Jose Kante scored for the third straight match as Urawa Reds claimed a 1-0 win away to Shonan Bellmare in Friday's only J-League first-division match.
Kante received a pass from Ken Iwao and broke a scoreless deadlock with a 62nd-minute strike that hit the inside of the left post and then the back of the net at Lemon Gas Stadium in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture.
"I saw it (the goal) like a slow motion," said the 32-year-old forward, who has played for Guinea's national team. "I controlled the ball and had nobody on my back and I had time. When I saw I could turn, I decided to try to shoot. The ball went exactly to the corner."
With the rest of the J1 slated to play Saturday, fourth-place Urawa moved to 44 points from 25 games to narrow the gap against third-place Nagoya Grampus to one point.
"We really need points. We want to keep up, so I'm really happy to contribute to the team with goals," Kante said.
Bellmare remained at the bottom of the 18-team table with 17 points.
