All three Japanese clubs have comfortably confirmed their tickets to the Round of 16 and the question now is will it be a top three finish for them in the League Stage?

Yokohama F. Marinos lead the standings on goal difference, with Vissel Kobe also on 16 points. One adrift are Kawasaki Frontale and all three will will not hold back in their concluding matches.

Debutants Gwangju FC may have booked their spot in the next round but the side from Korea Republic need to quickly rediscover the form that made them such a force before the break.

They looked out of ideas in the 3-1 defeat to Shandong Taishan FC and can't afford a similar performance against knockout stage-chasing Buriram United on Tuesday as another defeat will see them dropping down the standings, which will mean a tougher Round of 16 challenge.

Yokohama have obviously worked on their defence since their 7-3 defeat to Gwangju in their opening match.

The Japanese side, who defeated China PR's Shanghai Shenhua FC 1-0 on Wednesday, have now gone four matches without conceding - their longest run on the continental stage.

The 2-1 scoreline suggests Johor Darul Ta'zim had to work hard for the 2-1 win against Central Coast Mariners but it was the opposite as the Malaysian side totally dominated the tie, registering 25 shots.

The Mariners registered just three with the margin the biggest any team has managed against an Australian team in the last decade on the continental stage.

So Kawahara and Erison came off the bench to score for Kawasaki Frontale in their 4-0 win against FC Pohang Steelers as the Japanese side showed their strength in depth once again.

It was the fourth and fifth goals scored by players coming off the bench for Frontale, the most by any team in the competition this year.