In the fierce battle for the opening match of the Asian Cup, the national football team will face the opponent - Tajikistan, has officially unveiled the 27-player preparation lineup. In this list, overseas players occupy half of the mountain, a total of 10, while the naturalized players also reached four.
Looking back at the 36-team roster announced in November, 24 players made the cut, while three new faces - defender Immonazarov, midfielder Shukurov and Tusunov - joined the preparations.
The list of Tajikistan's players is particularly bright with overseas players. Among them, such midfield stalwarts as goalscorer Soyrov (21, playing for UzL), Samiev (22, Moore United) and Umarbayev (29, Bohol) are playing in foreign lands. As for domestic players, Kamolov, Pan Ishambet and veteran A. Galilov are showing their skills at domestic giant FC Dushanbe, and this year they are also sharpening their skills in the AFC Champions League. It is worth noting that Dushan Independence has a total of 10 players on the roster, making it a solid backbone for the Tajikistan team. In addition, there are four naturalized Russian players, including midfield veteran Jalilov, who has played for Russia's national youth teams in all age groups from U17-U21 and was naturalized four years ago, and Umarbayev, who was a mainstay of Russia's U18 national youth team for even longer, with a history of eight years of naturalization.
Tajikistan's preparation program is divided into two phases: it starts in Dubai from December 16 to 27, then moves to Abu Dhabi until December 28th. Immediately after that, they will arrive in Qatar on January 8 to officially enter the tournament venue. Coach Shergott expects to schedule at least three warm-up matches, with Hong Kong, China, now virtually confirmed as the opponent, to warm up for the first match.
Below is a specific list of the 27:
Goalkeepers: Yatimov (Dushan Independence), Hasanov (Dushan Independence), Barotov (Istaravshan)
Defenders: Hanonov (Persepolis, Iran), Yurabaev (Fergana Oil Workers, Uzbekistan), Safarov (Tashkent Lokomotiv, Uzbekistan), Akhtam Nazarov (Dushan Independence), Tabrez Islomov (Dushan Independence), Kurbanov (Dushan Independence), Nazarov Kholmurod (Rafshan), Imom Nazarov ( Eschata)
MIDFIELD: Umarbayev (1948 Central Army, Paulinia), Zhuraboev (Jeddah, Malaysia), Rakhimov (Bukhara, Uzbekistan), Tursunov (Kerala, India) Komron, Khayloev (Tyumen, Russia), Jalilov (Dushan Independence), Panzhishambay (Dushan Independence), Mabashuyev (Dushan Independence), Kamolov ( Dushan Independence), Alijonny Brizod (Dushan Independence), Safarov (Pamir Central Army), Kuktos, Alisher Shukurov
Forwards: Soirov (Tashkent Lokomotiv, Uzbekistan), Samiev (Mirshami, Moldova), Hamrokulov (Regatadaz), Azizboyev (Kohsilot)
