Gabriel Martinelli scored a 95th-minute winner as Brazil came from behind to beat Japan 2-1 and book their place in the last 16 of the World Cup.
After an initially promising start to a testing round of 32 tie, Brazil were below par for much of the first half and fell behind to a Japan side seeking their first ever knockout win when Kaishu Sano fired the Samurai Blue ahead just before the half-hour mark.
But Brazil were much improved after the restart and Casemiro, partially at fault for the opening goal, equalised 11 minutes into the second half.
Despite concerted pressure on the Japan goal, it appeared as if Brazil would have to settle for extra time, but a precise pass from Bruno Guimaraes found Martinelli in space, and the Arsenal forward slotted in off the post to send Carlo Ancelotti’s men through.
While the tearful Japan players were left to reckon with the disappointment of missing out on a historic victory, Brazil can now look forward to a tie with Ivory Coast or Norway in New Jersey.
Martinelli completes comeback as Brazil survive huge scare
Brazil dictated the opening stages without significantly testing Japan goalkeeper Zion Suzuki, who turned round the post from Matheus Cunha following Guimaraes’ throughball, though the effort was probably going wide.
Japan grew into the game and, shortly after the first-half hydration break, Sano stunned the Houston crowd.
He pounced on a sloppy pass from Danilo and surged past Casemiro before unleashing a precise low effort that beat Alisson and flew into the bottom-left corner.
Several Brazil figures cut frustrated figures as they struggled to find a response, but Ancelotti’s men emerged for the second half with renewed energy, with the introduction of Endrick for the seemingly injured Lucas Paqueta injecting life into their play.
Guimaraes saw a header kept out by Suzuki before Casemiro was somehow denied from point-blank range as Takehiro Tomiyasu and Suzuki combined to keep the ball from crossing the line.
But Suzuki could do nothing as Casemiro, who looked well off the pace in the first half, met Gabriel’s far-post cross with a trademark header to restore parity.
Suzuki then produced heroics to prevent Vinicius from completing turnaround in scintillating fashion, the Parma shot-stopper got the slightest of touches on the Real Madrid man’s effort at the end of a brilliant individual run, turning the ball onto the post.
Brazil appeared to be running out of ideas as the game edged towards extra time, but the quality of Guimaraes’ pass was matched by Martinelli’s finish, which had just enough on it to find the net despite the unfortunate Suzuki getting a hand on the shot, allowing the Selecao to breathe a huge sigh of relief.
