“Uzbekistan is a mid-level team”: Mostovoy speaks bluntly about Cannavaro’s squad

The Russian national team's 3-2 victory over Uzbekistan has sparked mixed reactions among football experts and former players in the neighboring country. However, former Celta Vigo midfielder Aleksandr Mostovoy made rather harsh statements in his response. In his opinion, Russia's victory was an expected result, and Fabio Cannavaro leading the Uzbekistan national team does not have a decisive impact on the result on the pitch.

Most notably, Mostovoy called the Uzbekistan national team a “mid-level team” and attributed their qualification for the World Cup to the expansion of the number of participants in the tournament. He even assessed the fact that they scored two goals against Russia as a good result for the Uzbek players.

“Russia's victory is not surprising to me”

The Russian national team won 3-2 in a friendly match against Uzbekistan. In this match, both teams made mistakes in defense, and the goals were breached several times. According to Mostovoy, this match, which was interesting for the spectators, was just one of the ordinary victories for Russia.

“Both sides made mistakes, there were many goals. I think the game was interesting for the spectators. But for us, it’s just another victory, not a game of any special significance. The fact that the Russian national team defeated Uzbekistan is not surprising to me at all,” said the former player.

Mostovoy noted that if Uzbekistan had been the winning side in the match, it could have been discussed as a truly unexpected result. Russia's victory, in his view, is a natural occurrence.

Mostovoy was not fully satisfied with the Russian national team's performance either

Interestingly, although the former player considered Russia's victory an expected result, he did not praise the team's actions throughout the entire game.

He particularly drew attention to the fact that the Russian players only started attacking actively in the final part of the match.

“Only one thing is incomprehensible: why didn't they show such a game throughout the entire match? Why did they only start attacking in the last 20 minutes? But the most important thing is that the victory was achieved. The game against Venezuela shouldn't be that difficult,” said Mostovoy.

Thus, in his opinion, although the Russian national team achieved the result, they could have performed better in terms of game quality and activity.

Even Cannavaro's name did not change Mostovoy's mind

During the conversation, Mostovoy was asked how important it was for the Russian national team head coach Valery Karpin to defeat Uzbekistan, which is led by Fabio Cannavaro, who has made a big name for himself in world football.

However, the former player stated that he does not consider the Italian expert's name to be of particular importance here.

“Cannavaro himself doesn't play a big role here; after all, it's the players who kick the ball on the pitch,” he replied.

According to Mostovoy, in football, the actions of the players on the pitch are more important than the coach's name and previous achievements. He also recalled the initial debates surrounding Cannavaro's appointment as head coach of the Uzbekistan national team.

“Why did Cannavaro go to Uzbekistan?” — Mostovoy's harsh assessment

The former player noted that the Italian expert's arrival in Uzbekistan was an unexpected decision for many.

“When they appointed Fabio as head coach, many were surprised: 'What is Cannavaro doing there? Why did he go to Uzbekistan?'” said Mostovoy.

In his opinion, Cannavaro's arrival at the Uzbekistan national team is good advertising for the country's football, and for the expert himself, it was a financially beneficial decision.

At the same time, Mostovoy gave a rather harsh assessment of the potential of the Uzbekistan national team.

“In reality, this is good advertising for the Uzbekistan national team, and a good salary for Cannavaro. This is a mid-level team, and they reached the World Cup because the number of participants was expanded,” he emphasized.

It should be noted that these words are Mostovoy's personal assessment. The Uzbekistan national team's qualification for the World Cup is not explained solely by the increase in the number of participants: although the expanded format created new opportunities, the team still had to record the necessary results in the qualifying matches.

“The Uzbeks can be praised for scoring two goals”

At the end of the conversation, Mostovoy once again emphasized that the Russian national team had to defeat Uzbekistan. In his opinion, Karpin's students fulfilled the task set before them.

“The Russian national team had to beat Uzbekistan, and that's what happened. Cannavaro is doing his job and moving on his way, everything is fine. The fact that the Uzbeks scored two goals against us is a good result in itself, they can be praised for that,” said the former player.

It is natural that these words of Mostovoy will not please Uzbekistan football fans. Especially since assessments in a tone that belittles the international achievements of our national team can cause objections from many.

Is Russia's victory a lesson for Cannavaro's team or just an ordinary defeat?

The Uzbekistan national team managed to score two goals in the match against Russia, but could not maintain the advantage in the final part of the match. Therefore, the 3-2 defeat revealed aspects that need to be analyzed for our team as well.

Mostovoy, however, considers this result an ordinary victory for Russia. But there is also a noteworthy aspect in his statements: the Russian players did not show the same level of activity throughout the entire match, and the former midfielder criticized this situation.

For Uzbekistan, the most important answer may not be given by words, but by future matches and results in international competitions. Cannavaro's work, the team's growth, and the players' potential cannot be judged by a single friendly match.

Mostovoy's harsh opinions may cause controversy. But the real answer of Uzbek football will be the result on the pitch, stable play, and new achievements at the international level.