Japan pulled of a stunning upset victory against Germany as two late goals secured a first-ever win for the Samurai Blue against the world powerhouse.
For Germany, they have now lost the opening game of the group stage for two World Cup tournaments in a row and in 2018 that led to them not making the knockout rounds.
Hansi Flick’s side took the lead through Ilkay Gundogan’s first half penalty kick and had chances to double their lead but Japan hung in there and their substitutes had a huge impact as both Ritsu Doan and Takuma Asano (who both play in Germany) scored to stun Germany.
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This was the first time since 1978 that Germany lost a World Cup game in which they were leading at half time, while Japan have got their Group E campaign off to a flier.
Next up Germany face Spain in what is now a huge clash, while Japan face Costa Rica.
Substitutes star as Samurai Blue pull off stunning comeback
Japanese coach Hajime Moriyasu brought on Mitoma, Doan, Minamino, Asano and Tomiyasu and they had an incredible impact on the game. It was like Japan knew if they could keep the game close, bringing those players off the bench would propel them to have a chance of getting something. Goalkeeper Shuichi Gonda made up for his first half mistake to give away a penalty as he made several big stops in the second half and Germany’s slack finishing gave Japan the chance to get back into this game. They made the most of Germany’s defensive errors and pressed so high early on and then late on and Germany just couldn’t handle the pressure Japan put on them. This is one of the biggest victories in Japan’s World Cup history, if not the biggest. And their coach and rampant midfielders and attackers should take huge credit for never giving up.
Stars of the show
Jamal Musiala: Silky on the ball, set up chances galore and one mazy run saw him beat five players but he blasted over. What a talent the 19-year-old is.
Wataru Endo: Brilliant in midfield and snapped into challenges to knock Gundogan and Kimmich out of their stride.
How to watch Germany vs Japan live, stream link and start time
Kick off: 8am ET, Wednesday Nov. 23
Stadium: Khalifa International Stadium, Al Rayyan
TV channels en Español: Telemundo
Streaming en Español: Peacock (all 64 matches)
🔥 Takuma Asano puts Japan ahead late on against Germany!
— Joe Prince-Wright (@JPW_NBCSports) November 23, 2022
What a turnaround from the Samurai Blue. The subs have been fantastic for #JPN. Germany stunned. pic.twitter.com/avYrfQKcZD
🔥 Brilliant team goal by Japan as 3 substitutes combine to equalize against Germany. #GER 1-1 #JPN #FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/NNIRQu7ze1
— Joe Prince-Wright (@JPW_NBCSports) November 23, 2022
Ilkay Gundogan of @ManCityUS buries the penalty to give Germany the 1-0 lead!#FIFAWorldCup | #GER
— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) November 23, 2022
(via @TelemundoSports)pic.twitter.com/fhFeqeJDIC
It wasn’t about making a political statement – human rights are non-negotiable. That should be taken for granted, but it still isn’t the case. That’s why this message is so important to us.
— Germany (@DFB_Team_EN) November 23, 2022
Denying us the armband is the same as denying us a voice. We stand by our position. pic.twitter.com/tiQKuE4XV7
Key storylines, players to watch closely
Which Germany shows for the tournament, the dynamic but open one that won 5-2 over Italy and drew England 3-3? Or will it be the team that drew four-straight Nations League games by a 1-1 score line? Either way, Germany’s only clean sheets in 2022 came against Israel and Oman.
📋 Your #GER line-up to face #JPN#FIFAWorldCup #GERJPN pic.twitter.com/T0yfK42s6R
— Germany (@DFB_Team_EN) November 23, 2022
Japan’s friendly loss to Canada can be considered a blip but Germany is obviously a step up in class. Can the Samurai Blue get appropriate center forward play from a crew of four who’ve scored 11 goals in a combined 60 caps. Takuma Asano, 28, has seven of those goals and 37 of those caps, but look out for Shuto Machino. The 23-year-old scored thrice in his first four caps, nabbing two against Hong Kong and another versus South Korea? Could he be one of the breakout players of this tournament? He’s a wild card bet along teammates Takefuso Kubo, Karou Mitoma, and Ritsu Doan.
#SAMURAIBLUE
— サッカー日本代表 🇯🇵 (@jfa_samuraiblue) November 23, 2022
LINE-UP📝#権田修一(GK)#板倉滉#長友佑都#遠藤航#久保建英#伊東純也#鎌田大地#田中碧#酒井宏樹#吉田麻也(C)#前田大然
🏆FIFA #ワールドカップ 第1節
🆚ドイツ🇩🇪
⌚️22:00KO
📺#ABEMA / #NHK
🔗https://t.co/lkrlviN8kI#サッカー日本代表#つな超え #新しい景色を2022 pic.twitter.com/Li2hEoVRAr
Germany quick facts
Current FIFA world ranking: 11
World Cup titles: 4 (1954, 1974, 1990, 2014)
World Cup appearances: 20
How they qualified: Qualified automatically from UEFA (1st place)
Coach: Hansi Flick
Key players: Manuel Neuer, Antonio Rudiger, Joshua Kimmich, Leon Goretzka
Japan quick facts
Current FIFA world ranking: 24
World Cup titles: 0
World Cup appearances: 7
How they qualified: Qualified automatically from AFC
Coach: Hajime Moriyasu
Key players: Maya Yoshida, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Takumi Minamino, Daichi Kamada