Japan overwhelmed China 7-0 in the match of the third round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification to place first in Group C right after the initial day. In the attacks, Cerezo Osaka’s Takumi Minamino scored two goals, and Kawasaki Frontale’s 19-year-old wonder-kid goalkeeper Kota Takai started his first international match at Saitama Stadium 2002.

This game exposed Takai’s good debut on the international scene as well as Minamino’s accuracy as it also featured waves of dynamic raids but a steady handling by an experienced team.

Wataru Endo, who played for Shonan Bellmare and the Urawa Reds previously, won the match for the Samurai Blue again and he set the ball rolling for the goals. Japan completely outplayed them from the period that he emerged from the pack and headed a corner home.

Japan did not deter from their attacking play with most of the action involving former Gamba Osaka player Ritsu Doan. Shortly before the break, he was involved in the creation of Japan’s second goal, which demonstrated his attacking instincts. Japan went into the break 2-0 up thanks to a good cross from Doan who found Mitama favourite son of Kawasaki Frontale who headed home with ease.

The first segment belonging to the second half was owned by Minamino. He balletically slipped by a defender and immediately propelled the ball with a beautiful dip into the back of the net to add more to Japan’s tally. After 54 minutes, he kicked his second goal and propelled Japan to a rampant 4-0 lead after cleverly sprinting through three players and placing a low shot past the keeper into the bottom right corner.

Subsequently, head coach Hajime Moriyasu invoked his second string and introduced young Takai in his first national team appearance. As the 19-year-old confidently stepped up, he led the defense and brought stability as Japan cruised to victory.

Junya Ito who played for Ventforet Kofu and developed his talent at Kashiwa Reysol added vitality to the team. He curled one from 18 yards which was a slight touch by a defender and ended up in the back of the net to make it 5-0 for Japan.

Soon after that, Ito transfers to the playmaking position and delivered a fine pass to Yokohama F¡Marinos’ 2021 J1 League Top Scorer Daizen Maeda. Maeda aptly seized the opportunity brought about by the pass and scored with confidence to further extend the team’s lead over Samurai Blue.

This humiliating 7-0 defeat of Japan was compounded by Takefusa Kubo, who in extra time rounded off the match with an excellent shot into the upper right corner. The goal by the former FC Tokyo player enjoys the climax of all the performances that had been made.

Japan should be ready to switch over to the next group after the 3 points gained and the +7 goal difference from this overwhelming victory. The upper two teams will participate in FIFA World Cup 2026, so for the Samurai Blue, this looks very promising. Their next match will be with Bahrain, who equally emerged victorious in their first match, with three points.

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