CNN
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Japan reached at world Cup Knockout stage for the fourth time on Thursday – in what appeared to be a matter of millimeters.
After trailing 1–0 at halftime, Japan made a remarkable comeback against Spain by scoring two consecutive goals in the second half, surprising the 2010 world champions to secure an unexpected place in the last 16 at the expense of Germany.
But it was Japan’s second goal that was the subject of heated debate after the game, particularly about whether the ball had crossed the goal line before Kaoru Mitoma’s cutback pass to Ao Tanaka.
Tanaka’s bundled goal was initially ruled out when the linesman flagged that the ball was out of play.
However, after a video assistant referee (VAR) review, the goal was allowed to stand and Japan secured a historic victory.
The result saw Samurai Blue top Group E – a result no one would have thought possible before the World Cup – ahead of Spain and Germany, who were knocked out of the tournament despite a 4–2 win against Costa Rica. Went.
Some wondered why Tanaka’s goal was allowed to stand.
“80 million Germans are going crazy right now, waiting for a photo that shows that ball did not go out of play,” said former Scotland international Graeme Souness, speaking as a pundit. ITV,
Also speaking on ITV, former England international Annie Aluko said her immediate reaction was that the ball was out of play.
But the International Football Association Board (IFAB), which outlines the laws of the game, They say The ball is only out of pay when “it has passed completely over the goal line or over the touchline on the ground or in the air.”
In this case, it appears that the curvature of the ball was considered to hang over the goal line. CNN has reached out to FIFA for clarity on the decision.
“That Japan goal almost defied physics. Incredible,” American football journalist Grant Wahl wrote on Twitter, while other social media users explained how a bird’s eye view of a ball in relation to the goal line provides a different perspective to other camera angles.
The goal means Japan will play Croatia on Monday in the knockout stages, while Spain play Morocco on Tuesday.
Álvaro Morata gives Spain the lead after heading César Azpilicueta’s cross at the Khalifa International Stadium. Japan, which had also surprised Germany earlier in the tournament, responded early in the second half with two goals in the space of three minutes.
Substitute Ritsu Donn leveled the game before Ao Tanaka scored a controversial winner soon after.
It was a day of notable upsets in Qatar as FIFA’s second-ranked Belgium crashed out of the tournament following a 0-0 draw with Croatia and Morocco’s 2-1 win against Canada.