“I will make plan D. That’s my job,” Katanec said when asked how he would deal with the possible absence of the BG Pathum United forward. “The easiest way for the coach is if we’re all together without a little bit of trauma, but it’s not like this.

 

“I will try to do my best to find a solution. We don’t know yet who we will play (in the last 16) and after that I will start to think who, why, how.”

Cagliari striker Shomurodov did not board the plane to Qatar after undergoing surgery last month to put much of Uzbekistan’s attacking hopes on the shoulders of Sergeev, although Katanec left the 30-year-old on the bench for the start of the meeting with the Australians.

 

A draw with Syria and a win over India in their first two games meant Uzbekistan were certain to progress to the next round before the game and the two sides were battling for top spot in Group E.

 

While Martin Boyle put the Australians ahead from the penalty spot at the end of the first half, Azizbek Turgenboev eventually equalised with 12 minutes remaining as he outjumped Aziz Behich to meet Jaloliddin Masharipov’s cross from the left.

“We scored with a header, where Australia has the most quality,” said Katanec. “It’s very difficult when they have a corner or free-kicks, when those players come they are two heads taller than our players and you never know what can happen. This is stressful. And we scored the header from five or six metres.

 

“I know we are good. We will make some chances because we have quality. You have to deserve to try to score and we have those kind of players.”

The draw means Australia topped Group E with seven points from three games, leaving head coach Graham Arnold to declare the first phase of his AFC Asian Cup mission complete despite the selection of a squad featuring a number of inexperienced players.

 

“We came here at the start of the tournament to top the group and we got the job done and that’s the most important thing,” he said. “We look forward now one game at a time and see who our next opponent is."

“I think overall we’re getting better as we go. What some people don't understand is we have four players here who have Asian Cup experience and in this squad we only have 12 players who had experience of the World Cup in Qatar.

 

“I’m gelling a new squad together. I’ve nearly used every player in the group phase. It’s about us connecting as a group.”