Germany 1-2 Japan: Bundesliga duo stun Die Mannschaft with late show

Harry Carr
November 23, 2022 15:01 MYT
Japan staged a sensational fightback to deal Germany a shock 2-1 defeat in their World Cup opener as Bundesliga players Ritsu Doan and Takuma Asano came off the bench to stun the four-time winners.

Germany made headlines by covering their mouths in a pre-match protest against FIFA's decision to ban Manuel Neuer from wearing the OneLove armband, and they looked set to make a positive start in Group E when Ilkay Gundogan converted a first-half penalty.

Hansi Flick's side then squandered several golden opportunities to put the game to bed before Freiburg forward Doan made them pay from a rebound 15 minutes from time.

With Germany chasing a winner, there was to be one final twist as Asano raced onto a long ball before firing beyond Neuer, leaving Die Mannschaft under huge pressure ahead of Sunday's meeting with Spain.

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