DOHA: Shell-shocked Uzbekistan coach Vadim Abramov has apologised for his team’s 6-0 annihilation by Australia in their Asian Cup semi-final, and vowed to lift them for the third-place play-off.
Despite a lowly world ranking of 108, Abramov taunted Australia before the game by saying they were no Brazil, but his words came back to haunt him.
His players were clearly intimidated by the reputation of a side packed with experienced players plying their trade in Europe.
Master Australian tactician Holger Osieck took full advantage, sending his team out in attacking mode to exploit any early Uzbek nerves, and it worked.
Abramov’s team came into the match in impressive form and he struggled to explain why they fell to pieces when in sight of their first ever Asian Cup final.
“I’m very sorry for the people who came to the stadium and also the supporters in Uzbekistan,” he said.
“The way we played, I cannot describe it. We were prepared but we played badly, this is a big problem, we made too many mistakes.
“Up until now, I believed that we could beat Australia and win the tournament. I don’t know what happened. After the second goal, we wanted to attack but we made too many mistake at the back.
“Even after the red card we made too many mistakes. At 3-0 down we tried to attack and this caused us many problems.”
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