In an encounter where both the teams couldn't be separated after 120 minutes of relentless football, it was last year's runners-up Croatia who emerged as 1-3 winners through penalties at the Al Janoub Stadium in Qatar, on Monday.
3 crucial penalty kick saves from Croatia's goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic made sure that the Kockasti go through to the quarter-finals of the FIFA World Cup 2022. He becomes only the 3rd goalkeeper to save three penalties in a single World Cup shootout.
This was the first game to go beyond the normal 90 minutes after Japan's 43rd-minute opening goal through Daizen Maeda was canceled out in the second half by an incredible header by Ivan Perisic in the 55th minute.
Despite Japan looking more lively in the game, the Samurai Blues could not go past the Croatian defence for the second time and had to leave it all up to the football gods for the result in the end.
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