Resignation in Kattaqorgon: Russian head coach fired due to poor results!

A surprise coaching change is taking place at Kattaqorgon, a team fighting for top spots in the Uzbekistan Pro League and a promotion to the Super League. Eurasia Football reported that after two consecutive defeats, the club management decided to part ways with the 56-year-old Russian head coach Yury Utkulbayev .

Currently, the parties are conducting final negotiations to terminate the existing employment contract early and agree on the compensation amount. The specialist has already been removed from the team and is not managing training sessions.

What caused the resignation?

The club management's drastic decision was prompted by negative results in recent rounds and the quality of play displayed:

• Defeat against Shurtan: On August 15, Kattaqorgon lost 0:1 away to Shurtan, one of their direct rivals, after conceding a goal in the 85th minute;

• Failure at home: On August 21, the team lost 2:4 to Gazalkent in front of their own fans;

• Dissatisfaction with the style of play: The club management expected attacking and reliable football from Utkulbayev. However, the attempt to play an open game led to defensive chaos and conceding four goals.

Utkulbayev's statistics at Kattaqorgon

The specialist, who worked for many years in the Rubin Kazan system, was appointed at the end of May to replace Yorqin Nazarov. In the 9 Pro League matches under his leadership, the following results were recorded:

• 5 wins, 1 draw, 3 defeats;

• Out of 27 possible points, 16 points were collected;

• In the only match within the Uzbekistan Cup, the team lost 0:3 to Pakhtakor and left the tournament.

Super League promotion chances and the decisive battle against Aral

Despite the coach's resignation, Kattaqorgon's position in the league table is still quite high:

• 3rd place: The team is in 3rd place with 30 points after 16 rounds;

• Regulations: The Pro League winner goes directly to the Super League. Clubs finishing 2nd–5th will play in a playoff to earn the right to participate in a promotion/relegation match against a Super League representative;

• The big test ahead: Most interestingly, on the eve of the new coach's appointment, Kattaqorgon faces the toughest match of the season — against the league leader, Nukus's Aral club.