The Israeli national soccer team made history Saturday night as it defeated Japan 2-1 in the Under-20 World Cup, making it through to the round of 16 where they will face Asia's champions, Uzbekistan.
"This was a heroic win, the greatest match in the history of Israeli soccer," said coach Ofir Haim, in tears. "This is for all of Israel, I dedicate this to you.
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"I have no words, the players have a big heart and soul," Haim continued, "people talked about our physical stamina, [but] from the 65th minute we were with 10 players and they were all over the field."
While Japan led during the first half, Israel secured its spot in the next round in overtime, despite playing one man down.
It was a critical match for the Blue and White, after suffering a defeat against Colombia and a draw with Senegal, Israel needed a clear victory to advance.
Israel's Ran Binyamin received two yellow cards and was sent off the field in the 68th minute, which left Israel to play 10 against 11, while one goal behind. Aharon Roy Nawi Nabi evened the score with a spectacular header in the 76th minute, working off a free kick.
It was a last-minute victory for Israel, with Omer Senior scoring the winning goal for Israel after a coordinated series of passes one minute into overtime.
For a place in the quarterfinal, Israel is scheduled to play against Uzbekistan on Wednesday. The tournament being played in Argentina was supposed to be held in Indonesia, but the Muslim-majority country refused to host Israel and FIFA was forced to change locations at the last minute.
This article was first published by i24NEWS.
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