At the end of the first semi-final of the U23 Asian Cup, Uzbekistan won 2-0 against Indonesia, advancing to the final for the third time in the last four tournaments, and at the same time passing through the Paris Olympics in advance, ushering in a historic moment.
Within the scope of Asian football, Uzbekistan's national youth team and national Olympic team have been among the top level, and reaching the final at the same time is the best embodiment.
In this tournament, Uzbekistan defeated Vietnam, Kuwait and Malaysia in the group stage, and advanced to the top 8 knockout rounds, and then defeated the defending champion Saudi Arabia 2-0 in the quarterfinals, avenging the loss in the last final, and did not concede a goal during the 4 consecutive wins, showing a full championship appearance.
After reaching the semi-finals, Uzbekistan will face first-time Indonesia, which has a number of naturalized players and has also knocked out South Korea. Even so, Uzbekistan still completed the suppression, leading the opponent in many statistics
In the first half, Uzbekistan was unable to attack for a long time, including a long-range shot by Boryev that hit the crossbar. In the second half, Uzbekistan almost became a behind, but fortunately, Indonesia's offside position was blown invalid first, and after escaping, Uzbekistan began to attack wildly, first Norchaev broke the deadlock, and then a free kick attack caused the opposing defender to swing his own goal, and finally won 2-0.
In addition, Uzbekistan hit the woodwork 5 times throughout the game, and Indonesia did not suffer a heavy defeat and was lucky.
After knocking out Indonesia, Uzbekistan qualified for the final, and for the first time in their history, the top three teams could go straight to the Paris Olympics.
In the 2020 U23 Asian Cup, after losing the semifinals, Uzbekistan fell in the third and fourth finals, and missed the Tokyo Olympics with the fourth place, and now its dream has finally come true.
After the game, the whole Uzbek team fell into a carnival, the fans waved the national flag in celebration, the players lay on the pitch excitedly, and the coach Kapadze and the coach's assistant hugged and danced together to celebrate this historic moment.
As a Central Asian country with a population of 36.37 million (data as of 2023), Uzbekistan is considered a populous country, and now it has finally ushered in a breakthrough, and the men's football team has qualified for the Olympic Games for the first time, and this night will be a sleepless night for Uzbek fans.