For the first time in history, Uzbekistan will compete in a team event at the Olympics.
Despite defeating Indonesia in the U-23 Asian Cup semi-finals, Indonesia had a goal disallowed and a player was sent off, but Uzbekistan fired 28 shots and hit a tree four times before winning 2-0. and earned the right to compete in Paris. summer.
Head coach Timur Kapadze said: “We dedicate this victory to the president, the people and our supporters.''
“It's true that we dominated this match. Our players were excellent both physically and tactically. It was a game where we felt pressure because we wanted to go to the Olympics.”
Coach Kapadze's desire to win the trophy means Uzbekistan will face Japan in the final on May 3. Under Olympic regulations, the number of athletes on the men's national team is limited to no more than 23 (born on or after January 1, 2001), and a maximum of three overage athletes can compete in the 18 spots. -Player team.
The history of the Olympics has continued for a long time.
The current squad includes 20-year-old Lens defender Abdukhodir Kusanov, the first Uzbek player to play in the French top flight, and 21-year-old holding midfielder and captain Abdulauf Briev. . He plays club soccer for Olympic Tashkent. Uzbekistan Super League. Buliev is the star player of this tournament, but it was the overall strength of this Uzbekistan team that made this historic breakthrough possible.
In Qatar, the team scored 14 goals, matching the team's record for most goals in a single tournament, and kept a clean sheet. They are the first team since Saudi Arabia to reach the finals in two consecutive tournaments and three consecutive tournaments overall. If they defeat Japan, they will become the first team in history to win this tournament twice.
“This is a very important moment in my career. [to qualify for the Olympics] But it was a very emotional match, so I can't say anything more,'' said Buliev after his semi-final victory.
Looking deeper, Uzbekistan's history in this tournament has been unfortunate. The year 2018, when he won, was a non-Olympic year, and in 2020, which also served as a Tokyo Olympic qualifying match, he lost in the third-place match and missed out on qualifying for the Olympics. In 2022, they lost in the final. This Olympic dream has been a long time coming.
In fact, qualifying for the Olympics is perhaps the greatest achievement in this country's soccer history. Not only have neither the men's nor women's teams ever competed in the Olympics, they have also never competed in the World Cup. Apart from the under-23 team's victory in 2018, the only notable success so far has been fourth place for the men's top team at the 2011 Asian Cup.
