Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Dushanbe: Zero points from two games would have most coaches concerned about their team’s prospects of qualifying for any major event, but Tajikistan’s Khakim Fuzaylov is refusing to panic despite seeing his side sit at the bottom of the Group F standings.
Fuzaylov’s side scored three times last week but were still on the receiving end of a defeat as Tajikistan suffered a 4-3 loss to the Philippines, who moved to the top of the standings with a perfect record after two rounds.
“I don’t think it is a tragedy yet,” said Fuzaylov. “We will play four more matches and try to change situation in the group. We lost the battles in the midfield zone and that was the main reason for our defeat.”
Phil Younghusband gave the Philippines the lead with a wonderful free kick before Javier Patino scored twice to give the South East Asian nation breathing space that was to prove invaluable.
Parvizchon Umarbaev and Dilshod Vasiev pegged the visitors’ lead back to just one goal before a strike from Daisuke Sato rocketed into the top corner while Manuchekr Dzhalilov’s late effort made for a nervous finish for the Philippines.
The result, though, was another disappointment for Fuzaylov and his squad, which features six of the players who reached the 2015 AFC Cup final with Dushanbe-based FC Istiklol.
“I admitted that the Philippines are good team before the match,” said Fuzaylov. “You shouldn’t play in defence like we played. I mean all teams must be active in defence, not only the defenders.
“We lost the midfield zone. We made many mistakes in defence. Aleksandr Huber played for the first time for the national team. He replaced the injured Nuriddin Davronov, but we couldn’t play well in defence.
“The Philippines have fast and active midfielders and forwards. We made several unwanted mistakes and the Philippines scored two goals in the first-half. Then we thought only about attack. With such mistakes, you can’t win or even take a point.”
Dooley satisfied with goalless draw
Thomas Dooley’s side returned to winning ways with the victory, having succumbed to a heavy loss in a friendly match against China the previous week and the Philippines are now top of Group F with six points having previously defeated Nepal in the opening round.
Yemen occupy second as a result of their 0-0 draw in Nepal, with the Nepalese third with one point and Tajikistan propping up the table and yet to claim a point.
“I am happy with the victory,” said Dooley, whose team host Yemen in their next qualifying game in September.
“We were able to recover after the defeat by China. The players felt how important this match was. We paid attention to this game and won it.
“We played very well in the first-half, we created chances and scored two goals. Tajikistan are a strong side too, they created a lot of pressure in the second-half.
“We lost concentration in the last minutes, but anyway we claimed an important victory and my team showed their attacking football.”
Photo: Tajikistan Football Federation