Japan's German connections pay off in stunning World Cup win over Germany

Another day at the World Cup in Qatar, another head-scratcher. A day after Saudi Arabia stunned Argentina, Germany fell to Japan on Wednesday, 2-1. 

With a first-half penalty kick scored by Ilkay Gundogan, the Germans looked to clinch an easy win over Japan, a heavy underdog, but Japan came back in the second half with goals scored by players with German ties.

Ritsu Doan and Takuma Asano, who play in the German Bundesliga, came off the bench to score for Japan. It was the first time two substitutes have scored for an Asian team in the World Cup.

Along with Asano and Doan, Japan has seven other players from the Bundesliga who helped guide it to its first World Cup win after trailing by a goal. 

Of Japan's 26 players, 19 play in leagues across the world. Twelve years ago, 19 of their 23 players came from domestic leagues. 

"At the end, they came at us with the full power. In the past maybe we would have lost, but the players have been playing in Germany and Europe [and] they've learned so much from that," said Japan manager Hajime Moriyasu via ESPN.com. 

The Germans controlled the match throughout, but they somehow found a way to lose. Germany had 26 shots and 73.8% possession time.