A controversial Neymar penalty kick was all that separated Japan and Brazil on Monday night, with the South American visitors coming away with a narrow 1-0 victory at a sold-out National Stadium in Tokyo.
The Kirin Challenge Cup friendly against the reigning world No. 1 team was touted as a major test for the Samurai Blue ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, and Hajime Moriyasu’s men rose to the challenge despite pregame expectations of a blowout — especially following Brazil’s 5-1 demolition of South Korea on Thursday in Seoul.
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