Fabio Cannavaro: Past contributions will not guarantee Uzbekistan players a national team call-up

Speaking at a post-match press conference after Uzbekistan’s 3–1 friendly win over Iran in Fergana on September 24, the Italian said previous service to the national team would not give players an advantage in future selections.

“The game was not easy. We had only three days to prepare, but we worked hard with the players and focused particularly on the first 20 minutes. I told them that if we played as a team, we could get a good result. Whether we win or lose, we have to do it together,” Cannavaro said.

He said Uzbekistan had expected Iran to be particularly dangerous from set pieces and praised his players for carrying out the game plan.

“I’m proud of the boys. But we have to put this result behind us quickly and start preparing for the next games,” he said.

Cannavaro also explained the decision to start Vladimir Nazarov in goal after first-choice goalkeeper Abduvohid Nematov suffered an injury shortly before the match.

“I trust every player in this squad. Nematov was injured yesterday, so we knew he wouldn’t be able to play. But I had complete confidence in the other players. We had watched Nazarov’s performances in the AFC Champions League, and we decided he was ready to play,” Cannavaro said.

The coach stressed that every player selected for the national team must be prepared to take the field when called upon.

“As I said before, the national team doors are open to everyone. In the past, we may have given some players a kind of bonus because of what they had done in previous camps and during the qualifying campaign. That will not happen anymore. We will select players who deserve to be here and who are ready to play,” he said.

Cannavaro said Uzbekistan would have about a month to prepare for the Asian Cup and expected the players to report to the next camp in good physical condition.

Despite the convincing win over Iran, he said there was still plenty of room for improvement.

“We saw a lot of positive things in this game, but as a head coach, I’m always looking for things we can improve. Iran didn’t punish some of our mistakes, but other opponents will,” Cannavaro said.