SUITA, Osaka (Kyodo) -- Youngster Sota Kitano netted a pair of goals to spark Cerezo Osaka to a 5-2 victory over local rivals Gamba Osaka in their J-League season-opening clash on Friday.

The 20-year-old forward opened the scoring for the visitors in the seventh minute of the Osaka Derby at a packed Panasonic Stadium when he fired home a loose ball in the area.

After Neta Lavi's equalizer left the game knotted 1-1 at the break, Kitano restored Cerezo's lead just a minute into the second half with a deflected shot from the right of the box.

Former Japan star Shinji Kagawa made it 3-1 in the 52nd minute, stroking into the bottom left corner off a fortuitous rebound, before Keisuke Kurokawa quickly pulled a goal back for Dani Poyatos' men with a thundering strike from the edge of the area.

Shunta Tanaka headed in from a 63rd-minute free kick and Motohiko Nakajima dribbled past a string of defenders to complete the scoring in injury time and cap off an emphatic win on debut for Cerezo's new Australian manager Arthur Papas.

"You couldn't ask for a better start, scoring five goals in a derby away from home," said Papas, whose team finished 10th in the J-League first-division last year. "It's a great performance by the players."

Gamba are aiming to improve on a fourth-place finish after falling out of the title race in the home stretch of the previous season.

This season will be the last under the current February to December schedule, with the J-League set to fall into line with the European football calendar and kick off in August from 2026.

Two-time defending champions Vissel Kobe will launch their bid for a third straight title at home to Urawa Reds on Saturday, while J1 debutants Fagiano Okayama will host Kyoto Sanga.