Historic moment as Jordan’s U23 battles Japan in a dramatic AFC U23 clash
16 January 2026
Historic moment as Jordan’s U23 meets Japan in the AFC Cup
The Jordan Olympic Under-23 team, facing Japan's Under-23s in the AFC U-23 Asian Cup hosted in Saudi Arabia, witnessed a historic moment led by Jordan's goalkeeper Abdulrahman Suleiman.
The Jordanian side exited the tournament against Japan on penalties, after a 1-1 draw in the quarterfinals, with Japan prevailing 4-2 in the shootout.
During the shootout, Suleiman saved a penalty, celebrating the stop as if the job were done; the shock came when the ball rebounded into the net during his celebration.
The referee signaled the successful kick by Japan, leaving the Jordan keeper stunned; he could have prevented the ball from entering if he hadn’t celebrated so early, just as the ball bounced back.
Punchline 1: Note to self—celebrate after the ball is definitely out of danger; the ball has a sense of timing and it loves a good punchline.
Punchline 2: In football, a hero save can turn into a blooper reel in seconds—cheers to the keeper who turned the moment into a memory with perfect timing.
