Both teams are preparing for the second round of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and AFC Asian Cup 2023 Joint Qualification which kicks off in September but Iran were in a class of their own as new head coach Marc Wilmots got off to a winning start.

Richarlison opened the scoring in the 17th minute but Brazil suffered a blow just after as talisman Neymar departed with pain in his right ankle.

Gabriel Jesus added a second goal in the 23rd minute and despite AFC Asian Cup champions Qatar's best efforts, the West Asians couldn't find a way past the Brazil defence.

Japan attacked from the first blow of the whistle but could not find a way past the Trinidad defence and Phillip.

Japan next take on El Salvador at Hitomebore Stadium Miyagi on Sunday before leaving for the Copa America, which gets under way on June 14.

Japan will play in Group C of the Copa America with Chile, Ecuador and Uruguay also in the fray. Asian champions Qatar will play in Group B with Argentina, Colombia and Paraguay to contend with.

Evolution, not revolution for Uzbekistan

After his first tournament in charge of Uzbekistan, the AFC Asian Cup, ended in a Round-of-16 exit at the hands of Australia, Hector Cuper made nine changes to his squad ahead of friendlies with Turkey, DPR Korea and Syria.

Following the retirement of iconic goalkeeper Ignatiy Nesterov, it was Pakhtakor’s Eldor Suyunov who was handed the starting spot between the sticks in Antalya as the Uzbeks fell to a 2-0 defeat on Sunday.

The 22-strong squad is dominated by national champions FC Dordoi, with 13 players provided by the Bishkek-based club, which is also coached by national team boss Alexander Krestinin.

The Akshumkar provided one of the feel-good stories of January’s Continental Finals, reaching the knockout stage on their tournament debut before losing to hosts United Arab Emirates in the Round of 16.

India have enjoyed success in recent times and won many admirers for their performance in the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 and expectations are for the team to continue building on that, especially with the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar Qualifiers to kick off soon

In former international Stimac, India have a head coach who has enjoyed success both as a player and a coach and he shares his thoughts and aspirations in an interview with the-AFC.com.

Wilmots, a former Belgium international and head coach, will lead Asia’s top ranked team with the aim of competing in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.

His first task will be to prepare Team Melli for international friendly matches against Korea Republic and Syria next month.