J-League champion Nagoya Grampus Eight scored three goals in the final ten minutes to defeat D.C. United 3-1 in the 1997 Sanwa Bank Cup at Tokyo National Stadium.

The MLS and U.S. Open Cup champs controlled the early part of the game, and scored in the 35th minute on an own goal by Takyuki Nishigaya. United midfielder Marco Etcheverry made a pass to David Vaudreuil, whose cross was inadvertently knocked into the goal by the Japanese defender.

D.C. had a great scoring opportunity in the 54th minute, when Steve Rammel fed a perfect pass to John Maessner, who was one-on-one with Grampus Eight’s keeper, Ito. However, Maessner’s shot from six yards went just wide.

Grampus Eight had the better of play in the second half, and tied the score in the 80th minute through Alexandre (the son of former Cosmos great Carlos Alberto). Five minutes later, Tetsuya Okayama put the J-League squad ahead for good, and Yugoslavian international Dragan Stojkovic added the third three minutes from time.

“I thought we played extremely poor in the second half, but give Grampus Eight a lot of credit.” said D.C. United head coach Bruce Arena. “They wanted the game more. Fitness was a factor. We looked like a team that was put together last week, which we were.”

Arena added that he was pleased with United’s play during the game’s first 30 minutes. “In spite of the fact that we were outplayed in the second half, we actually had a chance to get the second goal which could have ended the game,” he said. “But in the end the better team won.”

D.C. United was without Jeff Agoos, John Harkes, Eddie Pope, and Tony Sanneh, all of whom were with the U.S. national team for its World Cup qualifier against Jamaica.

“We like to believe we are a better team than just our four national team players,” said Arena. “But that should not take away from the victory for Grampus Eight today. We played the game with eleven players, and we respect the outcome and move on.”

March 2 in Tokyo

Nagoya Grampus Eight (J-League) 3 D.C. United (MLS) 1. Goals: Alexandre 80, Okayama 85, Stojkovic 87; own goal 35.

Grampus Eight — Y. Ito, Iijima, Alexandre, Oiwa, Nishigaya, Mochizuki (Kina, 89), Asano, Ricardinho, Hirano (Fukuda, 77), K. Ito (Okayama, 46), Stojkovic.

D.C. United — Causey, Imler, Llamosa, Vaudreuil, Cruz, Maessner, Williams, Etcheverry, Diaz Arce, Moreno, Rammel (Kelderman, 69).

Yellow cards: Grampus Eight — Okayama 57; D.C. United — Cruz, 35.

Referee: Zoran Petrovic.

Att.: 26,842.