[Sport] Did the ball cross the line? Japan reaches World Cup knockout stages with hotly debated goal

[REFLX]

Japan reached the World Cup knockout stages for the fourth time on Thursday – by what appeared to be a matter of millimeters.

Trailing 1-0 at halftime, Japan produced a remarkable comeback against Spain with two goals in quick succession in the second half, stunning the 2010 world champion to secure an unlikely spot in the last 16 at the expense of Germany.

But it’s Japan’s second goal that has been a topic of fierce debate in the aftermath of the game, specifically regarding whether the ball crossed the goal line before Kaoru Mitoma’s cutback pass to Ao Tanaka.

Tanaka’s bundled goal was initially ruled out after the linesman flagged that the ball had gone out of play.

However, after a video assistant referee (VAR) review, the goal was allowed to stand and Japan held on for an historic victory.

The result saw the Samurai Blue top Group E – an outcome no one would have foreseen before the World Cup – ahead of Spain and Germany, which bowed out of the tournament despite a 4-2 victory against Costa Rica.

Some were left incredulous as to why Tanaka’s goal was allowed to stand.

“There are 80 million Germans right now going mad, waiting for a picture that shows that that ball didn’t go out of play,” said former Scotland international Graeme Souness, speaking as a pundit on ITV.

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