The Turkmenistan youth team (under 20) drew 1-1 with Uzbekistan in the Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) championship, which is being held in the Tajik cities of Gissar and Tursunzade. This was reported by the online publication ‘Turkmenistan: Golden age’.

Turkmen footballers started the match with strong pressure and opened the scoring in the 15th second. Veysigeldi Orazdurdyev intercepted the ball, beat two defenders and scored with a precise shot, setting a tournament record for the fastest goal. However, in the 6th minute, defender Akmuhamet Amanov carelessly deflected the ball into his own net, equalising the score.

This is the second match for the Turkmen team in the tournament. In their first game, they lost to Iran 0-1. Now, to advance to the bronze medal match, Iran must defeat Uzbekistan by at least two goals in the final round. In Group A, Afghanistan lost to Tajikistan (0-2) and Kyrgyzstan (0-3) and is out of the running for a medal. The winner of the group will now be decided in the match between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

The group winners will meet in the final, while the runners-up will compete for bronze. There will also be a consolation match for fifth and sixth place.