The youth team of Turkmenistan in football under 20 years old lost to peers from Japan in the first match of the qualifying cycle for the Asian Cup-2025.

The national team of Turkmenistan fell into group “I” along with the teams of Myanmar, Japan and Kyrgyzstan, which is the mistress of the tournament.

In the first match, Turkmenistan met with Japan. The match ended with the defeat of the Turkmen team with a score of 0: 2. The double of winners was noted by the striker of Soma Kanda.

The next match at the tournament Turkmenistan will be held against Kyrgyzstan on September 27. The qualifying tournament for the Turkmen team will end with a match against Myanmar on September 29.

The Turkmen weightlifter Anamjan Rustamova won a small bronze medal in the exercise of a breakthrough at the Youth World Athletics Championship held in the Spanish Leon. In the weight category to 81 kg, Rustamova raised 103 kg in a jerk, which permitted her to take third place in this exercise.

In the overall standings of the double -workers, Rustamova showed the result of 230 kg, taking fourth place. In the exercise, she raised the push 127 kg, which brought her fifth place.

The winner in this category was Emma Poghosyan from Armenia with a result of 233 kg (100+133), silver went to Vanessa Ernandez from Mexico - 232 kg (104+128), and the Iranian athlete of Ect Jamali - 231 kg (104+127) won bronze.

More than 350 athletes from 67 countries participate in the World Cup. Turkmenistan at the competitions is represented by Anamjan Rustamova and Shahzadbek Matyakubov, who today will perform in the category up to 102 kg.

Turkmen athletes rose to a new level in the world rankings at the 45th World Chess Olympiad, which ended in Budapest (Hungary), where 188 men's and 169 women's teams competed for medals in 11 rounds according to the Swiss system. All of them were divided into five categories depending on the average rating.

The men's and women's teams of Turkmenistan, both seeded 73rd overall, were awarded small gold medals for first place in their categories. The men won Group B with 15 points, leaving the teams of Latvia and Kazakhstan in second and third place, respectively, with 14 points. And the women won Group C with 14 points, beating the Malaysian team (14 points) and the Sri Lankan chess players, who finished third with 13 points, in additional indicators.

Having won two victories in a row at the finish of the tournament over rivals from Singapore (45th seed) - 3:1 and Israel (20th seed) - 2.5:1.5, the men's team of Turkmenistan took 24th place in the overall standings. And our women's team, having beaten the Croatian team (40th seed) in the last round - 2.5:1.5, rose to 32nd place. These results are the best in the entire history of participation of representatives of domestic chess in the World Chess Olympiads.

It is noteworthy that such strong teams of Vietnam, Iran, Bulgaria, Latvia, Kazakhstan, Sweden, Austria and other countries, staffed with international grandmasters, were left behind the men's team of Turkmenistan. And our young girls turned out to be higher than the more famous teams of Italy, Australia, Iran, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Belgium, Norway and many others.

Such unprecedented success of the Turkmen teams is connected with the united team spirit among both boys and girls, believes the Secretary General of the Chess Federation of Turkmenistan Mergen Kakabayev.

“At the right moments, each player of the team worked on their games to the very end and squeezed the maximum out of every opportunity,” said M. Kakabayev.

A striking example of this was the 11th round, in which, with a draw of 1.5:1.5 in both the men's match against Israel and the women's match against Croatia, the fate of the small gold medals in groups “B” and “C” was decided in the remaining games of Allayar Shirliyev and Jahan Rejepova.

Allayar played against the bronze medalist of the 2010 Olympiad, the famous international grandmaster Ilya Smirin, and Jahan Rejebova, who has a rating of 1915, against FIDE master Patricia Vujnovic with a rating of 2134. Despite the equal nature of the struggle and the likelihood of a draw, A. Shirliyev and J. Rejepova did not accept the draw and were able to put the squeeze on their more experienced opponents, which ultimately ensured first place for our teams in their categories.

