Andijan kicks off its campaign in AFC Champions League 2 today

The Andijan football club will begin its campaign in the AFC Champions League 2 today, September 17. The current Uzbekistan Cup holder will face Turkmenistan’s team, Arkadag.

Representing Uzbekistan in the AFC Champions League 2, the ’’Eagles’’ will compete against the winners of the AFC Challenge League, organized by the Asian Football Confederation. The match will kick off at 18:45 Tashkent time at the Arkadag Stadium in the city of Arkadag.

At the pre-match press conference, Andijan’s head coach, Maksim Shatskikh, shared his thoughts.

’’We understand that we are essentially playing against the national team of Turkmenistan, as 99 percent of the national squad are members of Arkadag. We have prepared seriously for this match. Moreover, this is our debut in this tournament. I believe tomorrow will bring an interesting and intense game. I hope we can demonstrate fast and disciplined football. The most important thing is the result. We did not come here for a draw, naturally, we will play for victory,’’ Maksim Shatskikh, Andijan's head coach, said.

The match will be officiated by a refereeing team from Singapore led by Ahmad Al-Qashah bin Ahmad Al-Badawi. He will be assisted on the flanks by his compatriots Manoj Kalwani and Ashokraj Jivaraj, while the fourth official will be Leow Hong Wei, also from Singapore.

Andijan’s group includes Arkadag, as well as Al-Ahli and Al-Khalidiya.

Andijan’s group stage schedule:

• Matchday 1 – September 17: Arkadag vs Andijan
• Matchday 2 – October 1: Andijan vs Al-Ahli
• Matchday 3 – October 22: Andijan vs Al-Khalidiya
• Matchday 4 – November 5: Al-Khalidiya vs Andijan
• Matchday 5 – November 26: Andijan vs Arkadag
• Matchday 6 – December 24: Al-Ahli vs Andijan

It is worth noting that earlier, Qarshi’s Nasaf team began its AFC Elite Champions League campaign with a 2–4 defeat against Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ahli.