A rampant display which produced three goals in a scintillating first half guaranteed Japan both pole position in Group B and a last eight encounter with the runners-up from Group A, while Thailand can still progress, although they must now beat DPR Korea on Thursday to stand any chance of advancing.

Fresh from their Matchday One victory over DPR Korea, Japan were quick out of the blocks at the Pakansari Stadium in Bogor as Taisei Miyashiro saw his 15th minute effort from 12 yards smartly gathered by Thailand goalkeeper Krisawat Kongkot.

Having opened their campaign with a hefty loss to Japan, Pak Kwang-chon’s second half goal helped Ri Chol’s charges grab a vital victory that leaves them well placed to progress with one group stage game to come against Thailand on Thursday.

DPR Korea’s success saw the East Asians go second in Group B behind table-topping Japan who confirmed their progress with a 3-1 defeat of fourth-placed Thailand in the group’s later game. Iraq, meanwhile, are third on one point, but still in contention.

The 12-time champions led for the vast majority of the match, but Jordan looked to have salvaged a point with 13 minutes remaining, only for late goals to Jeon Se-jin's and Choi Jun to steer the Koreans to victory.

Anything but defeat against winless Vietnam on Thursday will now confirm Korea Republic's return to the knockout stage, after suffering group stage eliminations in the past two edition's of the competition.

Angus Thurgate and Ben Folami scored either side of half-time to give the Young Socceroos a commanding lead, but Vietnam hit back through substitute Le Van Nam to ensure a nail-biting finale at Patrior Chandrabhaga Stadium.

The result temporarily gives Australia top spot in Group C, while Vietnam cannot advance to the quarter-finals, regardless of their result against Korea Republic on Thursday.

The East Asian team suffered a painful 1-0 defeat in their opening fixture against Tajikistan, conceding to a spectacular Sharafjon Solehov strike after 77 minutes of tense, competitive football.

A similar result against group leaders Saudi Arabia could see Cheng's side eliminated on Tuesday, but the 51-year-old insists his team's campaign is far from over.

"Of course (we can still qualify). This is not the end for us," he said.

"This is football. Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose, but we still have a chance and we are looking forward to the next game."

On what proved to be a sensational night at Jakarta’s Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, Qatar made the most of several Indonesian defensive lapses to take a 4-1 lead into the half-time break and then extend their advantage with two more goals after the break.

Despite a subsequent Indonesian revival which saw them come within a whisker of taking a point, Sjafri was more than aware of the damage that had been done in the opening 45 minutes.

The Emiratis dominated proceedings from the first whistle as Ali Saleh, Majid Rashid and Rashed Mubarak all scored twice to cement the UAE’s position at the top of Group A and edge them closer to a place in the competition’s quarter-finals.

With a final fixture at this stage of the competition to come against hosts Indonesia on Wednesday, Batelli believes the margin of victory will only have a positive impact on the UAE youngsters.