A legendary figure of Russian football, the coach who led Moscow’s “Lokomotiv” to the national championship three times, Yuri Semin shared his thoughts and expectations ahead of the 2026 World Cup. The experienced specialist, in an interview with “Sport Express”, did not hide his sympathy and strong belief in Uzbek football. Zamin.uz presents the most important points of this interesting conversation.
World Cup favorites and sleepless nights
Yuri Semin noted that he will closely follow the upcoming World Cup. He recalled the difficulties related to long distances during the 1994 World Cup in the USA and stated that if he does not go to the tournament, he will watch all important matches on television. “What can we do, we will temporarily turn night into day!” — said the specialist. In his opinion, the main contenders for the gold medals are Spain and Argentina. The coach personally admitted that he will support Argentina because of his respect for Lionel Messi.
Uzbekistan — in Semin’s focus
The experienced coach separately emphasized that he sincerely wishes success to the Uzbekistan national team at the World Cup. In his opinion, the debut of the “White Wolves” at the World Cup is a historic event, and reaching the knockout stage would be a real achievement for them.
“For that, it is enough just to look at how Abdukodir Khusanov plays at Manchester City,” Semin stressed, highly appreciating the potential of Uzbek footballers.
“Why should I say no? I would agree!”
The most emotional part of the interview was related to an unexpected question asked to Yuri Semin. If the Uzbekistan national team had invited him instead of Fabio Cannavaro ahead of the World Cup, the coach said he would gladly accept such an offer. The readiness of such an experienced specialist is another expression of respect for Uzbek football.
Group “K”: a difficult but achievable task
It should be noted that the Uzbekistan national team, in its first-ever World Cup appearance, is placed in the same group with Portugal, Colombia, and DR Congo. Despite the rich experience of all opponents, Semin believes that Uzbek footballers are capable of overcoming this barrier.
Dear fans, do you think an experienced coach like Yuri Semin could help our national team at the World Cup? How do you assess our chances of advancing from the group?
