The Uzbeks didn't pose much of a threat but I was impressed by their discipline for 120 minutes. Rogic is suspended which makes the next match, presumably against UAE, pretty interesting.
Who knows.. Kyrgyzstan are holding their own against the hosts... honestly, whatever happens, Kyrgyzstan have been the cinderella story of the tournament... absolutely amazing effort from them!
Are you a GK? Kyrgyz player Kairat Zhyrghalbek has a funny name. It is similar to 17-18 century ghetto poor Iranian names.
No... but I remember they had a different goalkeeper in the opening match vs. China, the bald Russian guy - he was absolutely terrible... literally dropped a nothing ball into the back of the net. Then they replaced him with this Kyrgyz guy... he's not that much better tbh. And UAE look absolutely awful in this tournament, honestly I'd rather see Kyrgyzstan go through, they'd at least provide some energy vs the Aussies...
Majority of Arab teams so far has been dissapointing, only Qatar and somewhat Iraq are showing some grit. Football in West Asia has gone down the drain. Central Asia is rising as new force is Asian football. Turkmenistan giving a serious scar to Japan, Uzbeks going neck to neck with Japan despite their choking points, Kyrgyz showing some resilient spirit today, and certainly Iran going without conceding any goals stand out. Even poor and tiny Tajikistan is getting result in youth level. On the east side North Koreans regressed to 4th tier and both Australia and S.Korea have hard time scoring goals. Japan even in transition mode is still a force to reckon with. Vietnam and in lesser degree India have been surprise of this tournament
Without really disagreeing with your assessment of some of the teams I will point out that at this stage there is only one Central Asian side left in the tournament and at least two from the other three regions will be in the final 8.
uzbekistan master chokers yet again. they are the kings of "almost." if you want to make money bet a lot on uzbekistans opponents in a make it or break it match. they dont teach you this in business school.
The Aussies are still struggling to break down any decent team that is willing to sit back and absorb pressure. I guess the middle of a tournament isn't a good time to totally change styles, but it will have to come sooner rather than later or they will struggle again in WCQ. From the 1/4 final stage on though, oppositions can't really afford to sit back and wait for chances, they will have to come out and create their own or risk taking it to pens. The hosts won't want that, neither the likely Koreans in the semi if the Socceroos make it that far. I would certainly fear a match up against Iran at the moment, great at absorbing pressure with strong defence and also the ability to go forward and create numerous good chances in attack. That long awaited rematch against Iran can wait a little bit longer hopefully until Australia can find someway to improve or they could get rightfully embarrassed.
Maybe chokers is a bit harsh. To me they are a good second tier Asian team that hasn't quite bridged the gap to the top tier just yet. It must be frustrating for Uzbeki supporters to see them not make that extra step. They have some good young players coming through so maybe next world cup / Asian Cup cycle could be their time.
they always choke when it matters, whether against big teams or small teams. i have been hearing since the beginning of the 21st century that they will "be a top asian team in 5-10 years." it has been 2 decades. they have made some progress but i dont see any indication of them being among the top asian teams any time soon. same with china. it will be a repeat of asian cup 2004: Iran vs china and winner plays japan. this time hopefully no weird things happen and we get our revenge on china.
i am hoping for an Iran vs australia final. it will be epic. it will be about time these 2 teams play each other... ever since australia joined AFC we havent played a single match! the historical rivalry also adds to it... more than 1 world cup intercontinental playoffs. i am also sick of japan winning the cup.
It would be nice to see but on current form I think that this time its us that will get knocked out before that match up can happen.
The chance of Korea is greater than all to go to final. If title goes to Iran, they will break Japan's record as most decorated Asian team, if Korea take the title they will join Iran and Saudi Arabia with 3 titles, and if Australia or Iraq win this series they join S.Korea and Israel with 2 championships. Japan getting there is just repeating 2000s all over again and going beyond reach of any Asian teamtfor at least next 8 years. Just for statistic point of view it is essential to have a nation other than Japan lift the cup. But at the end may the best team win it all. Even Vietnam has a tiny chance to do so. Portugal won Euro 2016 with three points in group stage and Greece won that competition with parking the bus, so anything is possible.
