Daichi Kamada's late goal gives Japan a 2-2 draw with the Netherlands in World Cup opener for both

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ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Daichi Kamada and his Japanese teammates were minutes away from a World Cup -opening loss that wouldn't have been unexpected considering the opponent.

His tying goal will be remembered for a long time in his homeland, especially if the country with some soccer momentum reaches the round of 16 again.

Kamada scored when a header by teammate Koki Ogawa deflected off his head into the Dutch goal in the 88th minute, sending the Samurai Blue fans into a frenzy and giving Japan a 2-2 draw with the higher-ranked Netherlands on Sunday.

While the Dutch extended their unbeaten streak to 17 games in group play, the orange-clad Oranje supporters were stunned by the late goal that left them with 21 wins, two losses and 11 draws in group play at the World Cup.

“Our players managed to be tenacious but at the same time be patient and just keep calm and finding and seizing an opportunity,” Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu said through an interpreter. His team reached the round of 16 for the fourth time in 2022 in Qatar.

Virgil Van Dijk and Crysencio Summerville scored off each post for the Netherlands early in the second half, while Keito Nakamura had a goal between those as part of a three-goal flurry in just 14 minutes.

A mostly uneventful first half changed quickly after the break for a crowd evenly split at AT&T Stadium, the home of the Dallas Cowboys with the retractable roof that offered relief from the muggy Texas heat, and the giant video board that fans had a hard time keeping their eyes off.

Summerville gave the eighth-ranked Dutch the lead in the 64th minute, and Japan was running out of hope until a Ogawa's perfectly timed header off a corner kick. The ball glanced off Kamada's head and past goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen, who got his hands on it with a sprawling dive but couldn't keep it from going in.

Van Dijk sent a header toward the far post on the right in the 50th minute, bending forward from inside the penalty area as he stared at the ball before it caromed in for the Dutch captain’s 13th international goal.

Nakamura answered seven minutes later for 18th-ranked Japan, turning and rifling a shot past Verbruggen from the left side of the arc after taking a pass from Takefusa Kubo.

Another seven minutes later, Summerville took a pass from Ryan Gravenberch and sent a left-footed shot to the far left post past Zion Suzuki, where it caromed in again.

“It’s disappointing now because obviously conceding the lead is never good,” said Van Dijk, the second-oldest Dutch goal scorer in a World Cup at 34 years, 341 days, behind Giovanni van Bronckhorst at 35 and 151 against Uruguay in 2010. “It’s extra disappointing that we conceded from a set piece so late on.”

The Dutch’s most recent loss before the elimination round came the last time the World Cup was in the United States in 1994, when a group play defeat was followed by a quarterfinal loss to Brazil at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas.

The pressure is always on the Netherlands to reach the elimination round, in part because it's the only country to reach the final three times without winning the World Cup.

A draw to open Group F, which includes Sweden and Tunisia, won't ease that pressure on coach Ronald Koeman, who faced several pointed questions about strategy and shot back with cryptic replies.

The Dutch beat Japan in their only other World Cup meeting in 2010.

“I’m disappointed that we didn’t win, but that’s because we were ahead twice,” Koeman said through an interpreter. “Many people underestimated Japan, but for the 100,000th time, if you underestimate them, that’s your problem. You think Japan’s strength was overexaggerated before the match? Let’s wait until the end of the tournament to see who’s right.”

The Netherlands plays Sweden on Saturday in Houston, while Japan goes to Monterrey, Mexico, to face Tunisia on Saturday.

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This story has been corrected. A previous version reported incorrectly that Kamada scored on a header off Ogawa's corner kick.

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AP World Cup: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-world-cup