(MENAFN- Arab Times) Kuwait beat Laos 2-0 to preserve their perfect record in the Asian World Cup qualifying match on Tuesday in Laos.
Kuwait opened their account in the 31st minute through Youseff Nasser while in form Bader Al-Mutawa added the second seven minutes to the end of proceedings.
Kuwait dominated the game but missed many opportunities to increase their tally.
Laos sensing danger resorted to defensive strategy to minimize the damage.
South Korea who routed Lebanon 3-0 are on nine points with Kuwait but top Group G on goal difference. Kuwait will host South Korea on Oct 8 while Laos travel to Myanmar on Oct 13.
Shinji Kagawa and Shinji Okazaki scored twice each as four-times Asian champions Japan thrashed Afghanistan 6-0 in Tehran to keep their qualifying campaign for the 2018 World Cup on track.
Masato Morishige and Keisuke Honda also found the net for the Samurai Blue, who picked up their second successive win after being held to a shock goalless home draw by Singapore in their opening Group E fixture in June.
Manager Vahid Halilhodzic made one change to the Japan side who defeated lowly Cambodia 3-0 last week, bringing in Genki Haraguchi for striker Yoshinori Muto and the team did not have to wait for long for their opening goal.
Borussia Dortmund playmaker Kagawa, who also scored in the last match, struck in the 10th minute and Morishige doubled the lead 10 minutes before halftime for Japan, ranked 58th in the world.
Japan put the match to bed against 130th-ranked Afghanistan early in the second half when they scored three goals in the space of 10 minutes starting with the second from former Manchester United midfielder Kagawa in the 50th minute.
Okazaki made it 4-0 in the 57th and grabbed another three minutes later for his brace.
Honda netted in the 74th minute for his second goal in as many matches to complete the demolition.
The victory took Japan to seven points in second place in the group, two points behind Syria who they meet in their next qualifier in Oman on Oct 8.
War-torn neighbours Syria and Iraq continued their unbeaten starts to the Asian World Cup qualifying competition.
Forced to play all their matches away because of the problems in their homeland, Syria's Eagles made it three wins from three matches with a 6-0 thrashing of Cambodia at the Olympic Stadium in Phnom Penh.
Syria's 21-year-old striker Omar Khrbin scored twice, his first brace for his embattled country, while Mahmoud Al Mawas, Sanharib Malki, Omar Midani and Osama Omari also got on the scoresheet.
The victory - their second by that scoreline in the qualifiers - consolidated Syria's position at the top of the Asian Group E standings with nine points and 13 goals without reply.
Iraq surrendered a 2-0 lead, conceding two late goals to draw 2-2 with Thailand in Bangkok, but remain unbeaten. Iraq's American-born winger Justin Meram opened the scoring in the 34th minute. Then Iraq's captain, Younis Mahmoud, doubled the lead in the second half with his 55th international goal.
But Thailand, who won their first two matches, scored twice in the last 10 minutes through Theerathon Bunmathan and Mongkol Tossakrai, to remain at the head of Group F standings, although Iraq, three points behind, have a game in hand.
Jordan scored twice in each half in a 4-0 win over Bangladesh in Dhaka to remain undefeated in Group B, with Abdallah Deeb scoring a brace, including a penalty.
Kuwait defeated Laos 2-0 in Vientiane to preserve their 100 per cent record, while 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar continued the strong showing by Gulf teams, holding on for a 3-2 victory over previously unbeaten Hong Kong.
Qatar almost threw it away after leading 3-0 with three minutes of normal time left but head the Group C standings with nine points from three matches, followed by China and Hong Kong, both on seven.
China got their campaign back on track after last week's scoreless draw with Hong Kong, with a 3-0 win over the Maldives, with the help of two goals from striker Yu Dabao.
Vietnam registered their first win with a 2-1 victory over Taiwan, with Tran Phi Son scoring the winner in stoppage time on his international debut.
The tiny Pacific nation of Guam held Oman to a goalless draw, rekindling their fairytale start to the qualifying competition.
Guam showed no signs of a hangover from their 6-0 thrashing away to Iran last week as they continued their unbeaten run at home against the more fancied Oman team.
The pair are level at the top of the Asian Group D standings with seven points each, although Oman have a game in hand.
South Korea remained on course for their ninth consecutive appearance at the World Cup finals with a 3-0 victory in Lebanon on Tuesday. The win helped the Asian powerhouses maintain their perfect record in the qualifying campaign and took them to the top of Group G on nine points, ahead of Kuwait on goal difference.
Jang Hyun-soo converted a penalty in the 26th minute to put Korea, who defeated Myanmar and Laos in earlier matches, 1-0 up. It took another four minutes for them to double their lead through Koo Ja-cheol who was the top scorer at the 2011 Asian Cup.
The World Cup qualifier between Malaysia and Saudi Arabia at Shah Alam Stadium in Selangor on Tuesday was abandoned just before fulltime because of crowd trouble.
The visiting Saudi Arabia team were leading 2-1 in the Group A Asian qualifier when play was stopped in the 87th minute after fans launched flares and fireworks on to the pitch, local media reported.
Players from both teams left the pitch as smoke began filling the ground and did not return. The match was later abandoned with the outcome to be decided by the sport's world governing body FIFA.
Malaysia led 1-0 when Mohd Safiq Rahim scored in the 70th minute but Saudi Arabia equalised three minutes later through Taisir Al-Jassim and took the lead after 76 minutes when Mohammed Al-Sahlawi scored.
Iran brushed aside India 3-0 in a one-sided World Cup qualifier on Tuesday to climb to the top of Group D on goal difference and leave the hosts glued to the bottom of the standings with three defeats in three games.
Sardar Azmoun put the visitors ahead in the 28th minute before captain Andranik Teymourian and striker Mehdi Taremi added two goals in the space of four minutes soon after the interval to wrap up the win.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.