Overview before the China - Japan match
The home team is fourth in Group C after five matches, with six points along with Australia and Saudi Arabia, while the visitors top the group with 13 points after five matches.
China's only World Cup finals appearance was in 2002. In that tournament, they finished bottom of their group after losing all three matches, conceding nine goals without scoring a single one.
Branko Ivankovic, who was appointed to lead the Chinese national team in February 2024, has experienced challenging matches with his team in the World Cup qualifiers. The Chinese team lost their first three matches against Japan, Saudi Arabia and Australia. That put Ivankovic under a lot of pressure.
However, the Chinese team made a big turning point when defeating Indonesia 2-1 and Bahrain 1-0, thereby climbing to 4th place and nurturing hopes of entering the Top 2 to qualify for the 2026 World Cup.
Three points against Japan will significantly increase the home team's chances of advancing. However, winning the match for China will not be easy, because Japan is the strongest team in the group, even considered the strongest in Asia at the moment.
Japan have shown their superiority in Group C, winning 4 and drawing 1 of their last 5 matches. They lead the group with 13 points, 7 points ahead of second-placed Australia, scoring 19 goals and conceding just 1.
Hajime Moriyasu's side had their winning streak ended when they drew 1-1 with Australia in October, but they bounced back strongly by beating Indonesia 4-0 on 15 November.
Japan are aiming for their eighth consecutive World Cup appearance. If they beat China, they will come close to achieving that goal.
Force information
Shangyuan Wang and Lei Li both had to leave the field due to injury in China's 1-0 win over Bahrain, leaving both players in doubt.
Zhang Yuning scored in both of China's Group C victories and the striker is likely to start alongside Baihelamu Abuduwaili on 19 November.
As for the away team, they easily won 4-0 against Indonesia in their last match. With abundant forces, the Japanese team can completely shuffle some positions to play against the Chinese team.
Head to head record, score prediction
In the last 7 meetings, Japan has defeated China 5 times while the remaining 2 matches ended in a draw. In the first leg, Japan won China 7-0 at home.
Japan last lost in February this year when they lost 1-2 to Iran in the round of 16 of the 2023 Asian Cup. Since then, they have won 8 of their next 9 matches, drawing 1. In the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, they have won 4 and drawn 1. They beat Indonesia 4-0 in their most recent match.
Meanwhile, China have won their last two matches. Before that, Ivankovic's team had a five-match winless streak, including four consecutive losses. China is ranked 92nd in the FIFA world rankings, while Japan is ranked 15th.
With the difference in skill level, the Japanese team will have many opportunities to defeat the home team, maybe even win big.
Expected lineup:
Chinese team: Wang Dalei, Zhu Chenjie, Li Lei, Jiang Shenglong, Yang Zexiang, Lin Liangming, Wang Shangyuan, Li Yuanyi, Wei Shihao, Wu Lei, Zhang Yuning.
Japan team: Zion Suzuki, Daiki Hashioka, Koki Machida, Ko Itakura, Kaoru Mitoma, Hidemasa Morita, Wataru Endo, Ritsu Doan, Daichi Kamada, Koki Ogawa, Takumi Minamino.
Score prediction: China 0-3 Japan.
