Japan's 2010 World Cup qualification hopes hit a snag on Wednesday as Bahrain grabbed a late goal to send Takeshi Okada's men crashing to a 1-0 defeat in Manama.
A well-organized Bahrain team combined muscle and trickery to gain the upper hand throughout the match, and a 77th-minute mistake by Japan goalkeeper Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi handed the gulf side three points and control of the qualification group.
Japan drops to second in the Group 2 standings, level on points with Oman, which scored a 1-0 win over Thailand on Wednesday.