Carlos Sanchez was sent off in the third minute for Colombia as they suffered a 2-1 loss to Japan in their Group H World Cup encounter on Tuesday afternoon.
Japan got off to the perfect start when Sanchez blocked a goal-bound shot with his arm inside three minutes. The referee pointed to the spot and reduced Colombia to ten-men. Shinji Kagawa stepped up and smashed his spot kick down the middle to give Japan the lead.
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José Pékerman’s team responded well and pressed forward in search of an equaliser. It eventually came on 37 minutes when Juan Quintero expertly slid his shot from a free kick under the Japanese wall and into the bottom corner to ensure the scores were level at the break.
Key stats from #COLJPN:
👉 The first #WorldCup victory for a team from @theafcdotcom against a South American nation
👉 Yuyo Osaka’s goal was the eighth headed goal at the 2018 FIFA #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/qLTFkwsiJM
— FIFA World Cup 🏆 (@FIFAWorldCup) June 19, 2018
The Blue Samurai came out strong in the second half while the ten-men of Colombia struggled to get a foot-hold in the game. The Asian side then secured the three points when Yuya Osaka headed home a Keisuke Honda corner kick on 73 minutes.
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4 – This is the first time as many as four South American nations have failed to win their opening game at a World Cup tournament since 1974. Falter. #COL #WorldCup #COLJPN pic.twitter.com/9GEBXGiXYi
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) June 19, 2018
