It's all over. The Ivory Coast come from one goal down to overhaul Japan in what was a very watchable match. All it took was two headers in two minutes. Japan will be disappointed. They seemed in control for so long. But once they went behind they seemed to lack the energy and wit to grab an equaliser.

Mark O'Donnell is back to close out the coverage: "I got the score wrong but it's been another cracking game, glad I stayed up for it. Japan just seemed to fade away in the second half. Anyway, it's definitely time for bed now..."

Thanks for all your emails. For those of you in the UK, get some sleep for goodness' sake. Bye now.

90 min + 4: Ya is down again, moments after coming back on. He's carried off between two sturdy shoulders. And he no sooner clears the sideline than the referee ends the match.

90 min + 4: Japan again go long but there's no plan behind it. And again, the Ivory Coast deal with it comfortably. It's looking like Ivory Coast's night as the clock ticks past the four extra minutes...

90 min + 3: A lengthy stoppage is endured before Japan knock it long in hope. But Drogba wins possession and runs clear.

90 min + 2: Four minutes of additional time, as Ya sits on the deck, glistening with sweat, worrying over his knee.

90 min: The Ivory Coast take a couple of corners that they don't seem too interested in knocking into the middle. But their attempts to hold the ball up results in a goal kick to Japan.

89 min: Don't rule out Japan just yet, says Kalim Quadri. "They've recently been scoring goals at the death. Usually good levels of fitness but they all seem a bit leggy out there."

They better get a wriggle on... and now Kalou forces Kawashima to tip his angled shot out for a corner.

87 min: An explosion of action! First Barry punches a Japanese cross into midfield, then Gervinho sets off at pace down the central corridor. He attempts a one-two but his one is better than the two and an opportunity goes begging.

85 min: Drogba nearly seals it! From a Kalou incursion on the right, Drogba is found all by his lonesome on the left-edge of the box. He has time to line it up and hit it sweetly but a desperate Japanese leg thrown in front of it (still attached to the body it belongs to, just to be clear) does enough to deflect it wide.

83 min: Playing something like 2-5-3 at the moment, the Ivory Coast are playing keepings off. Japan are struggling to get the ball here.

80 min: Uchida, Honda and Kagawa move the ball around the egde of the Ivory Coast box but the Elephants are back in numbers and a clean shot can't be found.

Up the other end all of a sudden and a foul 30-yards out, in centre field, gives the Ivory Coast a free kick. Drogba takes it and it's headed to the top right corner but Kawashima pushes it wide without too much bother.

79 min: Japan seem a little muted here, particularly since they are a goal down. The humidity could be a factor, but perhaps they are gathering their strength for one last push. Only ten to go.

77 min: A hurried shot from distance by Yaya Toure threatens not. With the ball out of play, Bony is substituted for Konan Ya. With that goal under his belt, the Swansea man will be pretty happy about how his night turned out.

76 min: Bernardo Sousa reporting live from the Ivory Coast. "The mood here is the same as ever: Drogba is the sole [player] responsible for this turn around. His aura, his bravery, his attitude. Everything about Drogba is sanctified. No coincidences here!" Methinks you have a man crush.

74 min: Ivory Coast substitution: Boka off for Djakpa.

72 min: Boka has been carried off with a knock of some description, and now Uchida is called off-side just as he gets on the end of a long raking pass.

71 min: Rob Richardson is very happy ("Drogba! Drogba! Drogba! etc) while David Healey has made up his mind which team to support in this one: "After careful consideration I've decided I want Japan to win because they've got at least one player in normal black football boots.

"I've just read that back and dear me what an old codger I've become. Also, I'm clearly a massive jinx!"

69 min: And so the game has been turned on its head! Ever since Drogba came on, in fact. Not that he had anything to with the Ivory Coast goals but it can't just be a coincidence can it?

Crikey! The Ivory Coast are in front! In an almost carbon copy of the last goal, Aurier, fed by Gervinho, sent in another testing cross. This time it was Gervinho who got of the end of it, his header finding the bottom right corner. Kawashima was there at the near post, but the ball bounced through his hands. He should have had that.

Aurier, who's having a great night, curls in a wicked, Beckham-esque cross and Bony, wasteful up until now, holds off Morishige to thump home a header!

62 min: Substitution Ivory Coast: Drogba on for Serey... so not Bony, who is reprieved.

And immediately he causes trouble for Japan, his back-heel to Gervinho in the Japanese box creating havoc. But no goal.

60 min: It's a bit scrappy here with both teams losing possession left, right and centre.

