Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Singapore: Japan jumped to top of Group E in their FIFA World Cup 2018/AFC Asian Cup 2019 qualifying campaign after beating Singapore 3-0 at the Singapore Sports Hub Stadium on Thursday.
Mu Kanazaki and Keisuke Honda scored within six minutes of each other in the first half, and Maya Yoshida sealed the win two minutes from time to help Japan banish memories of the surprise goalless draw between the sides in Saitama in June.
Kashima Antlers attacking midfielder Kanazaki shot on the turn to score his first international goal on 20 minutes, before veteran international Honda doubled the advantage six minutes later.
Yoshida, who registered a goal in the Samurai Blue’s 3-0 win over Cambodia in September’s qualifying match, made it 3-0 to help Vahid Halilhodzic’s side to their fourth win after five games in the joint-qualifying campaign and leapfrog Syria at the top of the group.
The group winners and four best runners-up (total 12 teams) will advance to the 2019 AFC Asian Cup finals and the final round of qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
The next best 24 teams from the preliminary stage of the joint qualifiers will compete in a separate competition for the remaining slots (12 slots or 11 slots + 1 slot for the host) in the 24-team 2019 Asian Cup.
Photo: AFP