Fabio Cannavaro on the match against Russia, goalkeepers and rumours of working in Italy

Press conference ahead of the match against Russia

Uzbekistan national team head coach Fabio Cannavaro, on 11 November, held a press conference on the eve of the friendly match against Russia,which will take place on 12 November at the Pakhtakor stadium in Tashkent and will kick off at 20:00. This was reported by Daryo.uz. The Italian specialist answered questions about the change in the Asian Cup dates, the omission of several leaders, criticism of the goalkeepers and rumours about a possible job in his home country.

The opponent, the Asian Cup and the absent players

In Cannavaro's view, the rescheduling of the Asian Cup dates will benefit the national team: the extra time will allow the squad to be improved further and new players to be tested. He rated the friendly opponent highly: «Russia are a very strong team that play attacking football, act tightly and cohesively. It will not be easy to stand up to them». The coach added that he always wants to play against the strongest sides, since it is precisely in such matches that one can see how much international experience the Uzbek footballers lack and what the team's real level is.

Goalkeepers and the 'absent' leaders

Journalists asked why Jaloliddin Masharipov, Oston Urunov, Utkir Yusupov and Igor Sergeev have not been called up for the current training camps and whether there are internal disagreements behind this. «There are no conflicts at all. I have very good relations with all the players», — replied Cannavaro.

Who is to blame for the goals conceded against South Korea

The goalkeeping errors in the match against South Korea became a separate topic. Cannavaro stated that blaming only the goalkeepers is wrong: in his words, the conceded goals were also the fault of the defenders, who left free zones for the opponent's forwards in the penalty area, and of the players in the wall, who did not jump at the moment of the shot. «You cannot blame a goalkeeper for a single mistake», — the coach emphasised, adding that the team currently has four goalkeepers at its disposal, all of them are being monitored and everyone will get a chance.

Plans for next year

Cannavaro spoke about the national team's preparation: in January a training camp is planned, similar to last year's, in which local players will take part — not all the legionnaires will be able to come. Then the team will play during the FIFA match windows in March, June and September; the coach has already discussed this plan with the UFA. «My main requirement is to play against national teams of as high a level as possible. Only through matches against strong opponents can we assess our level and understand exactly what we need to work on», — the publication quotes him.

On rumours, work and the bicycle

Commenting on reports that he would like to work in Italy in the future, Cannavaro said that having such a dream is natural, but it does not affect his work: «I wake up early every morning and direct the focus of my attention 24 hours a day towards the interests of the Uzbekistan national team». According to him, relations with the association's leadership are very good, everything here suits him, and he asked journalists to pay attention not to rumours but to football, tactics and statistics. When asked about bicycle rides around Tashkent, the coach explained that due to knee problems he cannot run, so he rides a bicycle, although he knows it is not safe: the rides help him keep fit and gather his thoughts.