Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Sydney: Defender Vitaliy Denisov has targeted a win in each of Uzbekistan’s three AFC Asian Cup Group B games as his side look to improve on their fourth-placed finish at the tournament’s 2011 edition.
The Uzbeks, who lost out to Korea Republic in the battle for third spot at the last Asian Cup, open their latest campaign at the continent’s premier competition against DPR Korea at Stadium Australia in Sydney on Saturday, before facing fellow group rivals China and three-time winners Saudi Arabia on January 14 and 18 respectively.
Despite the undoubted quality that Uzbekistan will be facing, Denisov (pictured, centre), who will be appearing at his third Asian Cup, remains quietly confident that a positive mental attitude will help propel Mirdjalal Kasimov's charges towards the knockout phase and then, potentially, the final itself.
“We know every team in our group is dangerous, if you think you are going to win the game before the match that’s not right, you can lose. Every team is difficult for us, but we have to aim to win every game in the group,” the Lokomotiv Moscow star told reporters.
“We hope we’re going to qualify from the group first, then hopefully get to the final – we’re going to see if we’re the best.
“We have played against (DPR Korea) before, they are a very strong team, though I know they have a new coach who has made a lot of changes. I still think we can make three points against them,” he added.
China and Saudi Arabia will face each other in Brisbane on the same day as the Uzbekistan versus DPR Korea clash.