Premier League stars Kaoru Mitoma and Wataru Endo both scored as Japan beat China 7-0 on Thursday to start the third round of Asian World Cup qualifiers with a statement win.

Brighton winger Mitoma, who has missed a chunk of this year with injury, was making his first appearance for Japan since the Asian Cup in January.

He announced his return in emphatic style in front of more than 50,000 fans in Saitama, scoring with a first-half header after Liverpool's Endo had given Japan the lead.

Takumi Minamino added two more goals after the break to put Japan on cruise control against a China side looking to qualify for their first World Cup since 2002.

Junya Ito, who was also playing for Japan for the first time since the Asian Cup, scored another before late goals from Daizen Maeda and Takefusa Kubo capped a dominant performance from team Japan.

The national team had squeezed into the third qualifying round thanks to a superior head-to-head record over Thailand. (AFP)