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2-2 draw for Japan and the Netherlands in World Cup opener for both
Daichi Kamada scored on a header off Koki Ogawa's corner kick in the 88th minute, sending the Samurai Blue fans into a frenzy and giving Japan a 2-2 draw with the Netherlands in their World Cup opener.
This pragmatic draw highlights both teams practical limitations. Japans late header shows their resilience, but the Netherlands 17-game unbeaten streak suggests theyre playing with calculated caution. Both teams are essentially settling for points rather than taking risks - a realistic approach for World Cup survival, though it makes for boring soccer.