Leading in virtually every statistical measure of this year’s tournament, and fresh from a 6-0 win over ATK Mohun Bagan in the previous round, Nasaf are considered strong favourites to advance to their first decider in 10 years, but Chan warned that his side cannot be discounted.

 

“At this level we are beginners” Chan declared at Tuesday’s pre-match press conference. “Our club is a newborn baby from four years ago, but honestly, for me, my players have a lot of AFC Cup experience, and I also have a lot of experience, so we are not nervous. We also have a lot of good players with international experience, so we expect this to be a close game and we will try to fight."

"Nasaf played really well against ATK Mohun Bagan in the (Inter-zone) semi-final and we got some information from that game.

"They are fast, very aggressive and are very good in wing play and we understand that this is their strength, but we are not a weak team (either), so we will find a way to manage those strengths and let’s see how we go tomorrow.

 

“Football is not like boxing. Who knows the uncertainty of the game? We will try to make a surprise.”

Like Nasaf, Lee Man have won every match they’ve played in the competition so far, but their previous three fixtures were all played in Hong Kong. With long-haul international travel still posing challenges due to the pandemic, Chan admitted his side had endured a longer journey than usual to arrive in southern Uzbekistan but insisted it would not impact his team’s ability to win.

 

“We are very glad to be here,” said the former Hong Kong national team head coach.  “It’s not easy to travel in the pandemic. It’s not like before where you can arrive in six or seven hours, but we are settled, we have recovered, and we are ready for the game.

 

"We understand the home team is strong, but no one knows what can happen in a football game, and we are not here to be defeated, we are here to fight and fight until the end."

While Lee Man are appearing at the business end of a continental competition for the first time in the club’s short history, Nasaf won the AFC Cup the last time they participated back in 2011 and entered this year’s edition targeting the title from the start.

 

That objective has never looked anything other than a distinct possibility, with Ruzikul Berdiev’s side racking 18 goals and conceding only two In a run of five successive wins and 19-year-old striker Khusain Norchaev helping himself to a tournament-high six goals.

After a rough patch mid-season, they have also improved their domestic fortunes in recent weeks, stringing together five successive Uzbekistan Super League wins, including a 5-0 romp against Bunyodkor, to keep themselves in the race for a top two finish.

 

Serbian midfielder Marko Staonjević said Nasaf’s players are aware of the significance of Wednesday’s clash, but have prepared as normal for the challenge of Lee Man.

"The semi-final is a big and very important match for us,” said the 33-year-old, who scored one of the goals of this year’s AFC Cup in the Central Asian Zonal Final against Ahal FC.

 

“We have prepared for tomorrow's match the same as for every game. At this stage of the tournament, we should not give in to excessive emotions. We will go on the pitch to win the game.”

FC Nasaf (UZB) v Lee Man (HKG)
Venue: Markaziy Stadium, Karshi City
Kick-off: 18:00 hours (UTC+5)