Hajime Moriyasu’s team had few concerns on their way to a victory over a Chinese side that offered little threat despite an improved performance in the second half, and Li Tie’s side remain without a point having also lost their opener against Australia last week.

Japan pick up their first points and the win will have lifted some of the pressure that was growing on head coach Moriyasu after the disappointing performance on home soil against Branko Ivankovic’s side on Thursday.

The result of a superb team move in the 42nd minute, Al Shehri’s strike was the decisive moment of a cagey and hard-fought affair, taking the Green Falcons level with group leaders Australia on the maximum six points after two Matchdays.

Oman showed glimpses of quality but failed to reach the heights of Thursday’s shock win away to Japan until a frantic but fruitless finale, and remain third on the Group B table with three points.

An opening 45 minutes of few chances saw Australia break the deadlock in the 43rd minute through Grant and, despite Vietnam having more of the ball after the interval, the Socceroos were able to see out the game to claim the victory.

The result sees Graham Arnold’s Australia move to six points at the top of the standings and leaves the Golden Stars still seeking their first points having lost two from two.

After a goalless first half that saw Lebanon goalkeeper Mostafa Matar make a series of stunning saves, Suwon Samsung Bluewings midfielder Kwon netted the tie’s only goal for a final score that did not truly reflect the home side’s dominance against an opponent they had twice met in the previous round of qualifying.

Having won their opening fixture, IR Iran looked to consolidate their position at the top of Group A going into the next international break at Iraq’s expense, something they fully achieved in both the result and performance.

Syria had been beaten by Islamic Republic of Iran 1-0 on the previous matchday while the UAE’s opening tie of the group saw them settle for a goalless draw on home soil against Lebanon.

A solitary strike from Maysa Jbarah made all the difference in the decider, with the star striker finding the net five minutes from time to register her sixth goal of the tournament, and crown Jordan as the champions of a tournament featuring teams from both Asia and Africa.

The win capped a dream finale to a Jordanian campaign which began with a 3-1 group stage defeat against Algeria but sprung to life when Jbarah scored twice in a 4-1 win against neighbours Palestine.

David Nascimento’s side continued their resurgence with a thumping 5-2 win over tournament hosts Egypt in the semi-finals, with Monday’s victory over Tunisia completing their mission in the first tournament of its kind since 2006.