CHONGQING, Sept. 24 (Xinhua) -- China beat the Maldives 3-0 in the opening match of the CFA Team China International Football Competitions Chongqing on Thursday, with Wang Ziming scoring a second-half hat-trick.
Neither side found the net in the first half, as China struggled to find its rhythm, managing nine shots with only two on target.
China made nine changes after the break and quickly found the breakthrough. In the 50th minute, substitute Wang Shangyuan threaded a through ball to Wang Ziming, who raced clear and fired a low shot into the net.
Six minutes later, substitute Chen Pu delivered a cross for Wang Ziming to head home for his second.
Wang completed his hat-trick on the hour mark, applying a deft finish near the six-yard box after Wang Gengrui's cross from the flank.
Many players made their senior national team debut, while high school student Zhao Songyuan became the youngest player ever to represent China's men's national team.
Head coach Shao Jiayi is expected to use the four matches to experiment his squad and assess new players ahead of the 2027 AFC Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia.
At the post-match press conference, Shao said that the team had carried out its pre-match plans well in terms of achieving its objectives, adding that China had not played a competitive match for nearly three weeks, and that it would take time for the players to get back in sharp form.
In other action on Thursday, Palestine and New Zealand played out a 2-2 draw. ■
