Japan beats Brazil 3-2 in friendly with late Sakamoto goal

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 15 Nov, 08:01 · Archive

Japan defeated Brazil 3-2 in a friendly match in Singapore, with substitute Tatsuhiro Sakamoto scoring the winner in stoppage time.

Japan defeated Brazil 3-2 in a friendly in Singapore on Saturday, with substitute Tatsuhiro Sakamoto scoring a dramatic late winner. The match saw extraordinary scenes as Brazil manager Carlo Ancelotti and forward Raphinha were sent off for protesting against refereeing decisions. The match was the first meeting between the teams since Brazil's 2-1 win in the World Cup round of 32 in June.

Japan started impressively, with Takefusa Kubo and Keito Nakamura scoring to put the Samurai Blue 2-0 up in the opening 19 minutes. Brazil fought back, with Vinicius Jr scoring twice to level the match. Sakamoto then netted the winner in stoppage time after latching on to Kodai Sano's deflected effort, with 38,688 spectators watching at the National Stadium.

Brazil appealed for a foul in the build-up to Sakamoto's goal, but VAR upheld the goal. Ancelotti and Raphinha were subsequently shown red cards for their protests. Ancelotti said at a news conference that the result was 'influenced by the referee's performance', but acknowledged that his team had played well for much of the match, with several debutants showing promise.

How it is being reported

• Japan stun Brazil 3-2 in stoppage time as Ancelotti, Raphinha sent offSubstitute Tatsuhiro Sakamoto’s late goal helps Japan avenge their defeat by Brazil in the World Cup round of 32.Al Jazeera · 15 Nov, 07:30
• Tatsuhiro Sakamoto strikes late as Japan stuns Brazil in friendlyThe match was the first meeting between the teams since Brazil's 2-1 win in the round of 32 at the World Cup in JuneThe Japan Times · 14 Nov, 23:08

In this story: Japan · Brazil · Tatsuhiro Sakamoto · Takefusa Kubo · Keito Nakamura · Vinicius Jr · Carlo Ancelotti · Raphinha

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem · Corrections log