Kashima, in my opinion, has a great possibility of picking up at least one point in today's encounter.

Kashima has a strong mental advantage going into this game because they have not lost in five of their last six encounters against Nagoya.

I see a lot better chance for Kashima to start the new season properly. They have a new coach, Ranko Popovic. According to several experts, he trained players exceptionally well. That was evident at the Ibaraki Soccer Festival (a pre-season friendly exhibition match). Kashima defeated Mito 1:0. That was a great performance from both ends of the pitch: quick, imaginative, and dangerous in attack, and rock-solid in defence. The team had a terrific rhythm, which didn't surprise me given how few changes there were in the lineup.

On the other side, I see a lot of question marks in Nagoya. They modified the defensive formation so much. Four key defenders have departed the club: Morishita, Nakatani, Fujii, and Maruyama. In such circumstances, it is difficult to expect a high-quality defensive effort in the opening encounter. One goal conceded might be quite costly. In the previous season, Kashim preserved 15 clean sheets in 34 league matches. That was the largest number in the entire league.

A more established and steady defensive structure with greater rhythm should make a significant impact in today's game.

在我看来，鹿岛队很有可能在今天的比赛中至少拿到一分。

鹿岛队在这场比赛中有很强的心理优势，因为他们在最近6次与名古屋的比赛中没有输过5次。

我认为鹿岛有更好的机会开始新赛季。他们有了新教练，兰科·波波维奇。据几位专家说，他把球员训练得特别好。这在茨城市足球节(季前赛友谊赛)上表现得很明显。鹿岛以1:0击败水户。这在球场两端都是一场伟大的表演:快速，富有想象力，进攻危险，防守坚如磐石。球队的节奏非常好，考虑到阵容的变化很少，这并不让我感到惊讶。

另一方面，我在名古屋看到了很多问号。他们大大改变了防守阵型。四名关键后卫离开了俱乐部:森下、中谷、藤井和丸山。在这样的情况下，很难期望在首场比赛中打出高质量的防守。丢一个球可能会付出相当大的代价。在上个赛季，卡西姆在34场联赛中保持了15场零封对手。这是整个联盟中最大的数字。

在今天的比赛中，一个更成熟、更稳定、节奏更强的防守结构应该会产生重大影响。