57 min: Classic Yaya! He races forward and into the box like a train out of a tunnel, using his strength to keep Yoshida at bay. But the ball gets tangled under his feet, and he then falls and rolls a few more times than was necessary.

Moments later, another Bony glancing header has too much glance on it. Drogba must be on soon.

55 min: Honda and Endo stand over the ball and have a long and satisfying chat about life, the universe and everything. They should have discussed what to do with the free-kick, however, because it's wasted.

54 min: Japan substitution: Captain Hasebe off, Endo on.

And now Okazaki is fouled by Bamba —a foot across the knee— just outside the Ivory Coast box.

53 min: "Yaya Toure seems to be stuck in third gear," says the commentator, perhaps forgetting that's his default position.

51 min: Zach Neely has an answer on that bib issue: "Regarding Van Persie, FIFA by-law 1301.5(b) clearly states that 'Raymond Reardon is wasting his life.'"

49 min: Japan get numbers forward and Hasebe tries to catch Barry off guard with a shot from the left edge of the D but he drags it wide.

46 min: Kagawa slides in to hook a ball from the feet of Serey on the Ivory Coast byline. He gets up to shoot but it was over the line.

Up the other end and Bony misses an excellent chance! Aurier's cross is deflected but finds Bony anyway. Perhaps the slight deflection threw him off but his unopposed header hits his left ear and the ball flies wide of the right post. Not the happiest game for Bony so far.

Here we go! The Ivory Coast win early possession as we note that Bony has not been pulled (sorry) for Drogba as some have anticipated.

They are coming back onto the pitch and Japan get into a huddle, obviously working out who's going to take the kick-off.

Raymond Reardon is still thinking about yesterday's Socceroos-Chile match. "On the subject of the fabulous flying dutchman Robin van Persie, after being substituted in the 79th minute he re-entered the playing field without his FIFA allocated bib to help celebrate Arjen Robben's 80th minute goal," he says, warming up. "In Aussie Rules a team captain can call for a count of players and if it exceeds the maximum allowed then the opposition's total score is annulled at that point in time. What is the position in regard to FIFA world cup matches?"

Anyone?

Rob Richardson is also intrigued by the background sounds. "Watching from Brooklyn New York," he says. "What in the world is that sound in the background? I hear drums. But I also hear a sound that sounds like bees being swung in a hammock. What does it sound like from Australia?"

From here? More like wasps in a sock, I'd say Rob. Could be the Coriolis effect at play. Or something.

A very enjoyable half of football that, with opportunities for both teams.

44 min: Some nice interplay by the Ivory Coast —Aurier, Gervinho, Yaya— finds the Machester City hero in space but his shot-on-the-turn from the six-yard box is blocked. Kawashima then makes a regulation save from a follow-up speculator.

42 min: As Kalou nurses a sore thigh, Richard Ashton wonders if he is falling into a trance. "Oddly hypnotic sound from these drums and shakers in the crowd (although the fact it's 2.30 and I have work in the morning may also have something to do with the trance-like state I'm slipping into)."

41 min: The pattern here seems to involve Japan sitting back and striking on the counter. Some of the Ivory Coast players seem to have the turning circle of semi-trailers, so it's not a bad ploy.

39 min: Oh Gareth, Bony goes close! Serey digs out a cross and Bony meets it near the penalty spot but he miscues his volley and it goes high and wide. Coulda, woulda, shoulda.

37 min: Gareth Morris Jones is watching form Japan. "I'm torn," he says. "I'm a Swansea boy watching from my sofa in Osaka. Perhaps my ideal result is a Bony hat-trick in a game he ultimately loses. I'm enjoying your updates- I struggle to follow the Japanese commentary..."

35 min: End to end stuff. Honda goes on a mazy dribble and finds room for a shot but it's deflected for a corner, which comes to nothing.

34 min: The Ivory Coast are getting on top here and Bony angles a pass ahead of Gervinho but his early shot is blocked by Bamba for a corner.

The corner is cleared and Boka, from about 30-yards, hammers it back and Kawashima is forced into a diving save! That would have been some goal. Bony goes for the rebound by he's offside.

30 min: And misses. But it was a much closer thing. This time he went for the top right corner and the curl was there to take it past Kawashima, but it was a tad too high. Not sure if Kawashima would have saved that had it been a couple of inches lower.

29 min: Gervinho in space now and, as he gets into a good shooting position, Osako clatters into the back of him. Yaya lines up another free kick a few metres outside the D...

