Netherlands vs Japan: 2026 World Cup Group F Dallas Opener

In the 89th minute, Junya Ito took a corner kick. Substitute Koki Ogawa leaped high and headed the ball, which deflected off Daichi Kamada's body, rolled through Jan van Brugge's fingertips, and into the net. Kamada himself didn't even make a shooting motion, he just happened to be standing there.

Japan's entire team gambled one last time, and they won.

Expected goals (xG) was 0.79 to 0.54, possession was 60% to 40%. The 69,285 spectators at AT&T Stadium in Arlington saw data that all favored Netherlands, but the scoreboard read 2-2.

In the 51st minute, Gravenberch sent in a cross from the right, and Virgil van Dijk headed it into the net. 1-0.

With nearly 70% possession and 3 shots on target in the first half, Japan had zero shots on target. It looked like a match following the script.

In the 57th minute, Takefusa Kubo passed back from the endline, and Kiyo Nakamura fired a left-footed shot from the edge of the box, deflecting off a defender and into the net. 1-1. Japan had previously faced Netherlands three times, with 0 wins, 1 draw, and 2 losses, including a 0-1 loss in the 2010 World Cup group stage. Against an opponent they had never beaten, a deflection leveled the score.

In the 64th minute, Xavi Simons cut in from the left, curled a left-footed shot, and the ball bent into the far corner. 2-1. A classic Robben-style goal, the arc looked like it had been practiced countless times on the training ground.

Just over three weeks earlier, Simons had made his senior debut for Netherlands in a friendly against Algeria. Against Japan, he scored his first international goal. After the match, he revealed that he had promised assistant coach Ruud van Nistelrooy that he would run to the sideline to thank him if he scored. The 24-year-old West Ham winger transferred training ground practices to the World Cup and delivered. His Sofascore rating was 8.2, the highest of the match.

The person who set him up deserves a special mention. Gravenberch had two assists in this match, one in the 51st minute and one in the 64th minute. From van Dijk's header to Simons' curled shot, both came from his foot.

Hajime Moriyasu stood in front of the substitutes' bench, holding a white cardboard sign with "45," "3," and "1" written on it. No tactical board, no walkie-talkie. The photo went viral on social media worldwide. Japanese media later analyzed it: 45 is the time remaining in the half, 3 is injury time, and 1 is the last minute. There was no secret tactical code, just the most basic timer.

The lowest-tech communication method appeared in the highest-tech tournament. The entire team's xG was only 0.54, but every attack targeted the opponent's weakness. Moriyasu used the most primitive method to enforce the strictest discipline: don't fight for possession, just see who can take more punishment.

Koeman said before the match that Depay was fit to start, but Depay sat on the bench and only came on in the 70th minute. In 20 minutes, he had 10 touches, got a yellow card, and had zero shots. The Corinthians forward was almost invisible and was heavily criticized by Dutch media after the match.

A more striking statistic: For a team that has been World Cup runner-up three times, not one of the starting 11 played in the Eredivisie, the first time in World Cup history. Japan's starting lineup, on the other hand, included two Eredivisie players. A fully Europe-based lineup means maximum individual ability, but it also means Koeman had to manage players from over a dozen different tactical systems in the locker room. The integration cost was hidden, but leading twice and being equalized twice meant the hidden costs came to light.

Koeman dropped a cold comment in the post-match press conference: "Netherlands' performance tonight only met the 'minimum standard.' If we want to win the World Cup, this should be the baseline, not the ceiling." He pointed out defensive issues for both goals, adding, "There were also problems with the pressure on the flanks."

Moriyasu had a completely opposite interpretation of the same 2-2 draw: "This point is worth more than just one point; it's a very meaningful draw." Trailing twice and equalizing twice, fighting until the last second, and relying on a deflection to snatch a draw.

Takefusa Kubo didn't wait for the final whistle. After providing that precise assist in the 57th minute, he played for another ten-plus minutes. In the 71st minute, he collided with Denzel Dumfries, taking a heavy blow to his left knee, which bent inward, and he asked to be substituted. After the match, he left the stadium in a wheelchair with an ice pack on his left leg. The player who replaced him was Koki Ogawa, the one who made the header in the 89th minute to equalize.

Japan traded two deficits for one point, possibly at the cost of their best attacking player in this tournament. The next day, Kubo underwent an MRI and was almost certainly ruled out of the next match against Tunisia.

The 69,285 people in Arlington watched for 90 minutes, and what they saw at the end was a wheelchair pushing Japan's number 10 into the player tunnel.