A look at ex-Arsenal striker Takuma Asano’s touches in Japan’s 2-1 win against Germany in the World Cup is telling of how significant his impact was in such a short space of time.
Coming on in the 57th minute, it took 26 minutes for the now-VFL Bochum goalscorer to emerge as the difference maker for his nation.
The 28-year-old took down a long ball with an impeccable first touch, before driving forward and blasting his strike past Manuel Neuer.
As roof-of-the-net finishes ago, Asano most certainly mastered said art with a brilliantly-taken goal.
However, it’s safe to say that before his strike, the Japanese international, sold by the Gunners in 2019 was rather anonymous.
How many touches did Asano have against Germany?
As per Squawka Football via Twitter, the clinical No.9, signed by the great Arsene Wenger had a mere 9 touches against Hansi Flick’s men.
Asano’s other statistics included 1 final third entry, 1 chance created, 5 touches in the opposition box, 1 shot and 1 goal during his game-changing cameo.
These numbers are testament to how decisive the former Arsenal goalscorer, Asano was against one of the tournament’s ultimate favourites on Wednesday afternoon, despite his dearth of touches.
It’s safe to say that Asano’s strike will go down in footballing folklore as the goal that decided one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history.
And one can acknowledge that Takuma Asano did it in style by also bagging one of the goals of the tournament against the fancied German side, despite his lack of touches. Arsenal may have lost out on a gem, just looking at his splendid strike but that’s a chat for another day.
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