Friendly: Iran vs Uzbekistan - 08.10.2020 [News, updates, pics, vids, live streams]

[teammelli91]

Team Melli =

[diz]

Pakhtakor contingent will be raring to take on IR Iran, says Uzbekistan’s Abramov

https://www.the-afc.com/competitions...stan-s-abramov

The Uzbekistan squad features 11 players from Pakhtakor, the Tashkent club which exited the 2020 AFC Champions League after a 2-0 quarter-final defeat by Iranian champions Persepolis FC in Qatar last week.

Persepolis, who later went on to qualify for December’s continental final by beating Saudi Arabia’s Al Nassr, have supplied five players in the Iranian travelling party, which arrived in Tashkent on Tuesday night.

There may be less riding on Thursday’s match than the one completed a week ago, but Abramov believes atoning for last Wednesday’s defeat in Doha will still be on the minds of several of his charges.

“Everything will depend on how we play,” Abramov told the-AFC.com. “I think that, no matter what the names in the team are, everything will be decided on the field. Of course, Persepolis won (against Pakhtakor) but, for that, our players who lost will crave revenge, it seems to me.

“Well, let's see, football is such a game. It will show that you need to be ready on the day.”

For the first time in 2020, both sides are able to call upon the majority of their foreign-based stars, meaning the star-studded Iranian strike force of Sardar Azmoun, Mehdi Taremi and Kaveh Rezaei will all be available to Team Melli boss Dragan Skočić.

The major draw for Uzbekistan is striker Eldor Shomurudov, who this week completed a high-profile transfer to Italian Serie A outfit Genoa, and Abramov believes good performances from the 25-year-old could open the door to similar moves for other Uzbek players.

“We certainly hope so,” said Abramov. “Because it will depend on how Shomurodov will show himself there. In addition, it is necessary for our national team to show itself well.

“I think, if we play confidently enough, that other players will be invited. The footballers of Uzbekistan have always been appreciated in Europe, so he will not be the first to play there. For a long time, we have played for more famous teams there.

“(Maksim) Shatskikh played in Dynamo Kyiv. I think the team has a higher status than Genoa from Serie A, so we will be represented in Serie A. We had a footballer (Ilyos Zeytulaev) who played in Juventus, an Uzbek footballer, so this is not the first player.”

Thursday’s clash at Pakhtakor Stadium will be the first of two matches over the next week for Abramov’s squad. The White Wolves will also face United Arab Emirates in Dubai next Monday.

While home-based Uzbekistan teams have met Belarus and Tajikistan in friendlies this year, the approaching matches will be the first time in 11 months something resembling the full national team has kicked a ball in anger, and Abramov conceded there would likely be an element of experimentation in his approach.

“It is still the national team and of course the result is also important, (but) I would like to see more who is in what condition at the moment,” he said.

“Let's see how these or those players will cope. We haven't seen it for a long time. The tasks that we set them; we must discover in these games who we can count on in the future.”

Abramov also revealed that Uzbekistan will be without Jamshid Iskanderov for both matches, after the FC Seongnam midfielder encountered difficulties travelling from Korea Republic, but no such problems are anticipated ahead of the team’s trip to Dubai.

“No, we have no such restrictions, thank God,” said Abramov.

Both teams will use the friendly to gauge their players ahead next year's resumption of the Asian Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and AFC Asian Cup China 2023, with Iran third in Group C and Uzbekistan top of Group D.

[diz]

lucky bastard

[Keano]

Friendly: Iran vs Uzbekistan - 08.10.2020 [News, updates, pics, vids, live streams]

God, I almost forgot what a TM game is. It’s been so long since last we saw them play. Like how long has it been? Already a year I would say?

This is going to be one of our best TM’s we have had Ina long time. Not really any superstars, but the team is filled with sooo many stars who are team player and with the right attitude.

