With a strong H2H record against Japan, Brazil were aiming to continue their upward trajectory under new boss Carlo Ancelotti.
The visitors – who qualified for next summer’s FIFA World Cup with an underwhelming fifth-place finish in their CONMEBOL campaign – had plenty of the ball in the first half, but they should have found themselves behind with 22 minutes on the clock.
After Ritsu Dōan had done well to break free and advance to the byline, he laid the ball off to Takumi Minamino, whose squared pass had too much power on it to give Ayase Ueda a chance of diverting it into an empty net from point-blank range.
This missed opportunity proved costly for the hosts, as Brazil struck twice in the space of six minutes to take control of the contest.
First, some neat interplay allowed Paulo Henrique to be freed by Bruno Guimarães, and the full-back advanced inside the area before shooting past Zion Suzuki and into the bottom left-hand corner of the net.
Then, just after the half-hour mark, the Seleção doubled their lead when Lucas Paquetá chipped a ball into the area, finding Gabriel Martinelli, whose first-time finish gave Suzuki no chance.
While the away side would have been pleased with their two-goal half-time lead, their performance wasn’t necessarily at the levels they would have hoped for, although they had been clinical in converting both of their shots on target into goals.
The Samurai Blue knew they could throw caution to the wind at this stage, and this seemed to play in their favour as Minamino halved the deficit seven minutes after the restart when he intercepted a loose pass inside the area before firing past Hugo Souza.
With the wind in their sails, Japan sent their supporters wild when they found an equaliser just 10 minutes later. Junya Itō’s ball into the area found Keito Nakamura unmarked, allowing the winger to finish first-time with the help of a deflection off Brazil’s Fabrício Bruno.
In a highly dramatic conclusion to a thrilling contest, substitute Matheus Cunha thought he had restored Brazil’s advantage, only for the linesman’s flag to go up.
Just five minutes later, there were scenes of jubilant celebration as Ueda’s header from a corner had just enough power to beat Souza and creep over the goal line to complete a stunning comeback win for the jubilant hosts.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Ritsu Dōan (Japan)