Japanese soccer fans did not get the win they wanted but took heart from their team's grit as the Samurai Blue came from behind twice to draw 2-2 with Senegal, keeping their hopes of an improbable place in the World Cup's last 16 on track.
Japan looked on the verge of defeat in their second Group H match until veteran Keisuke Honda fired home the equalizer 12 minutes from time, sending supporters into a frenzy in the stadium in Ekaterinburg and at sports bars across Tokyo.
"They've been great. I want them to keep playing hard," Shintaro Sakamichi, a 23-year-old civil servant, said above the raucous cheers at the M-Spo pub in Shibuya, where some people brought drums, horns and giant flags to re-create a stadium atmosphere.
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