DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Simply wait, thought Ritsu Doan. Simply wait.The Japan midfielder, who performs for German group Freiburg, needed to grit his tooth when he heard folks saying his group can be a straightforward opponent for Germany on the World Cup.“I listened to their talks with a faux smile on my face and in my coronary heart,” the 24-year-old Doan mentioned Thursday after sparking a exceptional comeback and arguably the largest end in Japan’s World Cup historical past the evening earlier than.After coming into within the 71st minute, Doan solely wanted 4 minutes to cancel Ilkay Gündogan’s first-half penalty with the equalizer, then he watched as fellow substitute Takuma Asano bagged the winner within the 83rd for Japan’s 2-1 win.“I believed it was the best factor I may do as a person to close them up by successful, so I’m glad I gained and so may try this,” Doan mentioned.The shock win over the four-time champion set off wild celebrations from the sizeable contingent of Japanese followers on the Khalifa Worldwide Stadium and prompted outpourings of pleasure from followers watching the targets on massive screens at dwelling.“I feel that the entire of Japan was very excited,” Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida mentioned. “I used to be capable of watch the sport on TV and it was an excellent victory.”Kishida paid tribute to the “group energy, particular person energy and the route of the coach.”Japan ahead Daizen Maeda mentioned it was “the happiest second I’ve ever had in my soccer profession.”Whereas Japan celebrated what coach Hajime Moriyasu referred to as a “a historic second, a historic victory” instantly after the sport, the previous midfielder struck a extra cautious observe the following day as he tried to refocus the aspect for the following match in opposition to Costa Rica on Sunday.“I hold saying that we shouldn’t be too glad or unhappy in regards to the outcomes,” the coach mentioned Thursday. “The end result in opposition to Germany is already previously, so we’ll do our greatest to arrange ourselves to win the following match. We’ll do what we’ve all the time been doing and be prepared for the following recreation.”Costa Rica’s marketing campaign on the World Cup began with a 7-0 thrashing from Spain.Japan can theoretically even ebook its place within the second spherical with a win on Sunday, relying on a favor from Spain in opposition to Germany.Japan is taking part in in its seventh straight World Cup and Moriyasu beforehand mentioned the group’s intention is to achieve the quarterfinals for the primary time.Even Doan has toned down his pleasure as he appears ahead to the challenges forward.“We haven’t modified historical past but, however I feel it was a historic match, so I celebrated with all my teammates yesterday,” Doan mentioned. “However from at this time, I actually modified my thoughts and am getting ready for the Costa Rica recreation, so I might be cautious to not be big-headed.”Japan defender Yuto Nagatomo obtained a flood of calls and emails from family and friends after the sport.“So I actually really feel that this was a historic victory,” Nagatomo mentioned. “I might be glad if this may assist brighten up soccer once more and enhance the recognition of the game. Now we have solely gained one recreation, so I wish to deal with the following recreation.”No matter occurs for the remainder of the match, Nagatomo mentioned the win over Germany was “among the best experiences in my soccer profession.”___AP World Cup protection: https://Fifanews.com/hub/world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
Japan’s Doan savors answering Germany jibes at World Cup