This Asian Cup has shown that the 3rd tier sides in Asia are no longer punching bags, with a side that was previously mostly a 2nd tier side (namely N. Korea) instead becoming the punching bag that many would have assumed would be the role taken by sides such as Kyrgyzstan, the Philippines, Vietnam and the rest in this Asian Cup. N. Korea and to a lesser extent Yemen aside, everyone else in this tournament was able to hold its own for good chunks in their matches. In the meantime, no side has emerged looking invincible. Among the first tier sides, Japan looks like a side that is experimenting and one which has never left first gear. The fact that they have won all their games, even if not in the usual Japanese style, makes them look worrisome nonetheless. South Korea has not been tested sufficiently to be sure but they have so far looked pretty much what I expected. Not convincing enough but not a side to dismiss either. Australia has done worse than expected but they are still in contention and still very much capable of going farther still. Iran has looked alright and lived up to expectations but while the most solid side in this tournament so far, it is clear that we too cannot take much for granted. The difference so far between cruising to victory and finding egg in our face has been some fortunate early moments where we have been able to ride out some nightmares that could have been. In the meantime, I am certainly happy that the Saudis will not be with us the rest of the tournament. The longer they hung around, the stronger the chances that we would see controversial decisions helping them cover up their faults and frailties. Among the 2nd tier sides that are close enough to the first tear to be able to go far enough, the hosts UAE have been really poor without their star player Omar Abdulrahman. But they are still hosts in a confederation where results do not always march hand in hand with merit. Qatar has looked pretty good but not good enough to be assured of a win against another top 2nd tier side, namely Iraq. Their match should be good. As for the Uzbeks, I agree they are just not that good. They are a decent side at the level of many other teams that have already exited the tournament. They gave Australia a good run but that might have been their best game in this tournament in some ways. From what I have seen, China has not been all that good but they are facing Iran next and I will need to be cautious dismissing their chances. While they have not been all that good, and have at times looked very poor, they have had moments where they have been alright. I am looking forward to seeing Iran in the final. Does not mean it will happen but it is past time it did. My hope is that we meet Australia in the final, which would make our first match against them since Melbourne in 1997 rather fitting. To get there, we would need to get past China and then probably Japan. Each possible indeed but neither something to take for granted.
IMO thinking about revenge in football can be harmful. Be logical. After AC 2004, Iran played with China several times. China vs Iran in Semi-final of AC 2004 was not a good moment for Iran football. The Lebanese referee simply did everything he could to stop Iran from reaching to the final of AC 2004 or He did everything he could to help host China to reach final. The first wrong red card by Lebanese referee in 48th minute of the game: He also gave a harsh red card to Alavi to make us play with 9 men and the Chinese player avoided a clear red card! We were dominant even with 10 men. At the end of the day, we lost in penalties. In that game, we wore green which is third choice for us. The following pic made me feel very bad.
I always loved our team wearing the flag colors, and unfortunately the last time was 2004 if I am right. Two times Iran deserved to be in final in last 22 years and two times bad referee dismantled our team and both times lost on PKs. (1996-2004) In 2015 we were among favorites but not as dominant as of 96 or 04. In 8 years of CQ managing team melli I have not seen a performance like AC 96 Iran-KSA (3-0), AC 96 Iran-S.Korea (6-2) or AC 04 Iran-S.Korea (4-3) yet. Talat Najm is a persona non grata in Iran for that 2004 semi final. The guy was a rubbish, Ben Williams was a king compared to him.
Australia and Japan have looked far from convincing, but I guess the concern for their opponents is that they turn up for their quarter final. Iran is looking the most solid, but sterner tests ahead ... so watch this space. Korea similar to Australia and Japan appear to be doing just enough (but looking more comfortable). They played similarly at the last Asian Cup and made the final ... so maybe it is simply their style. Anyone else winning it from here would be an upset, but would be good to see someone like China or Vietnam make it through to a semi.
It's remarkable how far Kyrgyzstan have come in just a few years. I remember watching them in the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup and thinking they looked awful. They crashed out of the group stages and would've conceded more goals if it wasn't for their bald Russian keeper (fun fact: he had a full head of hair back then). They got undone by a bogus penalty in extra time. How are UAE still in this tournament? They look primed for a good thrashing by one of the top sides.
They have had fair share of opportunities to prove they are on par with likes of Iran, Japan, Australia and Korea Republic; unfortunately they failed miserably when it mattered most. This time, no exception.