OSAKA (Interstat) — Cerezo Osaka and Chiba played to a 2-2 draw at Yodoko Sakura Stadium on Sunday, with the home side erasing a two-goal deficit in second-half stoppage time. Chiba appeared set for a road win after scoring once in each half and holding a 2-0 lead into the closing minutes, but Cerezo Osaka struck twice deep into stoppage time to split the points in a match that swung dramatically at the end.

The result left both teams with identical competition records. Chiba’s season record in this competition is now 0 wins, 1 loss and 3 draws, and Cerezo Osaka’s season record in this competition is also 0 wins, 1 loss and 3 draws. Across all competitions, Chiba is now 0 wins, 3 losses and 3 draws. Cerezo Osaka is 3 wins, 1 loss and 3 draws across all competitions. Both teams remained without a win in the competition, while Cerezo Osaka’s all-competitions record remained above .500.

Chiba entered the match after a 3-2 loss at Urawa Reds, a 0-0 draw at home against Yokohama F. Marinos, a 1-1 draw at home against V-Varen Nagasaki, a 1-0 loss at Okayama and a 4-2 loss at Iwata. Cerezo Osaka arrived after a 1-1 draw at Nagoya Grampus, a 4-2 home loss to Kawasaki Frontale, a 3-2 win at Gainare Tottori, a 0-0 home draw with Yokohama F. Marinos, a 2-0 home win over Kagoshima Utd and a 2-1 win at Fujieda MYFC. Those results framed a matchup between a Chiba side still searching for its first win and a Cerezo Osaka side with more victories across all competitions.

Erison was central to Chiba’s attack, finishing with one goal and one assist in 74 minutes. Makoto Himeno scored in 67 minutes. Rikito Inoue and Ayumu Ohata each supplied an assist for Cerezo Osaka. Yumeki Yokoyama, who played 23 minutes, scored one goal; Solomon Sakuragawa played 44 minutes, scored once and received a yellow card; and Hiroto Goya played 61 minutes, assisted on a goal and was booked. Chiba’s production came through Erison and Himeno before Cerezo Osaka’s late goals changed the result.

Chiba opened the scoring in the 23rd minute through Himeno. After the opener, the match grew physical. Fernandes L. was booked for Cerezo Osaka in the 26th minute, and T. Tsukui received a yellow card for Chiba in the 40th. Chiba carried a 1-0 lead into halftime, then added to it two minutes after the restart when Erison scored in the 47th minute. Chiba’s lead held through the middle of the second half, with Goya booked in the 52nd minute for Chiba and Sakuragawa booked in the 65th minute for Cerezo Osaka.

Cerezo Osaka’s comeback began in the sixth minute of stoppage time when Sakuragawa scored, and Yokoyama equalized in the eighth minute of stoppage time. The late burst turned a 2-0 Chiba lead into a 2-2 finish and denied Chiba a first win in the competition. Y. Kobayashi was booked for Chiba in the 78th minute, and D. Cools was booked for Cerezo Osaka in the first minute of stoppage time. The final minutes produced two goals and two cards as the match moved from Chiba control to a level finish.

Cerezo Osaka made substitutions involving T. Nakamura in the 46th minute, Y. Komi in the 67th, Fernandes L. in the 74th and S. Tanaka in the 88th. Chiba made substitutions involving T. Yasui in the 59th, Goya in the 61st, Eduardo in the 62nd, Himeno in the 67th, K. Toriumi in the 68th and Erison in the 74th. The changes came as both sides adjusted during a second half that remained 2-0 until the closing stoppage-time sequence.

Interstat’s game simulator projected a 2-1 Cerezo Osaka win. Interstat’s ELO system gave Cerezo Osaka a 93.5 percent probability to win. Cerezo Osaka was installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -0.5. The total score of 4 went under the over/under line of 2.5.