SINGAPORE: Japan’s Tatsuhiro Sakamoto scored a stoppage-time goal to snatch a 3-2 friendly win over Brazil in Singapore on Saturday, avenging their World Cup defeat despite Vinicius Jr’s double.

Hajjime Moriyasu’s side stunned Brazil early, capitalizing on defensive lapses to take a two-goal lead inside 20 minutes through Takefusa Kubo and Keito Nakamura.

Vinicius ignited Brazil’s comeback with a stunning strike in the 33nd minute, collecting the ball outside the penalty area and unleashing an unstoppable shot into the top corner.

The Real Madrid winger equalized in the 75th minute when he latched onto a Bruno Guimaraes pass following a corner, skipped past his marker and curled an effort in off the post.

The five-times world champions looked set to salvage a draw, but winger Sakamoto had the final say in stoppage time to seal a memorable victory for Japan.

Tempers flared following the winner, with Brazil’s manager Carlo Ancelotti and forward Raphinha sent off for protesting after the Brazilian side appealed for a foul on Joao Gomes in the build-up.

“The referee (Jansen Foo) gave me a red card because he said I wasn’t able to control the bench, and that all the players were on the field,” Ancelotti told a news conference.

“It’s a shame about the result, because we don’t like to lose the game, but we have to look at what we did well. There are many positives. Some players who played for the first time showed good quality. For 70 minutes, the team played well. “The result, obviously, was influenced by the referee’s performance... But it’s not his fault; it was a high-level match, and I don’t think he had the experience to handle this kind of game.”

The victory also carried added significance for Japan, who suffered a heartbreaking exit to Brazil in the World Cup last 32 in June. On that occasion, Gabriel Martinelli struck in stoppage time to complete a 2-1 comeback win for the South Americans. “Brazil’s intensity went up once we took the lead and it was all about what we could do then,” Moriyasu said.

“Our players performed at the world’s top standard. These wins lead to victories at the World Cup and I hope they continue to do the same.”

Brazil will look to bounce back against Singapore on Tuesday when Japan seek to carry their winning momentum into another friendly versus Paraguay.