ARLINGTON, Texas - Japan drew with Sweden 1-1 in their final Group F game at the World Cup on Thursday, setting up a round-of-32 clash with Brazil.
Daizen Maeda's goal was canceled out by Anthony Elanga during the second half in front of 70,137 at Dallas Stadium as Japan moved up to five points but finished runners-up behind the Netherlands, who beat Tunisia 3-1 to top the group on seven points.
"As we aim for the world's top level, our players really put their effort into continuing to automatically qualify from our own group," manager Hajime Moriyasu said after Japan reached the knockout phase for the third straight World Cup. "I want to share the fact that Japanese football is definitely evolving."
The Samurai Blue will travel to face Group C winners Brazil in Houston on Monday, while the Netherlands head to Mexico to take on Group C runners-up Morocco the same day.
"(Brazil) are strong opponents of course, but I think there is a chance," Moriyasu said. "We'll prepare as well as we can to try to go after that chance."
Moriyasu left Takehiro Tomiyasu, Kaishu Sano and Junya Ito on the bench but nevertheless fielded a strong starting eleven for a game in which the Samurai Blue were likely to need a big win to top the group.
Maeda had the game's first chance in the 21st minute when his header off Hiroki Ito's left-wing cross went wide before Japan captain Ko Itakura -- who had an injury-hit season at Ajax -- worryingly went off in the 39th minute.
Yukinari Sugawara's attempt from distance signaled an attacking spell for Japan, while Keito Nakamura's tidy shot from inside the box was denied by a one-handed diving save from Sweden keeper Jacob Widell Zetterstrom as the match went into the break goalless.
Ao Tanaka found space outside the box only to blast his shot over minutes into the second half before Japan broke the deadlock through Maeda in the 56th minute from a flowing move.
Ritsu Doan flicked the ball into the middle for Ayase Ueda, who held the ball up and returned it to Doan who played a first-time pass into the box. Maeda set himself up perfectly with his first touch before guiding the ball into the net.
"I was only concentrating on my first touch," Maeda said. "Ritsu can produce wonderful passes like that and while that's something I can't do, I thought I just had to run in there and that good ball came."
But a Swedish side who had been happy to pump the ball upfield drew level just six minutes later, with Elanga cutting in from the right before bending a superb strike into the far bottom corner beyond a diving Zion Suzuki.
Yuto Nagatomo made his fifth straight World Cup appearance when he entered the fray in the 75th minute, while Suzuki cleared a header off the line from a Sweden corner in the second-half stoppage time as Japan hung on to a point.
"I was too excited to remember (what went through my mind)," the 39-year-old Nagatomo said of the moment he took to the pitch. "There was frustration in not playing in the first two games. But I came here as a player, I readied myself never getting my head down."
"I'm really grateful for Mr. Moriyasu and also my teammates, who cheered me on like mad from the bench...I have players above me, (Lionel) Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, (Guillermo) Ochoa made their sixth straight World Cup and I can't be feeling satisfied."
Moriyasu extended his unbeaten record against European opponents to 11 matches, with eight wins and three draws.
Japan have reached the last 16 of the World Cup four times from their previous seven tournaments, the most by an Asian nation.
