Man-of the-moment Yuya Kubo scored a goal and set up two more as Japan took a step closer to a sixth straight World Cup appearance with a 4-0 drubbing of Thailand on Tuesday.
Gent striker Kubo, who scored his first international goal in his third appearance in Japan's 2-0 win over the United Arab Emirates last Thursday, set up Shinji Kagawa for Japan's opener in the eighth minute at Saitama Stadium before crossing for Shinji Okazaki to double the lead 11 minutes later.
The 23-year-old Kubo then notched one himself as Japan took a three-goal lead early in the second half, before Maya Yoshida added a fourth and goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima saved a late penalty to send Japan provisionally top of the qualifying Group B table.