Gamba Osaka successfully defended the Emperor’s Cup trophy after Patric fired them to a 2-1 victory over Urawa Reds with his brace in Friday’s final.

Kenta Hasegawa’s men have now won consecutive cup titles after their latest success and now end the season with silverware.

Eager to make up for their defeats in both the Yamazaki Nabisco Cup and J.League Championship finals, Gamba took the lead right after the half hour mark through Patric.

A lovely lofted pass from midfield found the striker level with the last man, with the Brazilian then displaying excellent skill and pace to ride Ryota Moriwaki’s lunge before rifling the ball past Shusaku Nishikawa.

The Reds’ ended the first half in the ascendancy, however, and it was not long before they equalised when Tadanari Lee headed Tsukasa Umesaki’s cross onto the post before Shinzo Koroki pounced on the rebound and volleyed the ball high into Gamba’s net.

The goal galvanised Mihailo Petrovic’s troops, who came out after the break intent on sealing the prize. 

But poor defending once again was their undoing as Yasuhito Endo’s corner found Patric lurking inside the area, with the big striker peeling away from Tomoaki Makino to slot home the winner unmarked.

The match ended with Gamba lifting their fifth Emperor’s Cup trophy while it was yet more misery for the Reds, who finish a season that initially promised much empty-handed save for their league first stage success.