Sports19/07/2007Uzbekistan coach aiming to unravel Saudis
Uzbekistan coach Rauf Inileyev is keen to see as much footage of Saudi Arabia as he can before their Asian Cup quarter-final on Sunday in Jakarta.
The Uzbeks joined Group C winners Iran in the last eight on Wednesday after their surprise 3-0 victory over pool favourites China.
With the impressive Saudis thrashing Bahrain 4-0 to top Group D, Inileyev said he had much to learn about his opponents.
"The first thing I asked for after we beat China was tapes of Saudi matches during the Asian Cup," he said. "If they can win 4-0 in their last match, it means they are a very good team.
"I have to study their team and see what we have to do if we want to beat them. It is going to be a tough match."
Inileyev certainly did his homework before the China game, identifying his opponent’s inability to defend free kicks as an area to exploit.
All three Uzbek goals came via free kicks and involved rebounds. The first two, from captain Maksim Shatskikh and midfielder Timur Kapadze, bounced off stand-in goalkeeper Yang Yun and Alexander Geynrikh’s third came off the wall.