Japan secured its spot in the World Cup finals as the world's top team and conducted a rotation. In response, China expressed strong dissatisfaction, emphasizing that it was a way to block China's World Cup qualification.

Coached by Hajime Moriyasu, Japan drew 0-0 against Saudi Arabia in the home match of the 8th round of Group C in the 2026 FIFA North and Central American World Cup Asian Third Qualifying on the 25th at Saitama Stadium in Japan.

Fielding a 1.5 Army, Japan showcased equal competitiveness against Saudi Arabia, which fielded its strongest team.

With 6 wins and 2 draws, Japan secured the top spot in Group C with 20 points. Even if Japan loses all in the upcoming 9th and 10th qualifying matches in June, and second-place Australia (13 points) wins all, Japan will still maintain its lead.

Earlier, on the 20th, Japan became the first nation to qualify for the World Cup finals after defeating Bahrain 2-0 in the 7th qualifying round.

Ranked 15th in the FIFA rankings, Japan is the highest-ranked team among Asian Football Confederation (AFC) members and demonstrated overwhelming performance by scoring 24 goals and conceding only 2 in 8 matches of the third qualifying round.

In the third qualifying round, the top two teams from each group receive direct tickets to the North and Central American World Cup finals. While Japan has established a clear leadership, Australia, Saudi Arabia, and Indonesia are competing for second place.

Currently, Australia is in second place, followed by Saudi Arabia (10 points) in third. Indonesia is in fourth place (9 points).

China remains at the bottom of Group C in 6th place, with 2 wins and 6 losses (6 points). China's team faced a crushing defeat of 0-2 at home against Australia on the 25th, putting them on the brink.

Fans of the bottom-placed China expressed strong dissatisfaction with Japan's draw.

Soccer Digest reported, "Chinese media expressed strong dissatisfaction regarding Japan's draw with Saudi Arabia, believing it harms China's World Cup participation."

It followed up with, "Chinese media remarked that 'Japan gifted 1 point to Saudi Arabia, thereby establishing a favorable position.'"

Chinese media, including Sohu.com, maintain a spirit of not giving up on World Cup participation despite being at the bottom. Thus, they find it regrettable that Saudi Arabia, in second place, has a chance.

In particular, Sohu.com questioned, "Why did Japan conduct rotations against Saudi Arabia, resulting in a 4-point gap? Japan failed to conquer Saudi Arabia's defense. It was overwhelmingly dominant historically, yet this time it's incomprehensible," expressing strong dissatisfaction.

A total of 8.5 tickets are allocated to Asia for the North and Central American World Cup. In the Asian Third Qualifying, the top 6 teams from each group's 1st and 2nd places can advance directly to the World Cup finals. The 6 teams finishing 3rd and 4th in each group must be divided into 2 new groups for the Fourth Qualifying round. Only the top team receives a finals ticket. The two teams that ranked 2nd in the Fourth Qualifying face off, and the winner can enter the 'final hurdle' continental playoffs.

Essentially, it can be said that Japan, Australia, and Saudi Arabia have secured the top 3 positions in Group C. The remaining 4th spot is being contested by Indonesia, Bahrain, and China.

For China, the remaining 2 games will coincidentally be against Indonesia and Bahrain in June. If China wins both matches, their points will rise to 12. Indonesia has matches left against China and Japan. Realistically, defeating Japan won't be easy. If Indonesia loses to China, they are likely to remain at 9 points. In this case, China's ranking will improve.

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