26 min: Yaya cries out for a penalty for hand-ball, but it's not given. A ball to hand thing. Yaya had skipped down the left, Hasebe hauled him in, and as Yaya attempted to get by him with a little chip it hit Hasebe's hand, which was by his side.

25 min: It's calmed down a little now, giving me time to note that moments after Simon McMahon posted his concern that this could be the first 0-0 draw of the tournament, Japan scored. "I did that deliberately," he said in a follow-up email.

23 min: ... but Yaya's shot clears the bar and sails into the crowd.

21 min: It's all Japan now... but as I speak, Dia wins possession in the midfield and gallops through the central channel like a thoroughbred. As he approaches the D and attempts to jink around Yoshida, the defender brings him down. He gets a yellow, and the Ivory Coast get a free kick in a great position.

19 min: Now Japan are threatening, and Uchida almost gets Japan another! Motoring down the right, he skips past Serey, shapes on his left and shoots. But Barry gets down to his left to keep it out.

How quickly momentum has shifted.

All of a sudden Japan have the lead! A short corner is whipped across to Honda just inside the box and with more time than he should ever have had, he leathers a left-foot firecracker past Barry's right glove into the top left corner!

15 min: Okazaki wins a near post header and attempts to glance it into the far corner but he doesn't hit it cleanly enough. But the Ivory Coast have to clear for another corner.

14 min: Okazaki, leaping for a midfield header, is collected by Zokora in a heavy knock. He looks a little ginger, as you would be. Zokora has some heft.

From the free kick Japan threaten down the left but Aurier is there to clean up for a corner. Honda takes it...

13 min: Japan have just not got themselves into this game as yet. They are finding it hard to penetrate into the final third. There's a wall of orange shirts blocking their way. And now the rain starts to fall.

10 min: Honda and Osako try to fashion a cross from the right but, under pressure, Osako loses the ball over the byline before Barry needs to worry about an incoming threat.

8 min: Japan sitting back now as the Ivory Coast knock it from side to side. They've started well the Ivorians.

6 min: Just wide from Bony! Gervinho scoots down the right wing, feeds Bony in the box but his shot is deflected just wide! The Ivory Coast maintain possession from the corner, and already their physicality is putting Japan under pressure.

5 min: Aurier whips in another cross, in Bony's direction, but it misses everyone and rolls out for a throw in. The Ivory Coast with the early running.

3 min: A forward foray from the Ivory Coast, with Yaya strolling through the midfield before an attempted header by Gervinho from a cross from Aurier (I think) is cleared away for a corner. Nothing comes of it.

2 min: Kagawa threads through a defence splitting pass but it's overhit and Barry picks it up as casually as you'd expect for someone called Barry.

1 min: Japan string together a few nerve settling passes as we hear that the Ivory Coast have scored13 goals in their last five games without Drogba.

The Elephants get us under way!

Simon McMahon congratulates me for bagging the best game of the tournament so far. "I'm really looking forward to this one," he says. "3-2 to Japan I'm going for. Although what that means for England I'm not entirely sure."

This game will be the last thing on England's mind round about now.

Here they come, Japan in all blue, the Ivory Coast in all orange. Or is it tangerine?

A man in the crowd is holding up a scarf that says "1000%" Elephants. That takes the standard "110%" and blitzes it.

And for the sake of even-handedness, here he is again keying out Japan’s national anthem. As you can hear, it’s a rather more sombre piece. Unlike his polo and check shorts combo.

They'll be sauntering out in a bit. The ref will grab the ball off the plinth, an utterly pointless piece of theatre, and then we'll get the anthems.

Here's the Ivory Coast anthem played on a piano quite well (to my untrained ear) by a bloke in an aqua polo and check shorts.

All this talk of coffee makes me want one. Not that I need help to stay awake. I'm in Melbourne, and it's approaching 11am. An utterly civilised time to watch football. But there are clouds ahead for me. Two 2am Socceroos kick-offs coming up. 2am. Do you stay up? Do you attempt a few hours' kip? A troublesome time, as those in the UK will be currently appreciating.

Mark O'Donnell is also thinking of stimulating beverages. "It's strong coffee time," he says. "ITV are doing a great job of building up to this intriguing match-up between Africa and Asia by talking about England.

"I fancy Japan to cause a few surprises, they won all their warm-ups including a 3-1 win over that handy Costa Rica side and last year they beat Belgium 3-2 in Brussels. I fancy Japan to win 2-1 tonight."

