After Beating Indonesia U-23, Uzbekistan U-23 Prints History For The First Time Qualifying For The Olympics

JAKARTA - Uzbekistan U-23 was finally able to create history for the first time qualified for the Olympics.

Tickets to the 2024 Paris Olympics they got after overthrowing Indonesia U-23 in the semifinals of the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup.

In the match presented at the Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, Monday, April 29, 2024, White Wolves won 2-0 through goals from Khusayin Norchaev (68') and committed suicide Pratama Arhan (86').

Since becoming a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1993, the Uzbekistan football team has never qualified for the world's largest multi-event finals.

This means that they have not taken part in the sport of football for seven editions of the Olympics.

No wonder, the excitement includes the White Wolves squad after they make new history for their country.

East Kapadze coach admitted that before the match against Indonesia U-23, they were depressed because of the burden of having to qualify for the Olympics for the first time.

However, this pressure can be overcome thanks to the better physical and tactical capabilities of Garuda Muda.

"It was a game where we felt the pressure because we wanted to go to the Olympics. It was true that we dominated this game, my players were better physically and tactically." "We can do more, but as I said, it was a stressful match for us."

"We had a lot of chances to score, but didn't take most of it. So, we also made some mistakes that we had to analyze and fix," said Kapadze.

Selurung pegawa White Wolves looked emotional after successfully treading a new trail for his country, including Abdurauf Buriev.

Buriev, who replaced the captain role because Jasurbek Jalolid Badminton did not appear, is proud to be one of the creators of the historic moment for Uzbekistan football.

"This is a very big moment in my career (los to the Olympics), but I can't say anything (more) because it was a very emotional game," said Buriev.

Not only winning tickets directly to the 2024 Paris Olympics, but Uzbekistan U-23 also has the opportunity to win the U-23 Asian Cup trophy again.

They won the U-23 Asian Cup in the 2018 edition of China.

Meanwhile, Uzbekistan U-23 has a slick record of never missing the U-23 Asian Cup since it was first held in 2013.

Throughout their participation in the tournament, White Wolves have reached the final twice before, won one and one runner-up (2022). They have also been ranked fourth in the 2020 edition.