Japan can take a major step towards the 2026 World Cup over the next week if they can negotiate away tests in Indonesia and China within the space of five days.

Son Heung-min’s South Korea will also look to move closer to a place in the North American showpiece as they travel to Kuwait on Thursday and then face Palestine in Jordan next week.

Meanwhile, Hervé Renard, who orchestrated a famous victory over eventual champions Argentina at the World Cup in Qatar, takes charge of Saudi Arabia for the first time since returning to the job.

An estimated 78,000 people will fill Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, hoping to see the hosts pull off a shocker on Friday.

Hajime Moriyasu’s Japan will next face another hostile crowd when they travel to Xiamen on Tuesday to face China.

“If you look at the FIFA rankings and the World Cup qualifying matches so far, you might think that the advantage is with Japan,” said coach Moriyasu.