Substitutes Ritsu Doan and Takuma Asano scored goals as Japan came from behind to win 2-1 in yet another upset of their FIFA World Cup tie on Wednesday. Ilkay Gundogan gave four-time champions Germany the lead with a penalty in the first half. Japan, however, stunned the formidable European team by scoring two goals in seven minutes in the second half.
Takumi Minamino’s kick in the 76th minute was blocked by veteran goalkeeper Manuel Neuer but Doan, who plays for Team Freiburg in Germany’s domestic league, converted it into a goal and the Japanese audience in the stadium began to dance. Asano then gave Japan the lead in the 83rd minute with excellent ball control and a superb angle to beat Neuer. Asano’s goal stunned the German players, coach and fans in the stadium. This was the first competitive match between the two teams.
Germany’s players cover their faces during a pre-match photo session as a way of condemning FIFA’s tough stance on plans to wear armbands to protest discrimination in host country Qatar. German Sports Minister Nancy Fesser was present at the Khalifa International Stadium here for the match. She was seated next to FIFA President Gianni Infantino wearing the same One Love armband FIFA has warned teams for.
This is only the third time that the German team has lost its opening match of the World Cup. Earlier in 1982 against Algeria and in 2018 against Mexico, he had lost the opening match of the World Cup. In the opening matches of the World Cup, Germany has won 13 matches while four matches have ended in a draw. Germany dominated the match with 24 attempts on goal, compared to Japan’s 11, but goalkeeper Shuichi Gonda made several excellent saves.
Germany next face Spain on Sunday, while Japan face Costa Rica. Germany, who won the World Cup title in 2014, were knocked out in the first round in 2018 and have once again started their campaign on a disappointing note. The Japanese team is participating in the World Cup for the seventh time and with this victory, the team has strengthened its hopes of making it to the knockout stage for the first time.
