Japan Thrash China 7-0 in World Cup Qualifying

Dominant Samurai Blue Maintain Perfect Record

Japan put in a dominant performance to thrash China 7-0 in World Cup qualifying on Thursday, extending their perfect record in Group B to four wins from four.

Kaoru Mitoma opened the scoring for Japan in the 26th minute, before Kyogo Furuhashi doubled the lead just before half-time. China offered little resistance in the second half, with Wataru Endo, Daichi Kamada, Yuta Nakayama, Junya Ito and Takumi Minamino all getting on the scoresheet for the Samurai Blue.

The victory keeps Japan top of Group B with 12 points, six ahead of second-placed Australia. China remain bottom of the group with just one point from their four matches.

Mitoma and Endo Star for Japan

Mitoma and Endo were the standout performers for Japan on Thursday, with the former scoring a stunning individual goal to open the scoring.

The Brighton & Hove Albion winger picked up the ball on the left flank and drove at the Chinese defense, before cutting inside and firing a low shot into the bottom corner.

Endo, meanwhile, controlled the midfield for Japan and added a third goal with a fine strike from outside the area.

China Crushed by Japan

China were simply outclassed by Japan on Thursday and never looked like getting back into the game after Mitoma's opener.

The Chinese defense was all over the place, and Japan were able to create chances at will.

The defeat leaves China bottom of Group B with just one point from their four matches, and their hopes of reaching the World Cup finals are now hanging by a thread.

Reaction

"We played very well tonight and controlled the game from start to finish," said Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu.

"We're delighted to have won our fourth game in a row and we're now in a very strong position in the group.

"China were a tough opponent, but we were able to break them down and score some good goals."

"We're very disappointed with the result," said China coach Li Tie.

"Japan were the better team tonight and we didn't play well enough.

"We need to improve our performance in the next game and start picking up some points."