Uzbekistan U-23 national team will face Iran in the second round of the AFC U-23 Asian Cup. The Uzbekistan U-23 national team will take on the Iran U-23 team in the second-round match of the AFC U-23 Asian Cup. The victory secured in the previous match, along with three points in today’s game, would allow our team to secure qualification for the next stage ahead of schedule. In the opening match of the tournament, Uzbekistan defeated Lebanon 3–2. Following this result, our team leads the group with three points. In another match of the group, the Lebanon and Korea Republic U-23 teams will face each other. That match will kick off at 16:30 Tashkent time.

About the opponent

The Uzbekistan U-23 team has faced Iran U-23 twice in the AFC Asian Cup so far. Both encounters, held in 2020 and 2022, ended in 1–1 draws. In those matches, Islomjon Qobilov (2020) and Otabek Jo‘raqo‘ziyev (2022) scored for Uzbekistan.

Iran last participated in the tournament in 2022. During the 2024 AFC U-23 Asian Cup qualifiers, Iran was placed in the same group as Uzbekistan. In their head-to-head match, our team claimed victory thanks to the only goal scored by Abbosbek Fayzullayev. Iran finished second in the group but ultimately failed to qualify for the final stage.

Ahead of the upcoming match, Uzbekistan U-23 head coach Ravshan Haydarov shared his thoughts:“We will analyze Iran’s match against Korea Republic. Of course, we need to approach every game strategically and continue collecting points.”

The match between Uzbekistan and Iran will take place on January 10 at the Prince Faisal Bin Fahd Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and will kick off at 19:00 Tashkent time.