Asian Cup knockout round: Tajikistan's dark horse comeback, UAE lose on penalties
The 2024 Asian Cup was in full swing when Middle East powerhouse UAE met a real dark horse - Tajikistan. In what seemed like a match of vastly different proportions, the tension was felt by all, and the two sides had to rely on a brutal penalty shootout to separate the winners from the losers. Tajikistan beat the UAE 6-4 to reach the last eight in their first Asian Cup appearance!
When it comes to Tajikistan, few fans knew their name before the Asian Cup. In the soccer history of this Central Asian powerhouse, they are as obscure as a "fishbowl", hardly making waves. With a population of only 10.32 million, the small country is better at wrestling than soccer. However, at the Asian Cup in Qatar, Tajikistan wrote history!
In the group stage, Tajikistan made their first appearance at the Asian Cup and were placed in China's Group A, which included hosts Qatar and Lebanon. After three matches, Tajikistan went down 0-1 to Qatar, but remained undefeated in their remaining two matches, winning 1 and drawing 1. They eventually beat the Chinese men's soccer team to claim second place in the group and successfully advance to the Round of 16.
In the first round of the knockout stage, Tajikistan met UAE, the eighth in Asia. Tajikistan broke the deadlock in the 30th minute when Yurabayev scored a header from a corner kick to take a 1-0 lead. The UAE fought back, but they were unable to break through Tajikistan's defense.
At the end of the match, the UAE changed their personnel and strengthened their offense, but this also exposed their defensive space gradually. Tajikistan's counter-attacks repeatedly broke through the UAE's defense, and if it wasn't for top striker Jalilov's three consecutive missed chances, the game might have been over!
Tajikistan missed a chance in injury time and the UAE sent the game into extra time with a free kick assist from Saleh. Neither side had anything to offer in the extra time and the match had to go to a brutal penalty shootout. Tajikistan's five penalty takers all hit solidly to beat the UAE 5-3 and advance to the last eight 6-4 on aggregate!
Previously, many fans were skeptical of Tajikistan's advancement. After the referee blew off a Chinese goal in the match between China and Tajikistan, Tajikistan took the opportunity to fight back and advance to the knockout stage. Now that Tajikistan has managed to reach the last eight, those skepticisms seem to be able to stop. Their strength fully deserved to qualify and China has only themselves to blame for their exit!
We'll see how far this dark horse goes!
