The penalty from Ibrahima Niane was the last action of the first half, as the moment the kick-off was given to Japan once again, the referee finally blew the whistle, ending the eventful first half with the home team being in the lead.
This was definitely a surprising result, since most of the media predicted Japan to advance further. Not that they looked down on Senegal, but the home country wasn't a powerhouse team in the first place. Compared to Japan, which had a strong foundation from a young age, on paper, this game shouldn't be equal, let alone going Senegal's way.
However, that was the charm of football. Anything could happen on the pitch, and just like the German legend, Franz Beckenbauer said, it wasn't the strong team who won, but whoever won was definitely the stronger team.
