Jackson Irvine stars again as Australia clinch key World Cup win over China | World Cup 2026 qualifiers

Jackson Irvine further established himself as the face of the Socceroos, Nishan Velupillay netted his third goal in just his fourth senior international, and Australia weathered a second-half storm to take another step towards securing automatic qualification for the 2026 World Cup with a 2-0 win over China.

Given that the worst part of it may have come 1,900km away in Saitama, where Saudi Arabia held Japan to a 0-0 draw to stay within touching distance in their qualification group, it was a decent evening for still undefeated national team boss Tony Popovic and his side at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Centre Stadium.

But that unlikely point snatched by the Green Falcons does mean Australia’s hopes of securing automatic progression through to 2026 will come down to the final two games of this third phase of Asian qualification in June.

Having taken maximum points from the March window, the Socceroos now sit on 13, three clear of third-placed Saudi Arabia. They host the Samurai Blue, who have already booked their place in North America, in Perth next up, while the Saudis will travel to face Bahrain. The Socceroos then travel to Saudi – most likely Riyadh – in what could serve as a win-and-you’re-off-to-the-World-Cup game for both. Nonetheless, wins over Indonesia and China was all the Socceroos could do this window and, having had results go their way plenty in recent months, a spanner was eventually going to be thrown in the works.

With 50,588 fans in the stands, a sea of red greeted the two sides entered the pitch on Tuesday but once the opening whistle sounded, it was only those in green and gold making the early running. After netting a brace against Indonesia last week, Irvine kissed a curling, left-footed effort into the top corner in the 15th minute to give his side an early lead, one doubled just before the half-hour mark when a calamitous error from Chinese keeper Wang Dalei saw Velupillay’s first-time effort slip from his embrace and roll into the back of the net.

Having emphasised starting quickly, there was plenty of movement, quick passes, and link-up play by the Australians. And while their dearth of players that could operate in a phone box was notable against China’s packed defence, they looked more comfortable in a game at this stage than they had since hammering Vietnam three years ago. .

Forced out of their shells and stung at going behind in front of a raucous home crowd, the two-goal deficit seemed to wake the hosts and every attack they launched was given the air of lethal promise by the deafening noise that rose to meet it. There was a decided air of intent and purpose to the hosts, who, after creating hardly anything of note in the first half, sent in eight shots to two across the second 45 minutes and controlled possession across the second stanza.

The Australians, in contrast, after a high-energy start to the game, could hardly retain possession during the moments they were able to get the ball into the Chinese’s side of the pitch; the hold-up play of Adam Taggart, forced out of the squad with an injury picked up against the Indonesians, notable in its absence.

Yet try as they might, Branko Ivankovic’s side couldn’t find a way through the visitor’s resistance. Amidst a furious opening to the second half, halftime substitute Sai Erjiniao – a newly naturalised Brazilian-born attacker previously known as Serginho – produced the best of his side’s chances in the 54th when he fired in an effort from the top of the box, only for Maty Ryan to spring upwards and palm the ball away. That was the only save the Australian skipper was forced to make in the second-half, Tuesday’s defeat ensuring that China are now mathematically unable to qualify for the World Cup in this phase, and must instead seek to avoid a bottom-two finish in Group C that would eliminate them entirely.