Kamada's late header rescues Japan in 2-2 World Cup draw with Netherlands

Japan left AT&T Stadium with more than a point. Twice behind against the Netherlands, the 18th-ranked side answered each blow and made a Group F opener in Arlington, Texas, look like evidence of growing legitimacy rather than survival.

The match finished 2-2 before 69,285 spectators, with the crowd described as evenly split between Japanese and Dutch supporters and the retractable roof offering relief from the muggy Texas heat. After a goalless first half, the game burst open with three goals in 14 minutes, and Japan showed enough composure to keep pulling the Netherlands back into a fight the Dutch expected to control.

Virgil van Dijk put the Netherlands ahead in the 50th minute with a header for his 13th international goal, only for Keito Nakamura to level seven minutes later after a pass from Takefusa Kubo. The Dutch responded again in the 64th minute when Crysencio Summerville restored their lead, turning what had been a tense start to the second half into a test of whether Japan could stay brave under pressure.

Daichi Kamada answered in the 88th minute, rising to meet a Koki Ogawa corner and sending a header in off a slight deflection past Bart Verbruggen. It was the kind of late, precise finish that gave Japan a deserved share of the points and reinforced the sense that Hajime Moriyasu’s side can trouble elite opponents over long stretches, not just survive them.

The result extended the Netherlands’ unbeaten run in group play to 16 matches and left their World Cup group-stage record at 21-2-11. The Dutch, ranked eighth, were also missing key players through injury, as were Japan, but the quality of the matchup still lived up to its billing as one of the more attractive fixtures in the group stage.

For the Netherlands, the draw also carried a reminder of how hard World Cup group games can be to close out. Their last loss before the knockout stage came in 1994 in the United States, when Brazil beat them at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. Japan now moves on to its next Group F match against Tunisia in Monterrey, Mexico, while the Dutch face Sweden in Houston on Saturday.