China get past Bahrain 1-0 for second win in World Cup qualifier

Wu Lei's 1st half goal the difference as China make it two wins in a row to remain 2nd in Group B

Group B: Australia 12 points, China 6 points, Japan 4 points, Oman 3 points, Saudi Arabia 3 points, Vietnam 0 points

WUHAN, China (Reuters) - Substitute Wu Lei scored his 10th goal in World Cup qualifiers as China beat Bahrain 1-0 at home on Tuesday to maintain their hopes of reaching a second consecutive finals.

The Espanyol forward replaced Zhang Yuning in the 26th minute and nine minutes later headed in Wu Xi's cross, his goal ultimately proving enough to earn Li Tie's team three points and send them second in Group B.

After two rounds of matches, Australia lead the standings with a perfect record while Japan, Oman and Saudi Arabia all have three points. Vietnam are bottom having lost both their games.

Tuesday's game was played in front of around 20,000 fans in Wuhan and China dominated possession throughout but found clear-cut chances hard to come by.

Zhang Yuning dragged a shot wide in the first half and Wu Lei headed over after the break, while Bahrain's only real effort on goal was a deflected shot from Mahdi Al-Humaidan that was easily saved by Yan Junling.

China, who lost 3-0 away to Australia in their opening match, will now face Oman at home on Oct. 7, while Bahrain will host Vietnam on the same day.