The dust has barely settled on Saudi Arabia stunning win over Argentina, but Wednesday delivered yet another major World Cup upset as Japan came from a goal behind to beat Germany 2-1 in Doha.
Goals from Ritsu Doan and Takuma Asano saw Samurai Blue claim one of their greatest ever World Cup triumphs as they made Germany pay for all their squandered chances. In 25 attempts on goal, Germany only registered eight on target and their goal came from the penalty spot.
READ MORE:
A lot will be said about how Hansi Flick’s side let the game go but Japan’s second-half performance was brilliant. They knew exactly what went wrong for them in the opening 45 and adapted to give Germany a lot more to think about. Their tenacity and energy across the pitch was clear to see and while the goalscorers Doan and Asano will take all the plaudits, the collective performance was exceptional and they fully merited their victory.
Japan had given Germany an early fright when Daizen Maeda had the ball in the back of the net after they sprung a quick counter-attack, but luckily for Die Mannschaft the flag was raised immediately.
Antonio Rudiger came close to breaking the deadlock with a headed effort from a corner which flew just wide of the near post. Ilkay Gundogan was denied from just outside the box by Shuici Gonda as Germany started to assert themselves on the match.
The Manchester City midfielder then opened the scoring from the penalty spot after Gonda brought down David Raum. Germany thought they doubled their advantage just before the break as Kai Havertz poked home from close-range, only to be chalked off for offside.
Serge Gnabry clipped the crossbar with an early effort in the second half and Gundogan almost scored a second as he hit the right post with a drilled effort. While Germany applied much of the pressure, Japan still looked dangerous on the break and Manuel Neuer rolled back the years to deny Junya Ito’s deflected effort. A triple substitution from Hajime Moriyasu provided a massive boost for Japan and they soon had their equaliser. Doan was perfectly placed to fire in from inside the area after Neuer palmed the ball into his path.
Despite his error for the penalty, Gonda was dependable in net for Japan as he made eight saves in the match. Japan were on the ascendency after they got the equaliser and Germany left themselves exposed as they pushed to find a way back in front. Die Mannschaft were undone by a high line as Asano took an over-the-top ball down with a delightful touch and burst into the box before firing into the roof of the net from a tight angle - a truly magnificent goal. Germany tried to regroup and find a leveller of their own but Japan put their bodies on the line to see out their historic victory.