Alex and Sian are staying up for this one. "You lovely Guardian chaps have been nice enough to give quite a bit of love to Panini Cheapskates (stingy married couple attempt to fill Panini album with home-made stickers) in the last couple of days," says Alex. "In case it's of any use to you, here's a wee Keisuke Honda and a little Gervinho for your delectation. Ta! Hope you've got a coffee on." Thanks, Alex. It's almost like a photograph, isn't it?

And how about Yaya? He's alright, too:

The hope is for some open play today, and plenty of goals. On that front, here’s a taste of Okazaki.

The teams:

Ivory Coast: Barry, Boka, Zokora, Kalou, Tiote, Gervinho, Bony, Aurier, Y.Toure, Serey, Bamba. SUBS: Diarrassouba, K Touré, Bolly, Akpa-Akpro, Drogba, Ya Konan, Diomand, Gradel, Gbohouo, Djakpa, Sio, Mandé

Japan: Kawashima, Uchida, Honda, Nagatomo, Morishige, Okazaki, Kagawa, Yamaguchi, Hasebe, Osako, Yoshida. SUBS: Sakai, Endo, Kiyotake, Kakitani, Nishikawa, Okubo, Aoyama, Konno, Inoha, Saito, Sakai, Gonda

So, Yaya Toure is in. He’s been in doubt for this clash all week, though it may have been a pointless case of ducks and drakes—pointless because Japan would have prepared to face him anyway. But Drogba is on the bench.

Time for something a little less salient.

Did you know, asks Francois, “that as a teenager Drogba was banned from playing football for a year by his parents after failing school exams? At the age of five he travelled to Brittany to stay with his uncle Michel Goba, who was a professional footballer, and did not see his parents again until he return back home three years later.”

Or this from Ben. Did you know that Masahiko Inoha, after making his J-League debut in 2006, quickly became famous not so much for his footballing skills but for his obsession with ice cream? He proudly claimed he would eat three a day – ‘two at the clubhouse, one after bath time’– and was always on hand to offer critiques on all the latest frozen snacks to team-mates and club officials. His status as one of Alberto Zaccheroni's favourites melted somewhat after an ill-fated six months with Hajduk Split, but he denied accusations that rescinding his contract made him a flake after the Croatian side had failed to pay his wages.”

And here’s François Kouakou on the Ivory Coast’s tactical set-up, as well as these few answers to some key questions:

Who is the player who is going to surprise everyone at the World Cup?

Gervinho. He may have been a flop at Arsenal but the man with a suitably Brazilian-sounding nickname will arrive at the World Cup in dazzling form following his superb season with Roma. Explosive and penetrative, he can trouble any defence.

Who is the player who is going to disappoint the most?

It could be Didier Drogba, but it all depends on how the manager Sabri Lamouchi uses him. He should not start, but would be better if used as an impact substitute. His physical powers may be dwindling but his fierce pride means he will be determined to make his presence felt, as he did after coming on in the recent 2-2 friendly draw with Belgium.

What is the realistic aim for your team at the World Cup and why?

For once the draw has been kind to the Elephants but it is a pity that so many of the players are possibly just past their best. However, they still have potent firepower and could blast their way out of the group, but a dodgy defence will probably prevent them from going much further.”

So, you want a little more on our combatants today? Don’t look at me, I just work here. Best, I think, to leave you in the hands of some authorties from the Guardian Experts’ Network series: Ben Mabley and François Kouakou.

Here’s Ben on Japan’s transformation under Zaccheroni. And here’s his take on a few salient questions.

“Who is the player who is going to surprise everyone at the World Cup?

Japan may still lack a top-class goalscorer, but they don't necessarily need one as long as the striker facilitates those just behind him. As he showed against Holland, Yuya Osako can be that man. The 23-year-old sometimes flattered to deceive during his first four years at Kashima Antlers and was dropped from the Japan squad for the London Olympics. But 19 J-League goals in 2013 earned him a chance at the East Asian Cup, before that excellent performance against Holland where he combined so well with Honda, Kagawa, and Okazaki. A January move to the Bundesliga second tier appeared risky six months ahead of the World Cup, but Osako has been a regular performer for mid-table 1860 Munich, top scoring with six goals in just 15 appearances.

Who is the player who is going to disappoint the most?

The clear issue is in defence, but since expectations there are so low as a result, it probably would not count as a disappointment if the back line imploded. As a colleague at JSports recently pointed out, Honda may be the absolute central player to whom injury would be most devastating, but because he is such a consistent performer, Japan's fortunes actually depend more on the form of Shinji Kagawa. It is vital for the side's attacking fluency that the former Borussia Dortmund star is confident and on his game. There is little point in Honda pulling all the strings in midfield if Kagawa is moping about his difficult season at Old Trafford and cannot exert similar levels of influence.

