | A | Kurata 8', Patric 53' | 21,276 | 13th | |
| 22 | 10 August 2019 | 19:00 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | H | Kurata 89' | 30,476 | 13th | |
| 23 | 18 August 2019 | 19:00 | Júbilo Iwata | H | Onose 44' | 37,334 | 13th | |
| 24 | 24 August 2019 | 18:30 | Kashima Antlers | A | Ademilson 33', Patric 73' | 16,063 | 14th | |
| 25 | 31 August 2019 | 19:00 | Yokohama F. Marinos | A | Onose 67' | 13,590 | 14th | |
| 26 | 14 September 2019 | 19:00 | Sagan Tosu | H | Watanabe 84' | 23,287 | 12th | |
| 27 | 28 September 2019 | 14:00 | Cerezo Osaka | A | Kim o.g. 90+2' | 36,990 | 14th | |
| 28 | 4 October 2019 | 19:00 | Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo | H | Kurata 57', Usami 61', Ademilson 70', Fujiharu 88', Watanabe 90+3' | 20,554 | 12th | |
| 29 | 19 October 2019 | 14:00 | Kawasaki Frontale | H | Watanabe 5', Kurata 65' | 25,748 | 9th | |
| 30 | 3 Nov 2019 | 16:00 | Shonan Bellmare | A | Onose 10', Usami 45+1', 50' | 13,570 | 9th | |
| 31 | 10 Nov 2019 | 14:00 | Oita Trinita | A | Usami 11' | 17,022 | 9th | |
| 32 | 23 Nov 2019 | 15:00 | Vegalta Sendai | H | Usami 69', Ademilson 77' | 26,256 | 9th | |
| 33 | 30 Nov 2019 | 14:00 | Matsumoto Yamaga | H | Onose 11', Ideguchi 30', 45', Ademilson 58' | 25,635 | 9th | |
| 34 | 7 Dec 2019 | 14:00 | Urawa Red Diamonds | A | Usami 9', Ademilson 64', Fukuda 87' | 47,188 | 7th |
- = all times Japan Standard Time.
Match Day Line-Ups
= Substitute on, = Substitute Off, = Number of goals scored, = Yellow Card and = Red Card.
Emperor's Cup
Gamba entered the 2019 Emperor's Cup at the 2nd round stage where they were drawn at home to J3 League side Kamatamare Sanuki on 3 July. A 7-1 thrashing of the Kagawa-based outfit set up a 3rd round tie with Hosei University who saw off J2 side Tokyo Verdy in the previous round. For the second year in a row Gamba were defeated by university opposition as the students recorded a 2-0 win in Tokyo.| Round | Date | Time* | Opponents | H / A | Result F-A | Scorers | Attendance |
| 2nd round | 3 July 2019 | 19:00 | Kamatamare Sanuki | H | Nakamura 10', 14', 79', Meshino 24', Takagi 75', 82, Ademilson 90+3' | 3,543 | |
| 3rd round | 14 August 2019 | 18:30 | Hosei University | H | 4,905 |
Match Day Line-Ups
= Substitute on, = Substitute Off, = Number of goals scored, = Yellow Card and = Red Card.J.League Cup
On 23 January, Gamba's fixtures for the group stage of the 2019 J.League Cup were announced. Gamba were drawn alongside fellow J1 clubs; Jubilo Iwata, Matsumoto Yamaga and Shimuzu S-Pulse and after accumulating 11 points from 6 games they topped their group and reached the playoff round where they were paired with J2 League side V-Varen Nagasaki. A 4-1 victory in the first leg away from home ended the tie as a contest and although Nagasaki snatched a 2-0 win at the Panasonic Stadium it wasn't enough and Gamba progressed to the quarter-finals where they were paired with FC Tokyo. A 1-0 home home preceded a 2-1 reverse in the second leg and meant Gamba headed to the semi-finals on the away goals rule. In the last 4 they were drawn against Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo. Gamba followed up a 5-0 win in the league 5 days previously with a 2-1 home leg victory, however this time they were the ones eliminated by the away goals rule as Musashi Suzuki's thunderbolt in the second leg in Sapporo sent Consadole through to their first ever final against Kawasaki Frontale.| Round | Date | Time* | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
| 1 | 6 March 2019 | 19:00 | Júbilo Iwata | A | 7,100 | ||
| 2 | 13 March 2019 | 19:00 | Matsumoto Yamaga | H | Onose 31', Hwang 34' | 7,430 | |
| 3 | 10 April 2019 | 19:00 | Shimizu S-Pulse | A | Miura 5' | 4,158 | |
| 4 | 24 April 2019 | 19:00 | Júbilo Iwata | H | Hwang 10', Tanaka 12', Meshino 79', Nakamura 90+2' | 7,006 | |
| 5 | 8 May 2019 | 19:00 | Shimizu S-Pulse | H | Miura 45', Hwang 65', Nakamura 67' | 7,051 | |
| 6 | 22 May 2019 | 19:00 | Matsumoto Yamaga | A | 7,680 | ||
| Playoff | 19 June 2019 | 19:00 | V-Varen Nagasaki | A | Tanaka 31', Kurata 54', Ademilson 58', Nakamura 82' | 6,480 | |
| Playoff | 26 June 2019 | 19:00 | V-Varen Nagasaki | H | 5,708 | ||
| Quarter-final | 4 September 2019 | 19:00 | FC Tokyo | H | Kurata 39' | 7,045 | |
| Quarter-final | 8 September 2019 | 18:00 | FC Tokyo | A | Patric 76' | 8,177 | |
| Semi-final | 9 October 2019 | 19:00 | Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo | H | Usami 74', Kurata 90+5' | 8,138 | |
| Semi-final | 13 October 2019 | 13:00 | Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo | A | 15,996 |
- = all times Japan Standard Time.
