MANAMA — Japan survived a spirited late fightback to open the final round of Asian qualifying for the 2010 World Cup with a 3-2 win away against familiar foe Bahrain on Saturday.
Celtic star Shunsuke Nakamura marked his return to the team with a trademark free kick, and a Yasuhito Endo penalty and a third goal from Kengo Nakamura put Japan in cruise control with five minutes left in stamina-draining conditions in Manama.
But despite holding a one-man advantage following the somewhat harsh sending off of Mohamed Hussain midway through the second half, Japan very nearly paid the price for taking its foot off the pedal.