Rival teams Hong Kong (4-1-1, 13 points) and China PR (3-1-1, 10 points) are set to face each other in a crucial Group C second round match of the AFC 2018 World Cup qualifying tournament at the Mong Kok Stadium in Hong Kong on Tuesday.

The winner of the match will get a big boost in the group's standings with undefeated Qatar still on top with 15 points.

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The current AFC World Cup qualifiers is composed of eight groups and the first placed squads in all of the groups will automatically have a berth in the next round of the competition. The best four runner-up teams will also join the eight top squads to make up the 12 teams in the third and final round of the qualifiers wherein the top four will be given spots in the 2018 World Cup to be held in Russia.

Hong Kong is coming off a close 1-0 victory over Maldives at the National Football Stadium in Malé on November 12th to ease off the streaking Chinese squad, who are looking to dislodge them from their no. 2 spot in Group C.

Brazilian striker Paulinho provided the lone goal of the match with a penalty kick at the 13th minute to score the win for Kim Pan-Gon's side, as per Four Four Two.

Meanwhile, China routed Bhutan, 12-0 in their own encounter on November 12 at the Helong Stadium in Changsha to keep their qualifying dreams alive heading to this match against Hong Kong on Tuesday, Asia Times reported.

Chinese striker Yang Xu scored four times, teammates Yu Dabao, Yu Hanchao, and Wang Yongpo each had a double, while Mei Fang and Zhang Xizhe contributed one goal apiece en route to the lopsided victory.

Whoever wins the match will have the chance to overtake Qatar -- assuming the Qataris draw one of their remaining three matches -- for the top spot as both teams will still meet the Maroons later in the round, while the loser will be out of contention for the automatic final round berth.

The predicted result is a tough 2-1 decision for China over Hong Kong.

Hong Kong starting lineup (4-3-3 formation): Yapp; Lee, Kilama, Lo, Cheung; Bai, Lam, Ju; Chan, Xu, McKee

China starting lineup (4-2-3-1 formation): Wang D.; Ren H., Mei F., Zhang L., Ji X.; Cai H., Zheng Z., Wu X.; Zhang C., Zheng L.; Yu D.

TagsFootball, Football 2015, Football News 2015, AFC 2018 World Cup qualifers, AFC 2018 World Cup qualifers second round, AFC 2018 World Cup qualifers second round group stage, 2015 AFC Champions League Final 2nd Leg preview & prediction, Hong Kong national football team, China national football team, Hong Kong, Hong Kong vs China, hong kong vs china football match