By Paul Nicholson
May 28 – The long-awaited restart of the Asian Qualifiers for the 2020 World Cup and 2023 Asian Cup in China got off to an explosive start today with Japan swamping Myanmar with 10-0 to secure their place in the third round of 2022 qualifying and guarantee a slot for the China 2023 Asian Cup.
Five goals from Yuya Osako after TakumiMinimino opened the scoring drove the Japanese to six wins out of six, and unassailable Group F lead with two matches remaining.
Japan are the first of the top 12 teams to automatically qualify for the Asian Cup 2023 with further qualification rounds for the other 12 qualifiers for that competition to be played. Japan also qualified for the second group qualifying stage for Qatar 2022.
Having postponed competitive play for the March international window, the AFC scheduled May 31 to June 15 for the completion of groups that will be hosted in China, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Japan, the UAE and the Korean Republic.
More than 60 matches in the Asian qualifier group stages remain to be played with all teams having already completed between four and six fixtures.
Not all the groups will be as straightforward as Japan’s romp to the next round with a number of groups delicately poised.
China were one of the first nations to commit to hosting and on Sunday will face Syria at the Suzhou Olympic Sports Centre in a bid to reduce the eight-point deficit with leaders Syria. China have a game in hand with four to play.
Nepal and Chinese Taipei will kick off the action in Group B on June 3, but group attention will be focussed on hosts Kuwait, second behind Australia by two points, who will be looking to break the Aussies’ unbeaten run.
In Group C, Asian powerhouses Iran face fourth-placed Hong Kong facing off at the Al Muharraq Stadium in Bahrain. Hosts Bahrain, two points behind Iran, take on Cambodia at the Bahrain National Stadium in Riffa two hours later.
Saudi Arabia, who have also committed to hosting three Champions League groups in June, will host Group D rivals Uzbekistan, Singapore, Yemen and Palestine. The Uzbeks lead the group by a point over the Saudis who have a game in hand, though first group action will be between Singapore and Palestine.
Qatar, who will be heading to guest at the Gold Cup in the US after the qualifiers, are in action against India in Group E, with Bangladesh taking on Afghanistan in Doha.
The closest fought group currently is Group G which is led by Vietnam who are two points ahead of Malaysia and a further point in front of Thailand. Hosts UAE are two points off Thailand but have a game in hand with four to play. Victory for either Malaysia or host United Arab Emirates in their battle on Thursday will change the dynamics of the standings as Thailand prepare to face Indonesia.
Group K, to be hosted in South Korea, is similarly tight. The hosts are on the same points as Lebanon and DPR Korea, a point behind Turkmenistan but with a game in hand. Korea are aiming to take a record of nine consecutive FIFA World Cup appearances to double figures, but open up against an inspired and rapidly improved Turkmenistan side.
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