Football News : Asian WCQ: Japan rout minnows, Australia ease

By ESPNsoccernet staff

Japan thrashed minnows Tajikstan 8-0 to maintain their lead at the top of Asian World Cup qualifying Group C, with Mike Havenaar, Shinji Okazaki and Shinji Kagawa all scoring twice for the Blue Samuari.

GettyImagesShinji Kagawa and Shinji Okazaki bagged a brace each for Japan against Tajikstan

Tajikstan managed to keep Alberto Zaccheroni's side at bay for 11 minutes, but the floodgates opened when Havenaar headed home Yuichi Komano's cross. Japan were 4-0 up at half-time after goals from Okazaki, Komano - his first in international football - and Kagawa.

There was no let up after the break as the Central Asians were punished further by strikes from Havenaar, Kagawa, Kengo Nakamura and Okazaki, who all added goals after the break to complete the rout, with the latter's double taking him up to seventh on the list of Japan's all-time leading scorers.

Elsewhere in Group C, second-placed Uzbekistan remain unbeaten after Alexander Geynrikh's first-half goal saw them overcome North Korea 1-0 at Yanggakdo Stadium in Pyongyang. The Suwon Bluewings midfielder struck after 25 minutes to seal Uzbekistan's second victory as they move onto seven points after three games.

Arsenal striker Park Chu-Young kept up his impressive recent scoring record by netting the opener as South Korea recorded a narrow 2-1 victory of UAE to remain top of Group B with seven points.

Park broke the deadlock in the 51st minute, latching on to Seo Jung-Jin's threaded through-ball to slot the ball home and claim his seventh international goal in his past four games.

Ismail Hamdan headed Ki Sung-Yung's corner into his own net to double South Korea's advantage and though Ismai Matar scored in the 92nd minute, it was no more than a consolation for UAE, who have lost all three of their qualifying games so far.

Australia maintained their perfect record in the third round of Asian qualifying for the 2014 World Cup as they brushed aside Oman 3-0 at ANZ Stadium in Sydney.

Having already seen off Thailand and Saudi Arabia, Brett Holman set the hosts on their way to a third consecutive victory in Group D after just seven minutes when he slid home Matt McKay's low cross at the far post. Australia had to wait until the 65th minute to double their lead when Holman fed Luke Wilkshire inside the box and although his shot was saved, Josh Kennedy pounced on the rebound to fire home.

Mile Jedinak then put the result beyond any doubt five minutes from time as Wilkshire's free-kick picked out the midfielder u nmarked in the box and he made no mistake with the finish.

In the same group, Thailand held Saudi Arabia to a 0-0 draw to maintain second place. Saudi Arabia have had the better of recent games as they have won 11 of their last 12 against the Thais, but could not find their way past a strong defence with goalkeeper Sinthaweechai Hathairattanakool in fine form.

In qualifying Group A, Singapore were comfortably beaten 3-0 at home by Jordan as goals from Abdallah Deeb, Anas Bani Yaseen and Ahmad Ibrahim condemned the Southeast Asians to a third straight loss.

Younis Mahmoud's strike just before half-time gave 10-man Iraq a hard-fought 1-0 win over China at the Shenzhen Stadium. Mahmoud scored the only goal of the game in the dying minutes of the first period before defender Bassim Abbas was sent off midway through the second half after receiving a second yellow card. The win moved Iraq on to six points - three behind leaders Jordan.

Mohammed Razak's goal just before the hour mark saw Qatar pick up their first win in Group E with a 3-2 triumph over Indonesia at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium. The visitors took the lead through Abdulaziz Al Sultani after 14 minutes but Cristian Gonzales levelled for Indonesia 12 minutes later. Ibrahim Khalfan restored Qatar's advantage in the 32nd minute and, although Gonzales equalised for a second time three minutes later, Razak's winner thrust his side back into contention for one of the group's two qualification spots.