China beats Laos 7-2 in WCup qualifying
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tweet5EmailPrintKUNMING, China (AP)—China recovered from an early two-goal deficit to beat Laos 7-2 on Saturday in the first leg of their World Cup qualifying match.

A shock home defeat loomed for China when Laos went 2-0 up in the 32nd minute through goals from Soukaphone Vongchiengkham and Visay Phapouvanin.

But the introduction of striker Yang Xu as a substitute turned the game around as he scored a hat trick and China stormed to a convincing victory and moved to the brink of Asian group-stage qualifying.

Another substitute, midfielder Chen Tao, scored two goals, as did former Schalke midfielder Hao Junmin.

The return leg will be played in Laos on Thursday