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Ayase Ueda and Hidemasa Morita scored braces before Koki Ogawa completed the rout as Japan won 5-0 away to Bahrain on Tuesday to make it two wins from two in the Asian final round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. After beginning the Group C campaign on Thursday with a 7-0 home mauling of China, the 18th-ranked Samurai Blue maintained their perfect start with another big win and a clean sheet, this time against the 80th-ranked hosts at Bahrain National Stadium. Ritsu Doan hit the woodwork off Kaoru Mitoma’s ninth-minute cross at the far post before Komail Al Aswad’s header was pushed away for …

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