Japan forward Takuma Asano (18) celebrates after scoring a goal against Germany in the second half during a group stage match during the 2022 World Cup at Khalifa International Stadium. Yukihito Taguchi-USA TODAY Sports

Japanese call of game-winning goal to upset Germany was awesome

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports
By Darryn Albert | Last updated 11/23/22

Japan managed to take down Goliath on Wednesday, and the local call of the winning goal made the moment even better.

In their Group E opening match at the World Cup in Qatar, Japan toppled heavily-favored Germany by a 2-1 final.

Japan fell behind 1-0 early after conceding an İlkay Gündoğan penalty kick goal in the 33rd minute. But it battled back with an equalizer by substitute Ritso Doan in the 75th minute. Then in the 83rd minute, Japan’s Takuma Asano, who was another late sub, controlled the ball off a free kick and deposited it in the top shelf of the net, beating famed German keeper Manuel Neuer.

JAPAN TAKES THE LEAD
JAPAN TAKES THE LEAD
JAPAN TAKES THE LEAD pic.twitter.com/V5Jzmnc8cJ

— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) November 23, 2022

Here is the awesome local call in Japan of both goals, including the eventual winner by Asano.

The Japanese call for both of Japan's goals vs Germany was

Turn up the sound and give it a listen pic.twitter.com/KCuI6PfJAD

— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) November 23, 2022

You can view a longer call of the Asano goal (with English subtitles) here.

Germany has posted a top-three finish in four of the last five World Cups (including winning it all in 2014). It also hadn’t lost a World Cup match when leading at halftime since 1974 (a streak of 21 straight contests).

But none of that deterred Japan, who pulled off one of the upsets of the tournament so far, along with Saudi Arabia’s improbable win over Argentina on Tuesday. But perhaps we should not be surprised since Japan has a rich history of these kinds of special moments at the World Cup.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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