Uzbekistan’s players react after defeat against Qatar.
Doha, Qatar: Head coach Srecko Katanec urged his Uzbekistan players to learn from their defeat to Qatar in the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 quarter-finals on Saturday and bounce back stronger.
Uzbekistan’s quest to emulate, if not better, their 2011 achievement of a fourth place finish came to an end when Pedro Correia scored the winning penalty for Qatar after goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham had saved Jaloliddin Masharipov’s spot-kick, with the defending champions winning the shoot-out 3-2.
“The players need to be proud of what they have achieved. They fought and gave everything they had, but in the end we lost in the penalty shootout. Having penalties decide the game is always tricky. It’s a mental game,” said Katanec.
“We defended well and even after we conceded first, we still played better than Qatar, and created some promising chances. They were initially struggling to break down our defence and even though I’m disappointed with the result, I’m happy with the performance of my players.”
“Even when the score was level at 1-1, we pressed and chased every ball. The players were visibly lacking energy at the end. It’s unfortunate we lost on penalties. Our campaign suffered setbacks as we missed key players.
“Winning a tournament requires a deep squad, and injuries limited our options. The absence of players like Eldor Shomurodov impacted our rotation choices. Even if we progressed further, the team’s recovery would have been challenging.”
Uzbekistan’s Slovenian coach Srecko Katanec shouts instructions to his players from the touchline during the quarter-final against Qatar. AFP
The 60-year-old Slovenian hopes the lessons learned from the defeat will push his players to improve.
“I’m not saddened by this defeat, this is football. Some players need to learn the responsibility that comes with taking penalties. However, both in attitude and in fighting until the end, I’m very happy and satisfied with the team’s performance in all five games in Qatar.
“The players were fatigued, but I hope to see them back soon, including those who were absent from this tournament. We have a young generation that gained valuable experience. It was a positive learning experience for some of them, and I anticipate future success.”
