Daizen Maeda gave Japan the lead and Anthony Elanga took it away six minutes later, helping Sweden to a 1-1 draw Thursday night that sent both teams to the knockout round of the World Cup. The match, played at Dallas Stadium in Arlington, Texas, saw Japan finish second in Group F behind the Netherlands, while Sweden advanced as group winners.
Elanga's Equalizer
Elanga’s impressive left-footed strike from just outside the right corner of the box in the 62nd minute was his second goal of this year’s tournament. The Newcastle forward has scored only three goals in 49 games for the club, but zero in 32 Premier League matches. His goal leveled the score after Japan had taken the lead.
Maeda's Opener
Six minutes earlier, Maeda settled a nifty pass from Ritsu Doan with his left foot in the penalty area and easily beat Jacob Widell Zetterstrom with his right foot. It was Japan’s seventh goal of the tournament, the country’s most for an entire World Cup, topping the six the Japanese scored while reaching the round of 16 in Russia eight years ago.
Japan's Knockout History
Japan is advancing out of the group stage for the third consecutive World Cup and fifth time in seven tries since first reaching the round of 16 as co-hosts in 2002. The Japanese team will play Brazil in Houston on Monday. Sweden has advanced to the knockout round the past four times they’ve qualified for the World Cup going back to 1994 — when they reached the semifinals the last time the US hosted soccer’s biggest event.
Late Chances
Elanga had another chance in injury time, with his right-footed attempt forcing goalkeeper Zion Suzuki to make a diving deflection. On the ensuing corner kick, Suzuki deflected Alexander Isak’s header off the crossbar and into the air, eventually ending the scoring chance with a leaping grab in a crowd of players.
Fan Atmosphere
The Blue Samurai’s bag-waving, chanting fans among 70,137 at the sold-out home of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys were persistent as a scoreless game dragged into the second half. Japan seemed content to sit back and play for a draw that would have guaranteed the same spot in the knockout round as a win. Just like that, things changed when Doan put Maeda in perfect position to score.
Elanga wasn’t anywhere near scoring range, but Suzuki appeared screened and reacted late as the shot beat him to the far post. Just three minutes later, Isak was inside the penalty area with a great scoring chance, but Suzuki deflected it wide and over the end line, angrily gesturing toward some of his teammates as Sweden lined up for another corner kick. The Swedes had eight corner kicks to only two for Japan.
