China reached the final of the U23 Asian Cup for the first time in its history in the early hours of Wednesday, Hong Kong time.

In the semi-finals, the squad defeated Vietnam 3-0 in convincing fashion.

Defender Peng Xiao and striker Xiang Yuwang both found the net minutes into the second half.

Vietnam had a defender sent off on the 74th minute, before Wang Yudong came off the bench to score the third deep into stoppage time.

In the 13 years since the formation of the Asian Football Confederation tournament, the national team had never made it past the group stage until this year.

They have yet to concede in five games, having scored one goal during the group stage and defeated Uzbekistan on penalties in the quarter-finals.

China will battle defending champions Japan for glory on Saturday in Saudi Arabia, with kick-off scheduled for 11pm Hong Kong time.