England’s all-time top goal scorer and former Manchester Unitedplayer Wayne Rooney criticised Germany’s second-half performance as complacent, which Japan exploited to defeat Germany on Wednesday.
In the group E encounter of the FIFA World Cup on Wednesday at the Khalifa International Stadium, Japan stunned the four-time winners with a thrilling comeback victory, defeating them 2-1.
Germany had the advantage at the end of the first half, but Japan upped their game in the late half, scoring goals through Ritsu Doan in the 75th minute and Takuma Asano in the 83rd minute.
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In the 57th minute, Takuma Asano was introduced as a substitute and showed his worth in the game as Japanese fans roared and celebrated from the stands.
Rooney discussed Germany’s shocking loss to Japan during a presentation for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 on Sports18. The Japanese team, according to Rooney, were relentless in the second half and a continuous threat to Germany.
“Yeah, I didn’t see that result coming. In the second half, fair play to Japan – they stayed in the game and were constantly a threat on the break. I think just before they scored the first goal actually when you have ‘X’ players talking about teams or players getting complacent. I think there were moments when the ball went down to challenge and you get a bit complacent, a bit arrogant and showing off a little bit and then you lose your concentration. Maybe that’s what happened to Germany and Japan is a very humble country, they took advantage of that and in the end deserved the win,” said Rooney.
Luis Figo also spoke about how the result of the game surprised him.
“Well, for me it was a surprise after the first forty-five minutes because I think they performed well. I think the changes didn’t bring anything positive for Germany and the changes in the Japan squad totally changed the dynamic of the team. It’s just like Argentina – you lose the first game and now you’re under pressure,” stated Figo.
(inputs from ANI)
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