Japanese hearts were broken last night after their gallant team lost to a dramatic last-minute goal by Belgium, but the nation’s players have been praised for “stealing the hearts” of football fans around the world.
Belgium came back from 2-0 down to beat Japan with a 94th-minute winner. The result left the Japan players in tears and their head coach Akira Nishino revealed they were devastated in the changing rooms afterwards.
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The Japan squad’s honourable exit follows in the footsteps of their fans who were seen cleaning the stands after their World Cup matches.
How Twitter reacted to Japan’s exit: