Vitaly Denisov: "The Uzbekistan national team must play only for victory to qualify for the World Cup"

The Uzbekistan national team has reached the decisive stage of the 2026 World Cup qualifying round. Former national team defender Vitaly Denisov shared his thoughts on the team's chances.

World Cup qualification: Uzbekistan's dream

In an interview with Championat.com, Denisov noted that important matches have begun for the team of head coach Temur Kapadze, and said that in the match against the UAE they need to play only for victory.

"For now, we should not focus too much on the results. Uzbekistan needs to show its strength in the decisive match. Especially in the away match against the UAE, the team has a great opportunity to prove its strength. In no case can we play for a draw - we need to fight only for victory. It is time to qualify for the World Cup and fulfill our dreams," said Denisov.

Decisive matches and Uzbekistan's chances

Currently, the Uzbekistan national team is in second place in Group A of the 2026 World Cup qualifying round with 17 points. The team is 4 points ahead of the UAE national team and needs to score at least 1 point to advance to the next stage of the competition.

Decisive matches:

• June 5 – UAE - Uzbekistan (away)
  
• June 10 – Uzbekistan - Qatar (Tashkent)
  

If the team wins the match against the UAE, they can qualify for the World Cup for the first time in their history, regardless of the result of the last match.

Denisov's influence on football

For your information, Vitaly Denisov played for several major clubs in Uzbekistan, Russia and Europe during his career. He currently works for the Russian media team "SKA Rostov".

The upcoming test is very important for the Uzbekistan national team - a ticket to the World Cup is just one step away. Follow “Zamin” news on “Telegram”