After Lushan’s accusations, Navbahor FC faces scrutiny

Earlier, after Navbahor suffered a heavy defeat against Bukhara FC in the 22nd round of the Super League, the head coach, Sergey Lushan, stated at a press conference that some of his players’ actions seemed suspicious. Shortly afterwards, the coach himself was dismissed from his position. Following Lushan’s remarks, the Uzbekistan Professional Football League (UzPFL) appealed to the Uzbekistan Football Association, requesting an investigation into the situation at Navbahor.

’’The comments made by the Russian specialist at the press conference drew the League’s attention. In his statement, Lushan noted that some players had acted in favor of the opposing team and stressed that such cases should be examined by the relevant authorities. Before this, the coach had also made several sharp remarks at press conferences, and although he did not name anyone specifically, he indicated that he had concrete accusations against some of his players,’’ the UzPFL statement read.

The UzPFL also noted that the atmosphere within the Navbahor club seemed unhealthy. In particular, although the club had completed the first half of the season in high spirits, it was mentioned that there were financial difficulties.

’’At present, the club has still not settled its old debts. Nevertheless, at the start of the season, the club took part in a foreign training camp and continued adding some experienced players to its squad. For the League, it is important to determine how close Lushan’s statements are to the truth, how much the financial situation is affecting the club’s environment, whether there are outstanding debts owed to the players, how this is impacting their form and morale, and ultimately, what role these factors are playing in the club’s results,’’ the UzPFL statement said.

It was noted that the comments made by Sergey Lushan at the press conference raised a number of questions regarding the integrity of the domestic championship, fair competition, and honest play. If the coach’s statements or suspicions turn out to have grounds, then this will no longer be merely an internal matter of the club but will naturally undermine fair competition in the Super League. On the contrary, if the coach cannot substantiate his remarks, then he must provide further clarification for his words.

’’Taking these factors into account, the League has decided it is necessary to appeal to the Association’s Special Inspection for the Oversight of Football Activities to investigate the situation at Navbahor. The last time the Special Inspection was involved was this June, when it examined the issue of forged documents during the player registration process and brought full clarity to the matter. We hope that the above issue will also be thoroughly investigated and that its conclusions will serve as a warning to any club and its officials that are members of the League,’’ the PFL statement mentioned.

It is worth noting that Navbahor’s head coach, Sergey Lushan, had been dismissed after the match between Bukhara and Navbahor. Under his management, the ’’Falcons’’ played 35 matches in the Super League, securing 16 wins, 9 draws, and 10 losses. In the Uzbekistan Cup, the team appeared in 8 matches, recording 5 victories (two through penalty shootouts), 1 draw, and 2 defeats.