Uzbekistan U-23 Had Remehkan Indonesia U-23

Uzbekistan U-23 coach, East Kapadze (doc. AFC).

JAKARTA - Uzbekistan U-23 became the opponent of Indonesia U-23 in the semifinals of the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup.

White Wolves since entering the tournament have never included Garuda Muda as a team candidate to be fought in the knockout stages, let alone the semifinals.

Uzbekistan U-23 coach, Timur Kapadze, admitted that he and his team really did not study Indonesia U-23.

He just turned his attention to Shin Tae-yong's troops after winning against Saudi Arabia U-23 in the quarter-finals. "We only focused on the match against Saudi Arabia U-23. However, we just watched the Indonesia U-23 match against South Korea (U-23)."

"They (Indonesia U-23) show that they can appear against big teams. So, from now onwards, we will start analyzing and preparing it," said Kapadze.

Indonesia U-23 could surprisingly step into the semifinals in their debut in the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup. In the quarter-finals, they eliminated South Korea U-23 with a score of 11-10 on penalties after the match ended 2-2 until the extra round.

Uzbekistan U-23 is well aware that it does not include Indonesia U-23 as a serious sanction.

One of the White Wolves players, Khusain Norchaev, even asked his colleagues to stop the euphoria of victory against Saudi Arabia U-23.

He emphasized that the team must focus on the semifinal match and not underestimate Indonesia U-23. Moreover, they are targeting to qualify automatically for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

This means that Uzbekistan U-23 wants to make it to the final to get a direct ticket to France. In addition, they are also eyeing a second title in the U-23 Asian Cup which was won in the 2018 edition.

"It's amazing to be able to win against them Saudi Arabia U-23, but this is only the quarter-finals. We still need to prepare for two more games."

"I'm sure we can do more. We will prepare for those matches."

"We will continue to struggle to achieve our targets. After playing against Saudi Arabia U-23, we can analyze and prepare our strategy better so as to produce victory," Norchaev said.

Uzbekistan U-23 is indeed above the wind when they meet Indonesia U-23 later. In addition to increasing self-confidence after revenge for Saudi Arabia U-23 which defeated them in the 2022 U-23 Asian Cup final, White Wolves became a successful team to keep clean-sheets.

Until the quarter-finals, their goal has not conceded. In fact, Uzbekistan U-23 is the most productive team. They have scored 12 goals.

However, Timur Kapadze did not want the record to make his team happy. He needs to instruct his players to stay focused on the system being implemented.

"We have to stay focused. In the match against Saudi Arabia U-23, we saw many tense moments (for defense)."

"The defense starts with the attacker, so it's not just our defenders who work hard to get this clean sheet," said Kapadze.

The Indonesia U-23 match against Uzbekistan will be held at the Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium on Monday, April 29, 2024, at 21.00 WIB.