I am confident we will win. I speculate a 2-0 win. Our defense is once again solid as rock (should Dragan have the right formation, especially in our defense). Kanani, Shoja and Hosseini are all a MUST starting line up. Our offense line is currently as venomous as inland Taipan snakes. Hard to stop Taremi-Sardar duo. I just hope Dragan is courageous enough to play with 2 forwards. These Guys together can break any Asian counterpart’s back.




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[Keano]

lucky bastard

Is this match going to have spectators in the stadium?


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[webmaster]

^ Thanks. But I really think we will win with 3 goals. At least that's how I feel.

Go Iran >>>>>>>>>>>

[webmaster]

lucky bastard

Sometimes I wish I were a bird to just fly over TM games and watch them all.

[diz]

Is this match going to have spectators in the stadium?

It would appear so. The guy holding his tix nearly lost them, as the bar code is almost fully visible!

[diz]

The only time I ever saw TM play was the Iran-US friendly in the US in the late 90's. I missed the first goal cause it took me soooo LONG to find a parking spot. Tehran-geles had shown up in true TM fan fashion! The fans (somehow before social media) had coordinated the audience colors so it was alternating green-white-red sections throughout the Rose Bowl. I was in the white section. What a sight.

[Keano]

^ Thanks. But I really think we will win with 3 goals. At least that's how I feel.

Go Iran >>>>>>>>>>>

Honestly that is very possible. My prediction is that we will score at least 2 goals and won’t concede any.

Although I am not too familiar with Dragan’s style of playing. Is he more of an offensive-minded coach or a conservative type of a coach? Croatian coaches typically are fond of offensive tactics.


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[webmaster]

The only time I ever saw TM play was the Iran-US friendly in the US in the late 90's. I missed the first goal cause it took me soooo LONG to find a parking spot. Tehran-geles had shown up in true TM fan fashion! The fans (somehow before social media) had coordinated the audience colors so it was alternating green-white-red sections throughout the Rose Bowl. I was in the white section. What a sight.

lol, I was one of the commentators in that game for Radio 670 FM. Me, Dariush Zahab and Mehrdad Masoudi. What a day. :-) I learned a lot of stuff.

[diz]

^ lol, I was one of the commentators in that game for Radio 670 on that day. Me, Dariush Zahab and Mehrdad Massoudi. What a day. :-)

Indeed. For me, it was second only to the 98' WC win over US (which obviously I wasn't watching in person). But both have left such great memories for me.

[Keano]

Friendly: Iran vs Uzbekistan - 08.10.2020 [News, updates, pics, vids, live streams]

The only time I ever saw TM play was the Iran-US friendly in the US in the late 90's. I missed the first goal cause it took me soooo LONG to find a parking spot. Tehran-geles had shown up in true TM fan fashion! The fans (somehow before social media) had coordinated the audience colors so it was alternating green-white-red sections throughout the Rose Bowl. I was in the white section. What a sight.

Hahaha I was there with a whole bunch of my friends. I doubt TM has ever seen so many girls in a stadium like that day.

Also I am confident no stadium hosting TM friendlies abroad has ever had so many Iranian spectators in its stadium. Rose bowl stadium that day was almost full. And 90% Iranians. US felt it was playing an away match Hahahaha


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[diz]

Hahaha I was there with a whole bunch of my girls. I doubt TM has ever seen so many girls in a stadium like that day.

Also I am confident no stadium hosting TM friendlies abroad has ever had so many Iranian spectators in its stadium. Rose bowl stadium that day was almost full. And 90% Iranians. US felt it was playing an away match Hahahaha


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More like 99% Iranian. We owned that stadium that day. There was a TINY (and I mean tiny) American contingent in one of the corners (opposite my section). I almost felt sorry for them =)

[webmaster]

lol, I was one of the commentators in that game for Radio 670 FM. Me, Dariush Zahab and Mehrdad Masoudi. What a day. :-) I learned a lot of stuff.

We also did Iran vs Ecuador too that ended 1-1. That was one of the best days of my life as we had a lot of fun and met so many Iranian players. And PFDC was the talk of town on these shows. Yadesh bekheyr