Four years ago, Japan laughed at '1mm'; this time, it fell short by 1mm... Ueda's shot ultimately declared "clearly offside": "Reminds me of Mitoma's goal against Spain"

*This content was translated by AI.

Despite a dizzying "1mm clearly offside" incident, the Japanese national football team thoroughly defeated Tunisia.

On the 21st (Korea time), Japan crushed Tunisia 4-0 in the second-round Group F match of the 2026 FIFA North, Central America and Caribbean Cup held at Monterrey Stadium in Monterrey, Mexico.

After drawing 2-2 with the Netherlands in the first match, Japan's victory today put them in second place in the group with one win and one draw (4 points). With this result, Japan will advance to the Round of 32 tournament even if they draw against Sweden in the next third-round match.

Japan took the lead with a first goal by Daichi Kamada in the fourth minute of the first half, but in the 10th minute, Aya Ueda's decisive shot was ruled "clearly offside" because it did not completely cross the goal line.

During a corner kick situation, Ueda connected with a powerful right-footed shot. The ball appeared to pass through the goal line after deflecting off a Tunisian player, but the Tunisian goalkeeper dramatically saved it right on the goal line. Although it looked almost as if the ball had crossed the goal line to the naked eye, video assistant referee (VAR) review determined it was "clearly offside" by a microscopic margin.

With the goal disallowed, Japanese fans erupted in sighs. According to Japanese outlet "Soccer Digest," netizens on social media (SNS) compared the incident to the viral "Mitoma's 1mm" from the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

The "Mitoma's 1mm" incident occurred during the 2022 Qatar World Cup group stage match against Spain, where Kaoru Mitoma dramatically saved a ball just before it completely left the goal line, assisting Ao Tanaka's winning goal. At the time, VAR review confirmed the ball was only about 1mm on the line, sparking global attention.

Netizens posted heated reactions such as "This time, we cried over 1mm," "Ueda's 1mm," "Reminds me of Mitoma's 1mm," and "Did it really not go in!"

However, as Japan later secured a dominant 4-0 victory with powerful offense, this dizzying "1mm clearly offside" ruling ultimately became a harmless incident with no regret.

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*This content was translated by AI.