Cannavaro: "From now on, no one will have privileges in the national team"
The head coach of the Uzbekistan national team, Fabio Cannavaro, shared his thoughts after the 3-1 victory against Iran. The Italian specialist stated that when calling up players to the national team, there will no longer be any privileges for past achievements.
Cannavaro: "From now on, no one will have privileges in the national team"
The head coach of the Uzbekistan national team, Fabio Cannavaro, attended a press conference after the friendly match against Iran (3:1) on September 24 and shared his thoughts.
"The match was not easy. We had 3 days to prepare for this game. Despite this, we worked hard with the players and discussed that the first 20 minutes of the match would be crucial. I explained that we could achieve a good result through team play. I emphasized that we must act with unity, regardless of whether it is a victory or a defeat."
"We knew that Iran could pose a threat to us mainly during set pieces. My players showed a good game. I am proud of the guys. We need to forget this result as quickly as possible and think about the next matches."
"Goalkeeper Abduvohid Ne’matov's injury? I trust all the players in the squad. Yesterday, Ne’matov got injured, and it became clear that he would not play against Iran. But I was confident in the other players. We had seen Vladimir Nazarov in the AFC Champions League matches and decided to field him. Whoever was called up to the training camp arrived fully prepared. As I said before, the doors of the national team are open to everyone. If in previous camps we gave 'bonuses' to some for their hard work and help in the qualifiers, from now on there will be no such privileges. We will call up whoever is worthy and ready for the national team. The Asian Cup is ahead of us. We will have one month to properly prepare for the tournament. I hope the guys will arrive at that camp in a ready state."
"Were there aspects of the match against Iran that I did not like? We saw many positive aspects in this match. But as a head coach, I look for opportunities to improve further. Iran might not have capitalized on our mistakes. But other opponents will never forgive this. In particular, I asked the central midfielders to show team play. I also demanded not to commit fouls around our penalty area. But we still made a mistake in this regard and conceded the goal that way. I think there are aspects we can improve further."
As a reminder, the Uzbekistan national team defeated Iran 3:1 in Fergana. The goals were scored by Eldor Shomurodov (2) and Husayin Norchayev.
The national team will play 2 more friendly matches during the FIFA days: against Syria in Tashkent on October 1 and away against South Korea on October 6.