The Central Asians had drawn their previous Group A match with Jordan meaning they had to beat their regional rivals to be guaranteed of a place in the last eight, while defeat would have seen them knocked out.

Given what was at stake it would have been understandable if both sides made a cautious start to the match but the reality could not have been more different as Uzbekistan opened the scoring after 90 seconds and from then on it was one-way traffic as they ran a hapless Tajikistan ragged.

“We were very good today. Everything was almost perfect, we scored a lot and we could create,” said Evstafeev (pictured)

“This was a victory for all the people of Uzbekistan. After the second group match we had some discussions and looked how we could do better so I think this game was a victory for both matches - today and against Jordan.

“We made no mistakes and Tajikistan were unable to surprise us.”

The victory will certainly make the other sides that join them in the quarter-finals sit-up and take notice meaning Uzbekistan cannot afford a drop in their performance levels if they are to stay on course for a maiden AFC U-16 Championship title.

“If we are going to be champions we have to win every match,” added Evstafeev.

“Now we will have some rest then start our training sessions and prepare for the quarter-final match.”

Tajikistan coach Zoir Babaev admitted his defensive line was almost nonexistent as every Uzbekistan attack looked capable of resulting in further goals.

“Congratulations to Uzbekistan for the victory, they played very well. However I must admit we made very serious mistakes today,” he said.

“Our goalkeeper and defenders all made mistakes so today it was like we played without them. You can see this in the first goal and in other goals also.”

Despite the result, Babaev was proud of how his players represented themselves and Tajikistan football throughout the tournament.

“We are one of the best 16 teams in Asia and this is a success I feel," he added. "We did not expect we could play in a tournament like this.

“I have to admit the progress of Asian football is visible and it is a great pleasure to watch.

“Asian football is starting to look more like total football. There is more speed than before and I believe this is a step ahead.”