SINGAPORE — Oman swatted aside a tentative Singapore 2-0 Wednesday to make it two wins from two as it went top of Group A in Asian Cup qualifying. Singapore, under the guidance of new coach Bernd Stange, dominated possession in the first half but offered little in attack with Paul Le Guen's side proving clinical with its few chances. Qasim Said eased past a static home defense to fire Oman into a 15th-minute lead with his fellow midfielder Eid Al-Farsi blasting a low drilled shot from 22 meters to double the advantage on the stroke of halftime. The home side wilted in the second half with Oman guilty of wasting several chances to improve its goal difference in the four-team group, also featuring Syria and Jordan, where two sides will qualify for the Finals in Australia in 2015. Syria hosts Jordan in Iran Thursday in the other Group A match in the second round. The teams are back in Asian Cup qualifying action in October along with the other 16 sides trying to reach the Finals in Australia where the host, holder Japan and South and North Korea all have places and do not need to qualify. Uruguay downs Japan 4-2 Diego Forlan's first-half brace powered Uruguay to a 4-2 victory over host Japan in an international friendly at the Miyagi Stadium Wednesday. In another friendly, South Korea held visitors Peru to a goalless draw at the Suwon World Cup Stadium. Japan, the first team to qualify for next year's World Cup in Brazil, could not capitalize on its dominance of possession and also paid the price of a shaky defense that allowed Forlan, Luis Suarez and Alvaro Gonzalez to score. Shinji Kagawa and Keisuke Honda reduced the deficit for Japan with second-half strikes but the team's porous defense was a worry for coach Alberto Zaccheroni. Both goalkeepers were kept busy in the opening 20 minutes with Japan's Eiji Kawashima twice denying Liverpool striker Suarez who posed a constant threat to the hosts. Suarez beat the offside trap in the 27th minute to dart into the box from the left and feed Forlan who slotted it home. Two minutes later, 2010 World Cup Golden Ball winner Forlan curled in a 20-meter free kick after Yasuyuki Konno had fouled Suarez. Forlan, again set up by Suarez, nearly completed a hat trick in the 35th but was denied by another brilliant save by Kawashima who also foiled Cristian Rodriguez's 20-meter effort just before halftime. Suarez got on the scoresheet seven minutes after the break, slotting home after Maya Yoshida failed to clear a cross. A defensive blunder by Uruguay allowed Japan to pull one back when Honda's deft lob reached Kagawa and the Manchester United player tapped it into an empty goal. An unmarked Gonzalez headed in on 58 minutes to put Uruguay 4-1 up but Japan reduced the gap once again when Honda's stunning free kick took a slight deflection before finding the net. The host stepped up its attack in the last 10 minutes but Honda's spectacular attempt sailed over, while Shinji Okazaki and Yasuhito Endo shot wide. In other early matches Tajikistan beat India 3-0, while Egypt also routed Uganda by the same margin and Indonesia beat the Philippines 2-0. — Agencies
