Uzbekistan at the AFC Asian Cup

Uzbekistan is one of the most successful teams in Asia, and the most successful team in Central Asia, having qualified for every AFC Asian Cup since the fall of the Soviet Union. With a rich history of competing in the tournament, Uzbekistan is often regarded as a top team and a rising contender for the Asian Cup title. Their best performance was a fourth place finish in the 2011 tournament.

Asian Cup record

AFC Asian Cup record Qualification record
Year Result Position Pld W D* L GF GA Pld W D* L GF GA
Hong Kong 1956 –Japan 1992 Part of USSR
United Arab Emirates 1996 Group stage 10th 3 1 0 2 3 6 2 1 0 1 5 4
Lebanon 2000 Group stage 12th 3 0 1 2 2 14 4 4 0 0 16 2
China 2004 Quarter-finals 6th 4 3 1 0 5 2 6 4 1 1 13 6
Indonesia Malaysia Thailand Vietnam 2007 Quarter-finals 7th 4 2 0 2 10 4 6 3 2 1 14 4
Qatar 2011 Fourth place 4th 6 3 1 2 10 13 4 3 0 1 7 3
Australia 2015 Quarter-finals 8th 4 2 0 2 5 5 6 3 2 1 10 4
United Arab Emirates 2019 Round of 16 10th 4 2 1 1 7 3 8 7 0 1 20 7
Qatar 2023 Quarter-finals 7th 5 2 3 0 7 3 11 8 0 3 27 9
Saudi Arabia 2027 To be determined 2 1 1 0 5 3
Total 8/8 Fourth place 33 15 7 11 49 50 47 33 5 9 112 39

1996 Asian Cup in the UAE

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Uzbekistan squad – 1996 AFC Asian Cup
Uzbekistan

It was Uzbekistan's first ever appearance in the AFC Asian Cup, since the demise of USSR. In the tournament, although being regarded as the weakest team, Uzbekistan surprised all predictions by defeating China 2–0 right on their opening account. Uzbekistan, however, lost two remaining matches to Japan and Syria, thus had to end up in the group stage. Uzbekistan's maiden victory over China, however, remained as the biggest achievement for Uzbekistan before 2004.

Group C

Team Pts Pld W D L GF GA GD
 Japan 9 3 3 0 0 7 1 +6
 China 3 3 1 0 2 3 3 0
 Syria 3 3 1 0 2 3 6 −3
 Uzbekistan 3 3 1 0 2 3 6 −3
China 0–2 Uzbekistan
Report Shkvyrin 78'
Shatskikh 90'
Japan 4–0 Uzbekistan
Nanami 7'
Miura 37'
Maezono 86', 90'		 Report
Attendance: 3,000
Referee: Jalal Moradi (Iran)
Uzbekistan 1–2 Syria
Lebedev 53' (pen.) Report Jokhadar 48'
Dib 74'

2000 Asian Cup in Lebanon

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Uzbekistan squad – 2000 AFC Asian Cup
Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan made their second appearance by participating in the 2000 edition held in Lebanon. However, this would have become Uzbekistan's worst performance in their history, drew just one and lost two matches, both were humiliating 1–8 and 0–5 demolitions on the hand of Japan and Saudi Arabia.

Group C

Team Pts Pld W D L GF GA GD
 Japan 7 3 2 1 0 13 3 +10
 Saudi Arabia 4 3 1 1 1 6 4 +2
 Qatar 3 3 0 3 0 2 2 0
 Uzbekistan 1 3 0 1 2 2 14 −12
Qatar 1–1 Uzbekistan
Gholam 61' Report Qosimov 73'
Attendance: 5,000
Referee: Mohd Nazri Abdullah (Malaysia)
Japan 8–1 Uzbekistan
Morishima 7'
Nishizawa 14', 25', 49'
Takahara 18', 20', 57'
Kitajima 79'		 Report Lushan 29'
Saudi Arabia 5–0 Uzbekistan
Al-Otaibi 18'
Al-Shalhoub 35', 78', 86'
Al-Temyat 88'		 Report

2004 Asian Cup in China

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Uzbekistan squad – 2004 AFC Asian Cup
Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan participated in the Asian Cup 2004 held in China, and it would have marked their historical milestones. The White Wolves was drawn with neighboring Turkic Turkmenistan, and two Arab teams Iraq and Saudi Arabia, the latter was the runners-up last edition. Uzbekistan, however, performed better than expected. Uzbekistan defeated all three teams with the result 1–0, to qualify for the knockout stage first time, and also the only time they topped group with full nine points. The White Wolves had to end their journey after losing to Bahrain in a penalty shootout.