Match Day Line-Ups
Squad statistics
Statistics accurate as of match played 7 December 2019Goalscorers
Assists
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 11, their opening home and away fixtures for the 2019 J3 League season were announced against Vanraure Hachinohe and Azul Claro Numazu. The schedule for the remaining games was announced on January 23.| Round | Date | Time* | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance | League position |
| 1 | 10 March 2019 | 14:00 | Vanraure Hachinohe | H | Takagi 54', R. Meshino 90' | 1,094 | 6th= | |
| 2 | 17 March 2019 | 13:00 | Azul Claro Numazu | A | 2,567 | 10th | ||
| 3 | 24 March 2019 | 14:00 | Giravanz Kitakyushu | H | 1,270 | 14th | ||
| 4 | 31 March 2019 | 13:00 | YSCC Yokohama | A | R. Meshino 2', 72', Nakamura 13', Fukuda 66', S. Meshino 90' | 1,393 | 8th | |
| 5 | 7 April 2019 | 14:00 | FC Tokyo U-23 | H | R. Meshino 74', 85' | 1,218 | 6th | |
| 6 | 13 April 2019 | 14:00 | Roasso Kumamoto | H | R. Meshino 33' | 958 | 7th | |
| 7 | 26 April 2019 | 19:00 | Thespakusatsu Gunma | A | 1,875 | 8th | ||
| 8 | 5 May 2019 | 14:00 | Blaublitz Akita | H | R. Meshino 31', 50', Takagi 89' | 1,732 | 7th | |
| 9 | 18 May 2019 | 14:00 | Kataller Toyama | A | Takagi 46' | 2,027 | 8th | |
| 10 | 2 June 2019 | 14:00 | Fujieda MYFC | H | Takagi 77', 90+6', Okuda 90+5' | 1,038 | 7th | |
| 11 | 9 June 2019 | 14:00 | Kamatamare Sanuki | H | Takagi 40', Shibamoto 84' | 2,662 | 7th | |
| 12 | 15 June 2019 | 17:00 | SC Sagamihara | A | 1,609 | 9th | ||
| 13 | 23 June 2019 | 17:00 | Gainare Tottori | H | Tsukamoto 8', 59', 90' | 1,050 | 8th | |
| 14 | 30 June 2019 | 17:00 | Nagano Parceiro | A | Own goal 20', Takagi 77' | 3,573 | 5th | |
| 15 | 7 July 2019 | 17:00 | Iwate Grulla Morioka | H | Takagi 87' | 700 | 7th | |
| 16 | 14 July 2019 | 15:00 | Fukushima United | A | Shibamoto 33' | 1,255 | 8th | |
| 17 | 21 July 2019 | 18:00 | Cerezo Osaka U-23 | A | Takagi 23', 47', 84', Matsuda 64' | 4,755 | 8th | |
| 18 | 28 July 2019 | 18:00 | AC Nagano Parceiro | H | Toyama 89' | 1,747 | 8th | |
| 19 | 4 August 2019 | 13:00 | Vanraure Hachinohe | A | Toyama 31', 59' | 2,050 | 7th | |
| 20 | 10 August 2019 | 18:00 | Giravanz Kitakyushu | A | Tsukamoto 9' | 5,138 | 8th | |
| 21 | 1 September 2019 | 19:00 | Fukushima United | H | Toyama 11', 52', 76', J. Nakamura 50', 63', Shirai 86' | 961 | 7th | |
| 22 | 7 September 2019 | 19:00 | Roasso Kumamoto | A | 16,027 | 9th | ||
| 23 | 15 Sept 2019 | 18:00 | YSCC Yokohama | H | 1,022 | 11th | ||
| 24 | 28 Sept 2019 | 13:00 | Fujieda MYFC | A | Shirai 3' | 1,304 | 13th | |
| 25 | 6 October 2019 | 14:00 | Kataller Toyama | H | Shirai 21', Toyama 67' | 893 | 13th | |
| 26 | 13 October 2019 | 13:00 | Gainare Tottori | A | Own goal 29', Concha 83' | 1,850 | 12th | |
| 27 | 20 October 2019 | 13:00 | Kamatamare Sanuki | A | Shibamoto 65' | 1,786 | 13th | |
| 28 | 27 October 2019 | 14:00 | Cerezo Osaka U-23 | H | J. Nakamura 50' | 2,231 | 14th | |
| 29 | 4 November 2019 | 14:00 | SC Sagamihara | H | Shirai 12', Okuno 45+2', Kawasaki 85' | 876 | 11th | |
| 30 | 9 November 2019 | 13:00 | Iwate Grulla Morioka | A | Kawasaki 33', Murakami 58', Tsukamoto 88' | 1,139 | 12th | |
| 31 | 17 Nov 2019 | 13:00 | Blaublitz Akita | A | 1,356 | 12th | ||
| 32 | 24 Nov 2019 | 15:00 | H | 866 | 14th | |||
| 33 | 1 Dec 2019 | 14:00 | Azul Claro Numazu | H | 1,154 | 16th | ||
| 34 | 8 Dec 2019 | 13:00 | FC Tokyo U-23 | A | Toyama 48' | 2,072 | 17th |
- = all times Japan Standard Time.
U-23 Squad statistics
- = all times Japan Standard Time.