China beat Oman 3-0 in AFC Under-23 opener

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The 2018 AFC U-23 Championship is taking place in Changzhou City in east China’s Jiangsu Province where 16 teams are looking to clinch the title won by Japan two years ago.

Hosts China beat Oman 3-0 in their Group A opener on Tuesday.

China took the lead on the half-hour mark following Wei Shihao's clever back-heel pass on the wing.

The 22-year-old Wei Shihao, who joined Beijing Guo’an permanently from Portugal's Leixoes in January, provided another assist four minutes later. Li Xiaoming bravely guided the ball home to give China a 2-0 lead at the break.

Chinese player Wei Shihao in action /‍VCG Photo

Left-winger Wei Shihao stormed into the penalty area and put the game beyond doubt for China as he scored the hosts' third goal eight minutes into the second half.

Ahmed Al Kaabi came close to pulling one back for Oman, but his shot was saved by Gao Zhunyi on the goal-line on the hour mark. China beat Oman 3-0 to earn their first points.

They will meet Uzbekistan next on Friday, as the Omanis take on Qatar.

China's Under-23 player Yang Liyu. /VCG Photo

The Chinese Football Association (CFA) announced new rules to govern the use of foreign and young players in local professional leagues last month. The rules stipulate that at no time should the number of foreign players on the pitch exceed local players under the age of 23. There is no time limit on how long the youngsters must play.

As for the top Chinese Super League (CSL), the total number of foreigners on the pitch cannot go beyond three. In the lower League one, the number of imported players cannot be more than two.

The victory proves that youth players are improving.