Along with Saudi Arabia, Australia looked likely to seal one of the group’s two direct qualification places after winning their first three Final Round matches, but they lost in Japan on Matchday Four, then played out a goalless draw against the Saudis on their long-awaited return to home soil last Thursday, bringing them closer to the chasers.

 

By contrast, China PR’s qualification hopes looked slim when they went goalless in defeats to Australia and Japan, but a win over Vietnam and a draw with Oman either side of a 3-2 defeat in Saudi Arabia have given a semblance of hope to Asia’s most populous nation.

 

That will turn into real belief should Li’s side claim all three points, in what is nominally a home fixture in Sharjah, with a win to potentially put them within three points of the top two positions.

Australia head coach Graham Arnold believes his side remains in a strong position to reach a fifth successive FIFA World Cup, but they will need to overcome the significant loss of star central defender Harry Souttar, who suffered a long-term knee injury in Sydney on Thursday.

 

Arnold will also need to decide who leads the line for his side.

Adam Taggart Is out injured after starting Australia’s first four Final Round matches while Mathew Leckie started against the Saudis having not played a competitive match since June and managed only one shot at goal as the Socceroos went goalless for the first time in two and a half years.

 

Other options, like Mitch Duke and Andrew Nabbout, were deployed in cameo roles in Sydney, while Jamie Maclaren and Nikita Rukavytsya remained on the bench.

While debate rages about who should be given the responsibility of scoring Australia’s goals, there is little doubt who China PR will look towards to spearhead their attack.

 

Wu Lei has recently appeared in fits and starts for his club side Espanyol, but he is an indispensable ingredient in China PR’s bid to reach their first FIFA World Cup in 20 years.

The former Shanghai SIPG star’s contribution has been nothing short of vital so far in the Final Round, with all four of his team’s points coming as a direct result of his goals, the most recent being the sharp poacher’s finish which gave them the lead against Oman on Thursday.

 

Across the full campaign only Ali Mabkhout of the United Arab Emirates has scored more, with Wu’s tally of 11 goals in 13 matches good enough for second on the global scoring charts on the Road to Qatar 2022.

 

But while Wu’s brilliance has been a shining light in their campaign, China PR still face a monumental task if they are to get themselves back into contention for a place in Qatar 2022.

They’ve had less shots at goal than their opponents in all five of their Final Round matches, including their Matchday Three win over Vietnam, and their previous meeting against the Socceroos was something of a mismatch, with the Australians enjoying full control on the way to a 3-0 win.

 

A similar performance on Tuesday could see China PR fall nine points behind Australia, and as many as eight behind the play-off position, making the second match between the sides one that, for different reasons, neither would dare lose.

China PR v Australia
Venue: Sharjah Stadium, Sharjah
Kick-off: Tuesday, 19:00 hours (UTC+4)