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Brazil lost to Japan for the first time in their history on Tuesday after throwing away a 2-0 lead in Tokyo to suffer a 3-2 defeat.
Two excellent finishes from Paulo Henrique and Gabriel Martinelli put Carlo Ancelotti's team two goals up at the interval, as the Selecao continued their fine form from last week's 5-0 win over South Korea despite making eight changes to the lineup.
Paulo Henrique's outside-of-the-boot finish from a fine Bruno Guimaraes throughball had Brazil in party mood before Martinelli was given time and space to fire past Zion Suzuki from a clever Lucas Paqueta ball over the top.
Ayase Ueda had a glorious chance to open the scoring shortly before Japan fell behind, but they looked comfortably second best until the interval. Then, the game turned on its head.
First, Fabricio Bruno endured a horrible moment in his own box, losing his balance and presenting a loose ball to Takumi Minamino, who blasted home with aplomb. Then, 10 minutes later, Junya Ito's cross picked out the unmarked Keito Nakamura, whose volley towards the far corner was sliced into the roof of the net by the covering Bruno.
Feyenoord striker Ayase Ueda then powered a header from a corner into the net via the chest of goalkeeper Hugo Souza, who couldn't react quickly enough to keep the ball from crossing the line. It capped a 19-minute spell that will be remembered forever by home fans inside Ajinomoto Stadium, and served as a warning to Ancelotti that there is plenty of work to do between now and next year's World Cup finals.
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Japan vs. Brazil score
| Fulltime | Goal scorers | |
| Japan | 3 | Minamino 52', Nakamura 62', Ueda 71' |
| Brazil | 2 | Paulo Henrique 22', Martinelli 32' |
Starting lineups:
Japan (3-4-2-1, right to left): 1. Zion Suzuki (GK) — 3. Shogo Taniguchi, 4. Tsuyoshi Watanabe, 25. Junnosuke Suzuki — 20. Takefusa Kubo (14. Junya Ito), 21. Kaishu Sano, 15. Daichi Kamada (19. Koki Ogawa), 13. Keito Nakamura (7. Yuki Soma) — 10. Ritsu Doan (26. Henry Heroki Mochizuki), 8. Takumi Minamino (17. Ao Tanaka) — 18. Ayase Ueda (9. Shuto Machino)
Brazil (4-2-3-1, right to left): 1. Hugo Souza (GK) — 13. Paulo Henrique, 14. Fabricio Bruno 15. Lucas Beraldo, 24. Carlos Augusto (16. Caio Henrique) — 8. Bruno Guimaraes (17. Joelinton), 5. Casemiro — 19. Luiz Henrique (20. Estevao), 11. Lucas Paqueta (9. Richarlison), 7. Vinicius Junior (21. Matheus Cunha) — 22. Gabriel Martinelli (10. Rodrygo)
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Japan vs. Brazil stats
| Japan | Stat | Brazil |
| 15 | Shots | 8 |
| 6 | Shots on target | 4 |
| 33% | Possession | 67% |
| 349 | Passes | 739 |
| 4 | Corners | 2 |
| 10 | Fouls | 7 |
| 1 | Yellow cards | 1 |
| 3 | Offsides | 3 |
Japan vs. Brazil highlights, key events
*Official highlights will be added once they become available.
71 mins: GOAL! JAPAN LEAD! A deflected header clips the top of the bar and goes out for a corner. Brazil, though, haven't learned their lessons: the delivery comes in, and Ueda is almost unchallenged as he rises six yards out and heads towards goal. The ball strikes goalkeeper Hugo Souza in the chest before nestling in the corner of the net.
62 mins: GOAL! JAPAN ARE LEVEL! Carlos Augusto doesn't do enough to prevent substitute Junya Ito crossing from the right, and the ball perfectly picks out the unmarked Keito Nakamura at the far post. His volley looks goalbound, but it's turned high into the net anyway by Bruno, who tried and failed to clear.
52 mins: GOAL! Japan are back in this! It's a horrible, horrible moment for Fabricio Bruno, who loses his balance with the ball at his feet inside the Brazilian box and presents a gift to Takumi Minamino, who blasts a powerful finish past Hugo Souza.
32 mins: GOAL! Brazil have their second! Lucas Paqueta plays a delightful scooped pass over the defence to Gabriel Martinelli, who timed his run well. The Arsenal forward lets the ball bounce before firing low past Suzuki with his left foot. A lovely move from the Selecao, but appallingly static defending from the hosts. Hajime Moriyasu looks particularly stern on the touchline.
22 mins: GOAL! Brazil are in front! Moments after Japan came within inches of scoring, Bruno Guimaraes threads a pass into the path of Paulo Henrique, who bends a finish with the outside of his right foot beyond the reach of Zion Suzuki.
Japan vs. Brazil lineups, team news
Hajime Moriyasu sticks with his 3-4-2-1 formation against Brazil and is trusting the core of players who have guided the team through an unbeaten home run of fourteen matches.
Goalkeeper Zion Suzuki continues between the posts, while Shogo Taniguchi comes in to join Tsuyoshi Watanabe and Junnosuke Suzuki in the back three.
Takefusa Kubo lines up on the right of midfield, with Keito Nakamura on the left. Kaishu Sano and Daichi Kamada are expected to control the central areas with quick distribution and pressing energy.
Takumi Minamino and Ritsu Doan will act as creative link players supporting striker Ayase Ueda.
Liverpool's Wataru Endo, Celtic's Daizen Maeda, and Ajax defender Ko Itakura were initially in the squad, but all three withdrew due to injury. Daiki Hashioka was added as a replacement.
Japan starting lineup (3-4-2-1, right to left): Suzuki (GK) — Taniguchi, Watanabe, J. Suzuki — Kubo, Kamada, Sano, Nakamura — Doan, Minamino — Ueda
Japan subs: Hashioka, Nagatamo, Fujita, Soma, Machino, Osako, Ito, Ando, Tanaka, Ogawa, Seko, Hayakawa, Saito, Mochizuki
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Globo had predicted the lineup could be the same as the South Korea game except for the goalkeeper, with Hugo Souza of Corinthians given a chance as Ancelotti reportedly wants a penalty specialist in his roster for next summer.
While that change in goal was correct, Ancelotti also made seven alterations to his outfield starting lineup. A complete overhaul of the back four sees Paulo Henrique, Fabricio Bruno, Lucas Beraldo and Carlos Augusto come in, with the screen of Casemiro and Bruno Guimaraes retained.
In attack, Vinicius Junior keeps his place, but Luiz Henrique and Lucas Paqueta come in for Estevao and Rodrygo. There's also a start at centre-forward for Gabriel Martinelli, who replaces Matheus Cunha.
Brazil starting lineup (4-2-3-1, right to left): Hugo Souza (GK) — Paulo Henrique, Bruno, Beraldo, Carlos Augusto — Guimaraes, Casemiro — Luiz Henrique, Paqueta, Vinicius — Martinelli
Brazil subs: John Victor, Ederson, Vanderson, Caio Henrique, Vitinho, Gabriel, Militao, Douglas Santos, Rodrygo, Estevao, Cunha, Andre, Joao Gomes, Joelinton, Richarlison, Igor Thiago
Japan vs. Brazil stats, head to head
In 13 previous meetings stretching back to 1989, Brazil had never lost to Japan. That made today's result all the more special for the Samurai Blue.
| Japan wins | Draws | Brazil wins |
| 1 | 2 | 11 |
| Biggest win: 3-2 (October 2025) | Biggest win: 5-1 (August 1995) |
Japan vs. Brazil live stream, TV channel
This match is not available to watch on TV, but bet365 are providing a live stream.