Group C

Team Pts Pld W D L GF GA GD
 Uzbekistan 9 3 3 0 0 3 0 +3
 Iraq 6 3 2 0 1 5 4 +1
 Turkmenistan 1 3 0 1 2 4 6 −2
 Saudi Arabia 1 3 0 1 2 3 5 −2
Iraq 0–1 Uzbekistan
Report Qosimov 21'
Uzbekistan 1–0 Saudi Arabia
Geynrikh 13' Report
Turkmenistan 0–1 Uzbekistan
Report Qosimov 58'
Attendance: 34,000
Referee: Mohammed Kousa (Syria)

Quarter-finals

Uzbekistan 2–2 (a.e.t.) Bahrain
Geynrikh 60'
Shishelov 86'		 Report A. Hubail 71', 76'
Penalties
Fyodorov soccer ball with check mark
Djeperov soccer ball with check mark
Geynrikh soccer ball with check mark
Bikmoev soccer ball with red X
Koshelev soccer ball with red X		 3–4 soccer ball with check mark Ali
soccer ball with red X Juma
soccer ball with check mark Baba
soccer ball with check mark Farhan
soccer ball with check mark A. Hubail

2007 Asian Cup in Indonesia/Malaysia/Thailand/Vietnam

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Uzbekistan squad – 2007 AFC Asian Cup
Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan would have continued their participation by placing themselves in Group C together with host Malaysia, latest runners-up China and giant Iran. Having been drawn into a tough group with only Malaysia as a point basket, very few people expected Uzbekistan to do something but three points. Uzbekistan eventually lost 1–2 in their opening account against Iran, before demolished Malaysia 5–0. However, in the last match against China, Uzbekistan successfully repeated their feat at 1996, this time, in an even more glorious way by crushing China 3–0. This surprising victory enabled Uzbekistan to the quarter-finals twice while eliminated China from the tournament.[1]

In the quarter-finals, Uzbekistan once again lost to another Arab team, this time, to Saudi Arabia, after 90 minutes with a 1–2 loss and had to go home.

Group C

Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
 Iran 3 2 1 0 6 3 +3 7
 Uzbekistan 3 2 0 1 9 2 +7 6
 China 3 1 1 1 7 6 +1 4
 Malaysia 3 0 0 3 1 12 −11 0
Iran 2–1 Uzbekistan
Hosseini 55'
Kazemian 78'		 Report Rezaei 16' (o.g.)
Uzbekistan 5–0 Malaysia
Shatskikh 10', 89'
Kapadze 30'
Bakayev 45+2' (pen.)
Ibrahimov 85'		 Report
Uzbekistan 3–0 China
Shatskikh 72'
Kapadze 86'
Geynrikh 90+4'		 Report

Quarter-finals

2011 Asian Cup in Qatar

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Uzbekistan squad – 2011 AFC Asian Cup fourth place
Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan's participation in the 2011 edition was considered as the most successful to date. Placing in group A with host Qatar, old rival China and Kuwait, the Uzbeks showed to be tough when they beat host Qatar 2–0 and Kuwait 2–1. Although could not repeat the feat of four years ago with China when they drew 2–2, Uzbekistan was still able to qualify into the quarter-finals. In there, Uzbekistan for the first time, to win a match in the knockout round, beating another fellow underdog Jordan 2–1. However, Uzbekistan's semi-final match would have turned to be a nightmare when they lost 0–6 to Australia, shattered their dream to go for their maiden final.[2] In the third place match, Uzbekistan continued losing 2–3 to South Korea, and got their best ever position in Asian Cup history: fourth place.

Group A

Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
 Uzbekistan 3 2 1 0 6 3 +3 7
 Qatar 3 2 0 1 5 2 +3 6
 China 3 1 1 1 4 4 0 4
 Kuwait 3 0 0 3 1 7 −6 0
7 January 2011
Qatar  0–2  Uzbekistan
12 January 2011
Uzbekistan  2–1  Kuwait
16 January 2011
China  2–2  Uzbekistan

Quarter-finals

Uzbekistan 2–1 Jordan
Bakayev 47', 49' Report B. Bani Yaseen 58'

Semi-finals

Uzbekistan 0–6 Australia
Report Kewell 5'
Ognenovski 35'
Carney 65'
Emerton 73'
Valeri 82'
Kruse 83'

Third place play-off

Uzbekistan 2–3 South Korea
Geynrikh 45' (pen.), 53' Report Koo Ja-Cheol 18'
Ji Dong-Won 28', 39'

2015 Asian Cup in Australia

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Uzbekistan squad – 2015 AFC Asian Cup
Uzbekistan

Their participation in 2015 Asian Cup was not considered to be too successful. Uzbekistan, placed with North Korea, China and Saudi Arabia, was expected to make up into the semi-finals. Uzbekistan, said, needed to play all three matches to secure their ticket to the knockout stage. First, they beat North Korea 1–0[3] but they lost to China, for the first time in the Asian Cup, 1–2, despite had taken the lead. Uzbekistan had to fight hard to win 3–1 over Saudi Arabia, eventually booked their ticket to the knockout stage facing South Korea.[4]

In the match against South Korea, a rematch of the previous edition's third place-playoff, the Uzbeks were more resilience, and goalkeeper Ignatiy Nesterov had played an astonishing match to hold off South Korea and bring the match to extra time. The Koreans proved to be stronger when they scored two goals, effectively eliminating an Uzbekistan side that had shown great strength from the tournament.

