FIFA
October 21

Of the 24 sides to have qualified for the FIFA World Youth Championship UAE 2003, Uzbekistan are without question the joker in the pack. Little-known outsiders they may be, but opponents will underestimate them at their peril in the Emirates. The Uzbeks are an attack-minded outfit, packed with future stars of the game and overseen by a wily German tactician. They do not lack ambition either, in the United Arab Emirates and beyond…

Continental big guns Japan, Korea Republic and Saudi Arabia have all joined fellow Asian hosts UAE at the flagship youth tournament. No surprise there, but the other side from the region to make it onto the world stage certainly have caught football watchers off their guard. Located on the ancient Silk Road between China and Afghanistan, Uzbekistan finished fourth in the AFC qualifiers to earn their place at the top table of youth football. But just in case you were wondering whether the Turkistani minnows got lucky, read on. The Uzbeks are there by design - not by chance.

Since joining FIFA in 1994, Uzbek football has forged its own distinctive identity. Ten years of hard, well-thought-out work is beginning to bear fruit, as demonstrated by the success of club side, Pakhtakor who battled through to the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League this year, the first time a club from Uzbekistan has got so far in the competition.

Indeed, the philosophy of the country's leading club side mirrors that of the national youth side. Speaking prior to that semi-final, Pakhtakor coach Samwell Babayan was outspoken: "we will not change our method. We will not resort to defensive football." Defiant words, and remarkably similar to those uttered by Uzbekistan U-20 coach Viktor Borisov after his side's crushing 4-0 win over Syria in the AFC qualifying tournament quarter-final in Qatar in 2002: "In football, you have to get forward." And get forward his side most certainly did, scoring no less than 33 goals in nine matches - the best total in the tournament.

Therein lies the secret behind Uzbekistan's success then - a willingness to commit men to attack. The majority have been brought up the Pakhtakor way and know each other inside out, even if some of them have flown the nest to try their luck abroad. Not just anywhere either: Ilyas Zeytulayev is turning heads at Juventus, while Alexander Geynrikh was snapped up by CSKA Moscow. Goalkeeper Timur Ganiev has gone to Metallurg Donetsk in Ukraine and defenders Borikhon Nosirov and Vladimir Anikin are honing their skills for Riga in Latvia. Preparation for the UAE, meanwhile, has begun in earnest, with the team taking part in the Afro-Asian Games in Hyderabad, India.

Aware it has a talented generation of footballers on its hands, the Uzbekistan Football Association has taken an ambitious view of the future, employing German coach Heinz-Jurgen Geode to oversee the full national side. And before he takes over the reigns at senior level, the former Schalke 04 and Fortuna Cologne player and ex-coach of Iran will assist Borisov in his coaching duties in the UAE.

That looks like a wise move, as it sends a clear signal to the youth side that the 47-year old coach will be relying on them in forthcoming full international campaigns - including the one that will see them attempt to book a ticket to the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany™. "I'm German. Nothing would make me happier than to take Uzbekistan to Germany in 2006," said the new boss back in August. Given a unique chance to impress the national coach, the youth side will have extra motivation to do well in the UAE, so watch out world...

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