China beat North Korea in friendly

Posted Thursday, June 09, 2011 by YAHOO Sport

BEIJING (AFP) - China ended its warm-up matches ahead of 2014 World Cup qualifying Wednesday with a 2-0 victory over a seasoned North Korea in a friendly in front of a boisterous crowd in Guizhou.

Midfielder Deng Zhuoxiang opened China's account in the 36th minute, taking a Gao Lin cross in front of goal to slot home a sweet left-footer.

Less than three minutes later, striker Gao headed home a second, nodding a Yu Hai cross from the left wing past North Korean goalkeeper Ri Myong Guk.

In the second half the visitors—largely made up of the World Cup side from South Africa—rarely threatened except for a volley by striker Jong Il Gwan that ricocheted off the crossbar in the 80th minute.

China begin their World Cup qualifying campaign in July with a match against the winner of a playoff between Cambodia and Laos. North Korea are a direct entrant into the third round of Asian qualifying.

During their first and only appearance in a World Cup final tournament, China failed to win a match or even score in the 2002 event jointly hosted by Japan and South Korea.

Their failure to reach the knockout stages of the 2011 Asian Cup in Doha in January further deepened fans' frustration over the inability of the world's most populous nation to succeed in the world's most popular sport.

But the Chinese side has ended a string of five friendly matches with a record of three wins and two draws, beating Honduras, Uzbekistan and the North Koreans, while tying Costa Rica and New Zealand.