Group B

Pos Team
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 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  China 3 3 0 0 5 2 +3 9 Advance to knockout stage
2  Uzbekistan 3 2 0 1 5 3 +2 6
3  Saudi Arabia 3 1 0 2 5 5 0 3
4  North Korea 3 0 0 3 2 7 −5 0
Source: Asian Cup Australia 2015
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
10 January 2015
Uzbekistan  1–0  North Korea Stadium Australia, Sydney
14 January 2015
China  2–1  Uzbekistan Brisbane Stadium, Brisbane
18 January 2015
Uzbekistan  3–1  Saudi Arabia AAMI Park, Melbourne

Quarter-finals

South Korea 2–0 (a.e.t.) Uzbekistan
Son Heung-min 104', 120' Report
Attendance: 23,381

2019 Asian Cup in the UAE

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Uzbekistan squad – 2019 AFC Asian Cup
Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan joined group F with Japan, Oman and 2004 rival, neighboring Turkmenistan. For the Uzbeks, they were looking for their maiden final, and Uzbekistan's successful victory in 2018 AFC U-23 Championship was believed to be the boost for the White Wolves in such a tough group.

Under guidance of Héctor Cúper, who coached Egypt in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Uzbekistan won against Oman and Turkmenistan, their first two matches, before falling to Japan in the last match that saw Uzbekistan occupied second place in the group. Thus, the defeat to Japan forced Uzbekistan to face Australia, whom they lost disastrously 0–6 eight years ago and also the champions of previous edition. This time, Uzbekistan played better and more organized, thus forcing the match into penalty shootout, but Australia eventually overcame the White Wolves 4–2, thus ended Uzbekistan's campaign in sad note.

Group F

Pos Team
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 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Japan 3 3 0 0 6 3 +3 9 Advance to knockout stage
2  Uzbekistan 3 2 0 1 7 3 +4 6
3  Oman 3 1 0 2 4 4 0 3
4  Turkmenistan 3 0 0 3 3 10 −7 0
Source: AFC
Uzbekistan 2–1 Oman
Report
Sharjah Stadium, Sharjah
Attendance: 9,424
Turkmenistan 0–4 Uzbekistan
Report
Japan 2–1 Uzbekistan
 Report

Round of 16

Australia 0–0 (a.e.t.) Uzbekistan
Report
Penalties
4–2

2023 Asian Cup in Qatar

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Uzbekistan squad – 2023 AFC Asian Cup
Uzbekistan

Group B

Pos Team
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 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Australia 3 2 1 0 4 1 +3 7 Advance to knockout stage
2  Uzbekistan 3 1 2 0 4 1 +3 5
3  Syria 3 1 1 1 1 1 0 4
4  India 3 0 0 3 0 6 −6 0
Source: AFC
Uzbekistan 0–0 Syria
Report
Attendance: 10,198
Referee: Ahmed Al-Kaf (Oman)
India 0–3 Uzbekistan
Report
Attendance: 38,491
Referee: Fu Ming (China)
Australia 1–1 Uzbekistan
 Report
Attendance: 15,290
Referee: Yusuke Araki (Japan)

Knockout stage

Round of 16

Uzbekistan 2–1 Thailand
Report

Quarter-finals

Qatar 1–1 (a.e.t.) Uzbekistan
 Report
Penalties
3–2
Attendance: 58,791

References

  1. ^ "China ousted after losing 0-3 to Uzbekistan". www.chinadaily.com.cn.
  2. ^ "Australia beats Uzbekistan 6-0 to reach first Asian Cup final". The Globe and Mail. 25 January 2011.
  3. ^ Skene, Patrick (January 12, 2015). "Enigmatic Uzbekistan reveal Asian Cup threat | Patrick Skene". The Guardian – via www.theguardian.com.
  4. ^ "Asian Cup: Uzbekistan 3-1 Saudi Arabia | Match report". The Guardian. January 18, 2015 – via www.theguardian.com.
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Countries at the AFC Asian Cup
AFF
CAFA
EAFF
SAFF
WAFF
Former
1 Considered a successor team by FIFA, or have competed under other name(s). 2 Israel was a member of the AFC until 1974. 3 Recognized by FIFA as defunct.