XIAMEN, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- Japan and South Korea have solidified their positions at the top of their respective 2026 FIFA World Cup Asian qualifying groups, after Japan's 3-1 victory over China and South Korea's 1-1 draw with Palestine on Tuesday.

Determined to redeem themselves after a 7-0 humiliation in their previous encounter with Japan, China started defensively. However, in the 39th minute, Koki Ogawa opened the scoring for Japan with a header from a corner.

In first-half stoppage time, Japan extended the lead from another corner, as Ko Itakura's header found the net after a headed pass.

China managed to pull one back early in the second half when Lin Liangming netted from the center of the box, assisted by Wei Shihao.

However, just six minutes later, Japan silenced the home crowd as Junya Ito advanced down the right flank and crossed to Ogawa, who scored his second header en route to a 3-1 victory, which leaves China bottom of Group C after six matches.

Japan remains top with five wins and a draw, followed by Australia, which has seven points after Kusini Yengi's last-minute goal resulted in a 2-2 draw with Bahrain. Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Bahrain, and China each have six points, with four matches still to play.

In Group A, the United Arab Emirates dominated Qatar with a 5-0 victory, highlighted by Fabio Lima's four-goal performance. Iran narrowly defeated Kyrgyzstan 3-2 to lead the group, three points ahead of Uzbekistan, who beat DPR Korea 1-0.

In Group B, Son Heung-min equalized shortly after Zeid Qunbar had given Palestine the lead, resulting in a 1-1 draw, keeping South Korea top of the group with four wins and two draws. Iraq secured a 1-0 victory over Oman, while Kuwait and Jordan drew 1-1.

The third round of AFC qualifying will resume on March 20, 2025, with China facing a tricky trip to Saudi Arabia, while Japan will take on Bahrain. Enditem

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