China's star striker Wu Lei, a former Spanish La Liga player, scored a brace for a second straight game, one each half, to clinch Team China's second group-stage win, following a 2-1 defeat of Thailand in November, and helped new head coach Branko Ivankovic secure his first victory at the helm.

"After settling with a draw in the last game we'd suffered a lot of pressure. We made some adjustment coming back home and finally played loose and more confidently today," said Wu, who has scored five goals in four games during the first-round qualifying campaign.