What condition have our legionnaire footballers reached this crucial match in?

Today, the Uzbekistan national team will take the field in one of the most important matches in its history. A positive result (a win or a draw) in the match against the UAE representatives could officially place Uzbekistan among the participants of the 2026 World Cup today.

The players invited by Timur Kapadze for the upcoming matches are known, and their performance is under our constant observation. Of course, the condition and current match practice of our legionnaires also carry great importance. Naturally, we are confident in the players performing in the Super League, as we know that if they are not in good enough sporting shape, they won’t be invited by the coach. That’s why, below, we will mainly focus on the performance of our players playing abroad.

O'tkir Yusupov (“Foolad”, Iran)
The goalkeeper continues to play in the main lineup of “Foolad,” one of the leaders of the Iranian championship, currently in 4th place. Since the last national team camps, he has played in 6 matches for his club and conceded 5 goals. Yusupov is maintaining his sports form through match practice, and we hope that in the decisive stages of the autumn matches, he will perform his duties at the highest level.

Eldor Shomurodov (“Roma”, Italy)
It can be said that Eldor was our best-performing player after the recent camps. In the second half of the season, he became a main team player of “Roma” and played decisive roles in several important matches. For instance, he scored the winning goal against “Verona” and the equalizer against “Juventus.” In matches against “Inter” and “Fiorentina,” it was Shomurodov’s passes that turned into goals, leading to 1:0 victories.

Eldor ended the 2024/25 season with 7 goals and 5 assists, updating his best result on European pitches. Previously, in his first season at “Roma” (2021/22), he had managed 5 goals and 6 assists. The good form and mood of our captain may prove crucial in important matches.

Abbosbek Fayzullaev (CSKA, Russia)
Fayzullaev continues to regularly play for CSKA – in the last two months, he started in 5 matches and came off the bench in 3. Even though he only played the last 14 minutes of the match against “Nizhny Novgorod,” he recorded one assist. Overall, this season, Fayzullaev participated in 39 matches for CSKA, scoring 3 goals and making 5 assists, contributing to the team’s bronze medal finish.

By the way, three days ago, after CSKA defeated “Rostov” in the Russian Cup final via a penalty shootout, Fayzullaev won his first trophy in Russia. In that match, our fellow countryman entered the pitch in the 73rd minute. Fayzullaev, who played four matches for the Moscow side without scoring or assisting, has, we hope, saved his goals for the matches against the UAE and Qatar.

Abdukodir Khusanov (“Manchester City”, England)
After the match in Iran, Khusanov went to Manchester and played in only one match. The team’s first post-break match was against “Bournemouth” in the English Cup, and he was substituted at halftime. Though he was listed in the squad for several following matches, he was not brought onto the field. A lot has been written about this topic, so there is no need to dwell on it too much, but it must be noted that in Pep Guardiola’s team, even being listed in the squad is a result of intense competition. Therefore, even though Khusanov has been without match practice for the past two months, he should have enough preparation for the game against the UAE.

Otabek Shukurov (“Al Fayha”, Saudi Arabia)
Otabek has been consistently appearing in the starting lineup of the Saudi club “Al Fayha.” In nearly every match, he has been rated highly by experts, and notably, in matches lost to strong teams like “Al Ittihad,” “Al Shabab,” and “Al Ahli,” Otabek Shukurov was the highest-rated player in his team. Also, in the 2:0 victory against “Al Akhdood,” he was one of the best players – in that game, his pass accuracy was 99%. Considering that ball control and calmness will be important against the UAE, it is pleasing that our experienced player is in good form.

Rustam Ashurmatov (“Rubin”, Russia)
Another of our central defenders had to spend most of his time on the bench at his club. Rustam had almost become a main player at “Rubin” by the end of last year, but things changed in spring. On March 30, in the match against “Zenit,” coach Rashid Rakhimov brought him on in the 63rd minute after “Rubin” was left with ten men. The reason was that another central defender, Aleksei Gritsenko, had received a red card, and there was a need to fill that position. In the following matches against “Lokomotiv” and “Krylya Sovetov,” Rustam only played in the final minutes, and in the last round against “Orenburg,” he got 18 minutes of playing time.

Oston Urunov (“Persepolis”, Iran)
Oston had missed the last 5 matches of the national team due to injuries. It’s good news that he has fully recovered and returned to the lineup of “Persepolis,” where he has started scoring again. In May, he scored a last-minute goal against “Kheybar” to win the match for his team, and in the following round, he also opened the score in the match against “Khavadar.” That goal also led to the team’s victory.

Oston’s international experience and his ability to surprise opponents with unorthodox moves in attack will be needed in the last two matches.

Hojimat Erkinov (“Al Wahda”, UAE)
Our representative playing for UAE club “Al Wahda,” Hojimat Erkinov, mostly comes off the bench. In the last 4 matches, he had about 15–20 minutes to prove himself. In the first half of the season, he was one of the team’s main players and was quite productive (4 assists). In March, when Kapadze did not include him in the squad, rumors spread that he might be injured.

Unexpectedly appearing in the starting lineup in the match against Iran, Erkinov scored the opening goal. Turned into a kind of “joker” in Kapadze’s hands, we hope that Hojimat will prove himself in the national team regardless of his club situation.

Husniddin Alikulov (“Rizespor”, Turkey)
In the last round, Alikulov was brought on to strengthen the defense when the score against “Beşiktaş” was 1:1, but after he entered the pitch, “Rizespor” actually scored the winning goal. Overall, Alikulov has started nearly every match for his team – 6 matches as a starter, twice coming off the bench.

Jaloliddin Masharipov (“Esteghlal”, Iran)
Jaloliddin Masharipov also ended the season on a high note, winning the Iranian Cup at the end of May.

Jaloliddin is such a player that regardless of his club form or what he’s doing or where he is, he becomes a leader in the national team. In the Iranian championship, Masharipov started in 4 matches and came off the bench twice. He didn’t play in the last two matches. But once he joins the national team, he becomes a different player.