Belgium’s late heroics stun Japan in thriller

Blue Samurai shocked as Chadli seals comeback with stoppage-time winner

throughout the second, even if they almost took an undeserved lead on the stroke of half-time.

WhenThibautCourtoiscasuallyspilta routine ball between his legs it was heading for the back of the net until he reacted and dived to recover, but even then Japan would have been happy it remained goalless when the whistle blew to conclude the opening 45 minutes.

If concerns had persisted that Belgium’s wastefulness would cost them they proved correct only three minutes into the second half when they fell a goal down.

A swift counter- attack led to Haraguchi being sent through one-onone with Courtois, after Vertonghen failed to cut out Gaku Shibasaki’s through-ball, and he calmly finished first time into the far left corner.

Eden Hazard almost instantly equalised when his curling shot hit a post, but Japan instead doubled their lead in the 52nd minute when, from the edge of the area, Inui struck a fine effort into the bottom right corner out of Courtois’ reach.

Martinez then brought on Chadli and Fellaini for Dries Mertens and Yannick Carrasco and their comeback began.

First Vertonghen – surely unintentionally from way out on the left – sent a looping header over former Dundee United goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima and inside the far post in the 69th minute.

Within a further five minutes Fellaini had brought them level. In a period of pressure Hazard created space to cross from the left wing and then watched as the midfielder nodded past Kawashima from in front of goal.

Then, in the fourth minute of stoppage time, Courtois claimed a corner and rolled the ball out.

Kevin De Bruyne led a counter-attack and fed Thomas Meunier and the fullback’s cross was brilliantly dummied by Lukaku to leave Chadli with a simple finish to seal an unlikely victory.

Yuto Nagatomo is distraught as the fulltime whistle blows.