Uzbekistan's Leonid Koshelev scored the only goal in his team's 1-0 victory over Taiwan yesterday, in a spirited 2006 FIFA World Cup Preliminary Competition Asian Zone Group 2 match on a grey day at Taipei's Chungshan Stadium.
Coming in the 68th minute, Koshelev's goal, which was the result of a deflection off Taiwan's goalkeeper, Yang Cheng-hsing (
The rout that many expected, however, never materialized.
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES
Uzbekistan controlled the midfield during much of the first half, although inconsistent play by both teams was the rule.
The first and only real opportunity for the away side came midway through the first half. Taiwan's Cheng Yung-ren (
Uzbekistan then gained the upper hand and won much of the midfield possession for the remainder of the first half.
Uzbekistan continued to attack, but solid marking by Taiwan's beleaguered defense continued to shut the away team out. Managing to find the target once again late in the second half, Uzbekistan's Anvarjon Soliev saw his goal disallowed for handball.
Taiwan was under continuous pressure in the second half and lucky not to have gone a goal down early on.
Had Uzbekistan taken more time with a free kick it was awarded 2m from the home team's penalty box early in the half, the away team could easily have gone ahead as Taiwan's defense was already manifestly exhausted early into the second half.
The roughly 300 local fans who braved the drizzle to cheer on the home side saw the chances of recording a well earned tie dashed in the 68th minute after the Uzbek's constant pressure led to Taiwan conceding a corner.
Played well deep into the Taiwan penalty area, a mad scramble saw Koshelev take possession of the ball and nudge it towards the goal-mouth where it deflected off of Taiwan's 'keeper and dribbled into the back of the net.
The home team tried valiantly to make a comeback, but its reliance on the long ball and one sole striker was not enough to ruffle the solid Uzbek defense. While the loss means that Taiwan's chances of qualifying for the 2006 FIFA World Cup are slim, with no goals after two matches, it deserves credit for conceding only a single score.
"We have a lot of new players and not enough experienced ones," said Uzbekistan's coach, Khaidarov Ravshan. "We only had one week's preparation and this is the first time this team has played together as a unit.
"It was difficult for us [Taiwan] was very strong."
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