Japan celebrating the winning goal against Iceland
Japan claimed a 1-0 victory over Iceland in an international friendly with the decisive moment shaped by a new substitution rule introduced by football’s lawmakers ahead of the upcoming World Cup.
The match turned late in the second half when Iceland were temporarily reduced to 10 players after falling foul of a new International Football Association Board regulation designed to speed up substitutions and reduce time-wasting.
As reported by BBC Sport on Tuesday, under the updated rule, any player being substituted must leave the field within 10 seconds and exit at the nearest point. If the requirement is not met, the incoming substitute is not allowed to enter immediately. Instead, the team must continue with 10 players until the next stoppage in play and a minimum of one minute has passed.
Iceland ran into trouble during a late substitution when winger Isak Thorvaldsson was ready to enter the pitch but was held up due to the delayed exit of his teammate. As a result, Iceland were forced to continue briefly with a numerical disadvantage.
