Japan score four as Samurai Blue brush aside Paraguay

First-half goals from Takuma Asano and Daichi Kamada sent World Cup qualifiers Japan on their way to a comfortable 4-1 friendly win over Paraguay in Sapporo on Thursday.

Asano struck in the 36th minute to give Japan the lead and Kamada doubled his side's advantage six minutes later to hand Hajime Moriyasu's team a two-goal cushion.

Derlis Gonzalez pulled one back for the visitors in the 59th minute, but Kaoru Mitoma struck less than a minute later, before Ao Tanaka came off the bench to hit a late fourth after Ritsu Doan had seen his penalty saved.

The Samurai Blue, who will be making their seventh straight World Cup appearance in Qatar in November, dominated throughout, with Kamada hitting the post as early as the 11th minute.

Nine minutes before the interval Genki Haraguchi's through-pass released Asano, and the Bochum striker dinked the ball calmly over the advancing Santiago Rojas.

Six minutes later midfielder Kamada nodded Doan's perfectly flighted cross from the right in off Rojas' shoulder.

Paraguay pulled one back on the hour when Gonzalez struck from outside the area after debutant Hiroki Ito gave away possession deep in his own half.

But Japan's two-goal cushion was restored within a minute and Haraguchi was again the provider as he found Mitoma unmarked in the area, allowing the winger to lift the ball over Rojas.

Doan was unable to add a fourth when his 70th minute penalty was saved by Rojas but late substitute Tanaka hit a composed strike from 20 yards out five minutes from time.

It was the first of four friendly matches in June for the Japanese, with Moriyasu's side to face Brazil on June 6 in Tokyo.

They will then take on Ghana on June 10 in the Kirin Cup competition before meeting either Chile or Tunisia on June