As the knockout rounds of the 2024 Asian Cup got underway, the showdown between West Asian powerhouse UAE and sudden dark horse Tajikistan captured the attention of the crowd. The seemingly lopsided matchup did not inspire the expected tension, and the two sides ultimately had to rely on a penalty shootout to reveal the winner. Tajikistan beat the UAE 6-4 to reach the last eight of the Asian Cup on their debut!
When it comes to Tajikistan, few fans have heard of them before the Asian Cup. In the Central Asian soccer arena, this small country with a population of only 10.32 million has long been regarded as a "fish belly", difficult to make waves. However, in the Qatar Asian Cup, Tajikistan wrote its own legend.
In the group stage, Tajikistan, making its Asian Cup debut, was placed in China's Group A with hosts Qatar and Lebanon. In the three matches of the group stage, Tajikistan only lost 0-1 to Qatar and remained unbeaten in the remaining two matches, with one win and one draw. In the end, they earned their ticket to the Round of 16 by finishing second in the group.
In the first round of the knockout stage, Tajikistan faced UAE, the eighth in Asia, in a fierce battle. In the 30th minute, taking advantage of a second chance from a corner kick, Yurabayev found his teammates with precision in the box, and center back Hanonov deftly put the ball into the net, 1-0! Tajikistan broke the deadlock and took the lead!
The UAE then launched a fierce counterattack, but they could not find a breakthrough against Tajikistan's tight defense. In the second leg, UAE made personnel changes to further strengthen the attack, but this also made their defensive loopholes gradually exposed. Tajikistan's counterattacks repeatedly broke through the UAE's defense, and if not for three consecutive missed chances by top striker Jalilov, the game would have been decided long ago!
Tajikistan were penalized for missed chances in injury time. UAE's naturalized player Saleh assisted his teammate's goal from a free kick, and the UAE fought back at the last minute to send the game into extra time for 30 minutes. Neither side was able to create a good attacking chance in the extra time and the match had to go into a brutal penalty shootout. Tajikistan played well in the penalty shootout, with all five penalty takers hitting the target, beating the UAE 5-3 and advancing to the last eight of the Asian Cup with a total score of 6-4!
Earlier, Tajikistan's advancement sparked a lot of controversy. In the match between China and Tajikistan, the referee blew off a Chinese goal, and Tajikistan was thus given the chance to fight back and successfully advance to the knockout stage. Now that the Tajiks have further advanced to the last eight of the Asian Cup, it seems that those skeptical voices can be put to rest for the time being. They are strong enough to justify their qualification, and China has only themselves to blame for their exit!
How far can this dark horse go? Let's wait and see.