What is the realistic aim for your team at the World Cup and why?

To go one step better than South Africa 2010 and reach the quarter-finals. Under Zaccheroni, Japan no longer have to compromise their attacking capabilities as they did four years ago, and as they have shown over the past 12 months against Italy, Holland, and Belgium – as well as Argentina and France earlier in Zac's reign – on their day they are capable of troubling and beating the very best sides in international football. However, when forced backwards their defence can capitulate to almost any opponent, so it will be vital for Japan to seize their attacking rhythm early on in matches and remain on the front foot. There are by no means any guarantees of escaping a very challenging, evenly-matched group with Ivory Coast, Greece and Colombia, but doing so would give them plenty of confidence ahead of a potential clash with England or rematch against Italy in the last 16.”

Hello there. After Colombia romped home against Greece to get Group C up and running some eight hours ago, it’s time for the second Group C fixture, this one between the Ivory Coast and Japan, teams who’ve played each other only three times in history. The head-to-head? For what it’s worth —about 15c (or 8p)— Japan lead 2-1, although their last meeting, in 2010, was a 2-0 win to Les Éléphants, which, if my French is right, translates as “The Elephants. What can I say, some people are just good with languages.

This match, held at the Arena Pernambuco in Recife, north-east Brazil (‘just’ across the South Atlantic from the Ivory Coast… so practically a home game for the Ivory Coast), has been painted, with broad brush strokes, as a contest between muscle and pace. Fortuitously, for the sake of nicknames, the muscle belongs to Les Éléphants. The pace, then, is the chief weapon of Japan, aka “Samurai Blue”. It’s a clichéd delineation, certainly, but with the Ivory Coast squad including the likes of Didier Drogba, Wilfried Bony and Yaya Toure, the Colossus of the Côte (and the Counter of the Cakes), and the Japan side featuring Shinji Kagawa, Keisuke Honda, and Shinji Okazaki, all rapiers rather than broadswords, it’s accurate enough.

Both sides should fancy their chances in this one, and indeed for progressing from the group, one of the most open at the World Cup. If Group B is the obligatory Group of Death, Group C could be the Group of Tantalising Possibility. Admittedly, that doesn’t resonate quite so well. Anyway, for the Ivory Coast, who have never made it beyond the group stage, this could be the last opportunity for the so-called Golden Generation (a moniker that can be akin to a shackle… just ask England) to actually shine at a World Cup. Drogba, Didier Zokora and Kolo Toure will almost certainly be playing their last copa do mundo, while Yaya Toure, at 31, and the youngest of this group, is no sure thing to last until Russia 2018. He’ll need the cooperation of a body that has been known to betray him and, yes, he'll need to keep his cake consumption to a minimum. So what can these aging, European-based elite players, and Kolo Toure, do to help the Ivory Coast fulfil their dream of becoming the first African team to make the World Cup semis? We’re about to find out.

Japan, meantime, under Italian Alberto Zaccheroni, look to be a team on the upswing, not the down. After bowing out at the knock-out stage in South Africa 2010, Zaccheroni was appointed and he set about rebuilding. Not just touching up the cornices and ripping up the carpet to get at the boards underneath, mind, but re-stumping and wall-flattening. So after getting rid of some old wood —but retaining some eye-catching features, like Honda, and Okazaki, who scored 15 goals for FSV Mainz in the Bundesliga last season— he built a team around some young attacking midfielders and full-backs, the kind that make fans shift to the edge of their seats.

And like bees with the sniff of pollen in the air, his Japan side made an immediate impression on Argentina (for a 1-0 friendly win in his first outing as coach), and they powered on to win the 2011 Asian Cup. Happy days continued when they were the first team to qualify for this tournament and, to bring you up to speed, they are unbeaten in their past five matches, a sequence that includes a 3-2 win over a Belgium side that is every hipster’s World Cup dark horse. Could Japan’s technical nous and zip prove too much for the Ivory Coast today? Who can really say? Best to watch and find out.

Kick-off: Saturday 10pm local time, Sunday 1am in Abidjan, 2am in London, 10am in Tokyo, and 11am in Melbourne. (That’s a late kick-off local time, but then we are led to believe Brazilians are up all night dancing and what not.)

Paul will be here shortly.

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