Group football tournaments of the AFC Cup-2022 with the participation of the Turkmen clubs Altyn Asyr and Kopetdag started in the capitals of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.
In Dushanbe, where the participants of group “E” gathered, the fight for the only ticket to the next round of the competition is carried out by: champion of Turkmenistan “Altyn asyr” (Ashgabat), winner of the Cup of Kyrgyzstan-2021 “Neftchi” (Kochkor-Ata), bronze medalist of the championship of Tajikistan CSKA (Dushanbe) and the vice-champion of Uzbekistan "Sogdiana" (Jizzakh), which had not previously participated in international competitions under the auspices of the AFC.
And in Bishkek, the champion of Kyrgyzstan “Dordoi”, the vice-champion of Tajikistan “Khujand” and the six-time champion of Turkmenistan “Kopetdag” are arguing for the first place in group “F”.
In the first round, Altyn Asyr met with Dushanbe CSKA. The match was held with a noticeable advantage of the Turkmen football players, who had more possession of the ball and more often than the opponent created dangerous chances at the opponent's goal. In the 85th minute, Altyn Asyr took the lead - 1:0. From the left side of the attack, Murad Annaev completed a set piece, and CSKA player Yelchibek Rashidbekov, who was trying to interrupt the pass, cut the ball into his own goal with his head.
Apparently, believing in victory in advance, the wards of the honored coach of Turkmenistan Yazguly Khodzhageldyev relaxed a little towards the end of the meeting, for which they paid the price. At the end of the third minute added to the main time, the hosts played a graceful two-move, which was completed with an accurate shot from close range to the far corner of the goal, who had replaced Abdullo Sharipov four minutes earlier.
Thus, having drawn - 1:1, "Altyn Asyr" and CSKA scored one point each. In another match, the Uzbek "Sogdiana" defeated the Kyrgyz "Neftchi" - 2:0 and with 3 points topped the standings in the "E" group.
Another Turkmen club "Kopetdag" held the opening match in group "F" against the Tajik "Khujand". Already in the debut of the meeting, two blunders in defense allowed the opponent to take the lead 2-0. Both goals in the 3rd and 7th minutes were scored by Daler Yodgorov. In the first case, he accurately shot from 20 meters into the corner of the goal to his left. And in the second episode, he skillfully threw the ball over the goalkeeper into the net.
At the 58th minute, Ikhlas Saparmammedov brought Begench Akmammedov to the shooting position, and he scored one goal with an accurate shot in the near corner.
"Kopetdag" continued to attack, trying to avoid defeat. However, shortly before the final whistle, another mistake in the defense of the team of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Turkmenistan nullified all efforts to save the game. In the 85th minute, Shazada Byashimov unsuccessfully headed a pass to the goalkeeper, which Tokhir Maladustov took advantage of, throwing the ball over the goalkeeper into the net. In the remaining time, the score 1:3 has not changed.
In the next round of the AFC Cup, both Turkmen teams will play with Kyrgyz clubs: Altyn Asyr will meet with Neftchi from the city of Kochkor-Ata, and Kopetdag will play with Bishkek Dordoi.
The AFC Cup is the second most important club tournament, held since 2004 by the Asian Football Confederation among the winners and prize-winners of the championships and cup holders of countries whose level of football development is not high enough to participate in the AFC Champions League.
Recall that the eight-time reigning champion of Turkmenistan "Altyn Asyr" has been playing in the AFC Cup since 2005. The highest achievement in it was achieved by the team of the agency "Turkmenaragatnashyk" in 2018, reaching the final, where they lost to the Iraqi "Air Force Club" - 0:2.
As for Kopetdag, this team plays in the AFC Cup for the first time. Previously, she participated five times in the Asian Champions Cup (1994/95, 1995/96, 1996/97, 1998/99, 2001/02) and only once in the Asian Cup Winners' Cup, in which she achieved the highest result in the 1997/98 season, entering the top four teams of the tournament.
