In Tashkent, at the "Bunyodkor" stadium, the match of the 3rd round of the qualifying tournament for the 206 World Cup in Group A took place.
The Uzbekistan national team faced its most principled rival – the national team of Iran.
In the first half, there were very few sharp moments. The Uzbekistan team was more aggressive in attack, but the actions of Eldor Shomurodov and Abbosbek Fayzullaev were successfully countered by the defenders of the Iranian team.
In the second half, at the 57th minute, Iranian player Saleh Khardani received a red card for a rough play against Eldor Shomurodov, forcing his team to switch to defense.
At the end of the game, our team’s defender Ashurmatov handled the ball in his own penalty area, putting the fate of the match in jeopardy. Fortunately, after reviewing VAR, the referee canceled the penalty. The remaining time saw the Iranian team, playing with a man down, on the attack – 0:0.
After three rounds, the teams of Iran and Uzbekistan top the Group A standings, each having collected 7 points.
Our footballers will play their next match at home against the national team of the United Arab Emirates on October 15.