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Andrew Cesare Richardson

China were narrowly beaten 1-0 in their crucial Fifa World Cup qualifier in Saudi Arabia on Thursday to leave their qualification hopes hanging by a thread, after Japan became the first side to confirm their place at the 2026 finals.
Branko Ivankovic’s side hung in there in the opening 45 minutes and went into the interval level at 0-0 but saw Lin Liangming sent off in first-half stoppage time for dangerous play.
And it proved costly as Salem Aldawsari scored the game’s only goal five minutes after the break.
The defeat left China bottom but level on points with Indonesia and Bahrain, placed fourth and fifth respectively.
China’s next match is on Tuesday and sees them face second-place Australia, who produced a dominant 5-1 victory over Indonesia.

A Jackson Irvine brace and goals from Martin Boyle, Nishan Velupillay and Lewis Miller ensured the Socceroos thrashed Indonesia 5-1 as Dutch legend Patrick Kluivert was well beaten and saw his side miss an early penalty in his first game in charge.
Australian captain Mat Ryan said: “I think the scoreline flatters us a little bit to be honest. At the start of the game they had two big chances, and if they put one of them away, it could have been a different game.”
Meanwhile, Group C runaway leaders Japan sealed their place in the tournament hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico with a 2-0 victory over Bahrain.
Daichi Kamada and Takefusa Kubo scored in the second half as the hosts failed to sparkle on a chilly night in Saitama.
“I’m relieved that we could qualify at home in front of our supporters,” Kubo said. “This here is not our goal – we want to compete against strong teams at the World Cup.”
Japan lead on 19 points, with Australia on 10, Saudi Arabia on nine and Indonesia, Bahrain and China level on six.

The top two go through automatically, with the sides placed third and fourth needing a further round of qualifying.
China’s final two qualifiers are in June and see them visit Indonesia and host Bahrain.
In Group B, leaders South Korea failed to confirm their World Cup place as they conceded an 81st-minute equaliser at home to Oman.
Jordan, who visit Hong Myung-bo’s side next, moved into second with a 3-1 victory over Palestine, leapfrogging Iraq – who could only draw 2-2 with Kuwait – on goal difference.
Oman’s draw in Goyang left them in fourth place.
In Group A, Iran’s 2-0 victory over the UAE left them needing just a point to seal their finals berth. The match was stopped for 29 minutes because of floodlight failure at the Azadi Sports Complex.
Second-place Uzbekistan remained on course a first World Cup spot with a 1-0 victory over Kyrgyzstan in Tashkent. They sit on 16 points, six ahead of the UAE and Asian champions Qatar, who defeated North Korea 5-1 in Doha.
Information from Agence France-Presse was used in this report


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China’s fans cheer on their side ahead of the Fifa World Cup 2026 qualifying match with Saudi Arabia. Photo: AFP

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