Uzbekistan defeats Iran despite being a man down

On 18 November, the Uzbekistan national team faced Iran in the final of an international friendly tournament held in Al Ain, UAE.

The first half was dominated by a series of attacks from the Uzbek side. Despite having multiple opportunities, neither team managed to open the scoring before the break.

Both teams created several chances in the second half as well. In the 69th minute, Abduqodir Husainov was sent off for a foul on an Iranian player. With no winner determined in regular time, the match proceeded to a penalty shootout, where Uzbekistan claimed a 4–3 victory.

For reference, Fabio Cannavaro’s Uzbekistan team reached the final after defeating Mohamed Salah’s Egypt 2–0 on 14 November, while Iran advanced by beating Cape Verde in a penalty shootout.

To date, the two teams have faced each other 18 times. Iran has won 11 matches, Uzbekistan has won 2, and 5 games have ended in a draw. Their first encounter took place at the 1998 Asian Games, where Iran won 4–0. The most recent meeting was the CAFA Cup final held in Tashkent in September of this year, where Uzbekistan secured a 1–0 victory.

In the third-place match of this tournament, Egypt defeated Cape Verde in a penalty shootout.