The East Asians could not have got off to a better start when Carlos Sanchez was dismissed for handling Shinji Kagawa’s goalbound effort in the third minute and Kagawa coolly slotted the penalty home.

Colombia responded well and equalised through Juan Quintero before the interval, but Japan came back strongly and secured all three points after Yuya Osako’s decisive goal.

Osaka’s 73rd minute header was the difference between the sides as the Japanese made the most of their one-man advantage over the South Americans, who saw Carlos Sanchez sent off with just three minutes on the clock.

Shinji Kagawa gave Japan the lead from the penalty spot only for Juan Quintero to level the scores six minutes before the break.

But Nishino’s side took the initiative in the second half and, after creating a string of chances, Osako pounced 17 minutes from time to give Japan their first World Cup win since a 3-1 triumph over Denmark in 2010.

Yuya Osako's 73rd-minute winner meant the Japanese avenged their 4-1 mauling in the group stages of Brazil 2014 as Colombia played with a man down for 87 minutes in Saransk.

After leaving Brazil without a win four years ago, Japan made a dream start to their Russia 2018 campaign even though head coach Akira Nishino was only appointed in April.

In an explosive start to the Group H clash, Colombia defender Carlos Sanchez earned the first red card of the tournament with a handball after just three minutes.

Japan took the lead when Shinji Kagawa netted the resulting penalty before Juan Quintero equalised with a free kick for Colombia to make it 1-1 at half-time.

Brazil 2014 topscorer James Rodriguez came on for the last half-hour after labouring in training with a calf strain but could not pull his side level after Osako's goal.

While there was undoubtedly an element of luck about their late win against Morocco last Friday, the team did exactly what was expected of them – play with passion. 

It was clear from the outset that a draw from the opening match would almost certainly not be enough for the Asian side to make it out of such a high-quality group. 

With three points under their belts, they are now at the top of Group B and brimming with confidence.

Several weeks of preparations were over, and it was time for Bert van Marwijk's Australia side to demonstrate their worth as they opened their 2018 FIFA World Cup campaign against France. A resilient defensive display was on show but two second-half strikes were enough for Les Blues to walk away with the three points.

Having scored three goals in as many matches in their last FIFA World Cup, the Socceroos opened their account courtesy of a Mile Jedinak penalty kick, but more attacking impetus will be required if they are to advance to the next round.

Team Melli showed lots of grit and determination to overcome a talented Morocco side in their opening match of the 2018 FIFA World Cup campaign on Friday.

Having not been able to create many chances, IR Iran were made to wait until the dying seconds to grab a winner as Ehsan Hajsafi's cross from a free-kick was sent into the back of the net by Bouhaddouz's misdirected flying header.

Juan Antonio Pizzi's side dominated possession and passed the ball accurately throughout the match but their lack of urgency meant they could not bring the ball into the final third and failed to record a single shot on target all night.

Defensively, the Green Falcons were far from their best as they allowed Russia to physically dominate and score at will despite not spending extended spells of time in the Saudi defensive third.