Tajikistan will face Jordan in the first quarterfinal of the Asia Cup on Friday.In the round of 16, the Jordanians overcame Iraq 3-2 thanks to a stunning injury-time surge, while the Crowns defeated the United Arab Emirates (UAE) 5-4 on penalties.
Preview (Tajikistan vs. Jordan)
Even though Tajikistan had just 34% of the possession in their knockout match, it appeared as though they would win easily until a late goal by the UAE caught them off guard. The Asian Cup rookies retained their composure in the shootout. They won a tournament knockout match for the first time since the 2023 Merdeka Tournament. In their last nine competitive games, Petar Segrt’s team has only lost once. They giving up one goal or fewer in each of those contests. Tajikistan gave up the first goal twice, and two of the three goals they have given up in this competition.
The Crowns are still unbeaten in their last six games across all competitions when they score the first goal. In their two prior encounters, Tajikistan defeated Jordan 1-0 in a friendly in February 2021. They also lost a 1-1 draw in the second half of stoppage time during a 2026 World Cup qualifying match in November. Jordan’s journey at the 2023 Asian Cup has been one of late drama. It seemed to work in their favor as they emerged victorious in the round of 16. In a 2-2 tie on the second matchday, Hussein Ammouta’s team gave up an own goal to equalize.
Their last four goals have all come in either of those periods of a game. All three of their goals against Iraq came in either the first or second half of stoppage time. The Pickpockets can now accomplish a feat they haven’t been able to since September 2022. They will play in their third Asian Cup quarterfinal on Friday. They lost 2-1 to Uzbekistan in 2011 and were unable to hold onto an early lead against Japan in 2004. Jordan has defeated Tajikistan three times out of the five times they have faced each other, giving up a total of two goals in those encounters.
Team News
Shahrom Samiev replaced Rustam Soirov in the Tajikistan starting lineup for their matchday three matchup, which was the sole alteration made by Segrt. This week, Mukhammadzhon Rakhimov became the team’s 50th cap, taking the place of Shervoni Mabatshoev. Akhtam Nazarov has now reached 80 appearances, and Eshson Panjshanbe and Parvizdzhon Umarbayev are both close to accomplishing the same feat. In their previous meeting, Vakhdat Khanonov scored his third goal for the national team, but Rustam Yatimov emerged victorious, saving a penalty from Caio Canedo so Alisher Shukurov could score the game-winning penalty.
In their match against Iraq, Jordan was red-carded far into stoppage time. Hamza Al-Dardour will not be available for this match. Yazan Al-Arab reached 50 caps for the senior team in their round of 16 match; Rajaei Ayed is two caps shy of that mark, and Muhammad Abu Zrayq made his 25th appearance in their previous meeting. When Jordan faced Iraq, Yazan Al-Naimat got things started by scoring in stoppage time in the first half. Al-Arab and Nizar Al-Rashdan scored the other goals.
Tajikistan 2-1 Jordan
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