Tunisia 0-4 Japan: Daichi Kamada inspires Samurai Blue to brink of 2026 World Cup last 32

Japan moved a elephantine measurement towards the knockout rounds of the 2026 World Cup with a commanding 4-0 triumph implicit Tunisia successful Group F astatine Estadio Monterrey connected Sunday.

With the Netherlands having earlier thrashed Sweden 5-1, the Samurai Blue knew an accidental existed to fortify their presumption successful the group, and they seized it successful awesome manner with a show afloat of energy, power and ruthless finishing.

This was the 1,000th lucifer successful men's World Cup history, dating backmost to the tournament's opening fixtures successful Montevideo successful 1930, and Japan marked the milestone by securing a effect that not lone boosted their ain qualification hopes but besides ended Tunisia's travel successful the competition.

Tunisia 0-4 Japan: What conscionable happened?

Daichi Kamada rescued Japan with a precocious extremity successful their 2-2 gully against the Netherlands, and the midfielder wasted small clip carrying that momentum into this contest.

It took the Crystal Palace antheral little than 4 minutes to interruption the deadlock, handing Japan the cleanable commencement and leaving Tunisia with a upland to ascent astir from the archetypal whistle.

For the North Africans, the tourney rapidly unravelled. Even a managerial alteration failed to spark a revival, and different decision confirmed an aboriginal exit that volition permission supporters wondering what mightiness person been.

Tunisia arrived astatine the World Cup boasting 1 of the strongest antiaircraft records successful qualifying, conceding conscionable erstwhile successful 10 matches, but the planetary signifier proved a acold sterner examination. 

Any hopes of a effect were dealt different dense stroke successful the 31st minute. Ayase Ueda was afforded acold excessively overmuch abstraction arsenic Tunisia's defence retreated towards its ain punishment area, allowing the Feyenoord striker to stride guardant earlier rifling a superb effort done the legs of Montassar Talbi and into the acold corner.

Japan controlled the crippled successful the adjacent half, maintained possession, and remained stone coagulated astatine the backmost to snuff retired immoderate Tunisia revival - a show that highlights however acold the Asian state has progressed. 

Just earlier the hydration break, Kamada turned creator. The midfielder produced a delightful first-time walk astir the country that sliced unfastened the Tunisian defence, sending Junya Ito racing done connected extremity earlier the winger calmly slotted a debased decorativeness beyond Aymen Dahmen.

The 3rd extremity summed up the gulf betwixt the sides. Tunisia carelessly relinquished possession successful midfield, Japan instantly turned defence into attack, and Ueda applied the finishing touch, arching a superb header implicit Dahmen to implicit a well-deserved brace and enactment the effect beyond doubt.

Tunisia 0-4 Japan: The large talking point

We've seen it countless times before: definite players look to reserve their champion shot for the planetary stage, and Kamada is proving to beryllium 1 of them.

The Crystal Palace midfielder failed to people a azygous extremity passim the 2025-26 campaign, yet helium has already recovered the nett successful consecutive World Cup matches, erstwhile again demonstrating his knack for delivering erstwhile Japan request him most.

The determination itself was beautifully crafted, sweeping from close to near earlier Keito Nakamura drilled a debased transverse into the information area, wherever Kamada arrived to use the finishing interaction from adjacent range.

The extremity besides entered the past books arsenic the fastest ever scored by a Japanese subordinate astatine a World Cup. A person replay suggested determination was a interaction of luck successful the finish, but arsenic the aged saying goes, luck tends to favour the brave.

Tunisia 0-4 Japan: What happens next? 

With Tunisia present eliminated, the conflict for the remaining 2 qualification spots is acceptable to spell down to the last circular of Group F fixtures.

The Netherlands are expected to instrumentality attraction of concern against Tunisia successful their past match, and unless determination is simply a large shock, the Dutch should person capable to publication their spot successful the Round of 32.

Japan, meanwhile, person enactment themselves successful a commanding position. Four points from 2 matches means the Samurai Blue cognize that a gully against Sweden successful their last radical crippled would astir surely beryllium capable to unafraid progression, portion a triumph could adjacent spot them decorativeness apical of the group.