The best result in the men's team was shown by 39-year-old international grandmaster Meylis Annaberdiyev (2nd board), who scored 7 points out of 11. Half a point less in the asset of 25-year-old international master

Saparmurat Atabayev (1st board). 5 points out of 10 possible were scored on the 3rd board by 18-year-old Amanmuhammet Hommadov, 4.5 points out of 8 by 21-year-old current champion of the country Allayar Shirliyev (4th board) and 3.5 points out of 4 by 19-year-old Vepaly Halyniyazov, who played with a replacement on the 4th board.

100% result in the women's team was shown by 17-year-old reserve Enesh Arazmedova, who won 5 victories in five games on the 4th board. 18-year-old champion of Turkmenistan Meryem Agajanova (2nd board) scored 6 points in 10 games. The personal performance of other Turkmen chess players is as follows: 17-year-old Leyla Shohradova (3rd board) and 14-year-old Jahan Rejepova (4th board) have 5.5 points after 10 and 9 games, respectively, while the 18-year-old vice-champion of the country Lala Shohradova (1st board) has 5 points out of 10 possible. By the way, Lala was the only chess player in our women's team who had previous experience of participating in the Olympiads.

It is important to note that throughout the tournament, the coach of the men's team, Honored Coach of Turkmenistan Serdar Annaberdiev, the coach of the women's team, Candidate Master of Sports Shahruh Turayev and the head of the delegation, FIDE Master Mergen Kakabayev worked tirelessly with the players. Experienced specialists comprehensively prepared each player before each game, both theoretically and psychologically, right down to studying the opening repertoire and playing style of each opponent. And at a critical moment of the tournament, a professional psychologist was brought in to boost the confidence of young players before the decisive matches with famous opponents.

The champions in both sections were the Indian team, which beat the US chess players and the previous Olympic champions from Uzbekistan in the men's tournament, who took 2nd and 3rd places, respectively. And among women, representatives of Kazakhstan (2nd place) and the USA (3rd) also climbed the podium.

The next, 46th World Chess Olympiad will be held in 2026

in Uzbekistan. At the awards ceremony for the winners and prize-winners in Budapest, FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich handed over the flag and torch of the competition to the leader of the Uzbek team Nodirbek Abdusattorov, the winner of the silver medal of the current Olympiad on the 1st board.

Head coach of the Turkmenistan U-20 national youth team Dovletmurad Annayev spoke about the team's preparation and assessed the chances of his team in the group with Japan, Kyrgyzstan and Myanmar ahead of the start of the 2025 Asian Cup qualifying tournament.

According to the coach, the team has conducted serious preparation, including participation in the Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) championship in Kyrgyzstan and a series of friendly matches in Spain and Tashkent.

"The first stage of preparation was participation from July 5 to 12 in the CAFA tournament in Jalal-Abad, where we looked at candidates and gained experience in games with strong opponents," Annayev noted.

The next stage was a training camp in the Spanish city of Murcia from September 4 to 15. There, the team played three friendly matches: with Wales (2:2), the Faroe Islands (1:3) and the Real Murcia football club (0:1). From September 20 to 23, Turkmen footballers held three more friendly matches with the clubs FC Bunyodkor, AGMK U20 and AGMK Football Academy in Tashkent, finishing them with the following results: one win, one draw and one defeat.

Speaking about the upcoming tournament, Dovletmurad admitted that the group was not easy. "The Japanese are the favorites in all the tournaments they participate in. Kyrgyzstan is the host, and Myanmar is a dark horse," he described the opponents. Despite this, the coach and the team are optimistic and are preparing for difficult but interesting matches.

The head coach especially emphasized the importance of this youth team for the future of Turkmen football: "We have discussed more than once with the leadership of the football federation that this young team is our football future, and it is already very important to develop these talented guys in every possible way."

The coach also expressed gratitude to the Football Federation of Turkmenistan and the State Committee for Physical Culture and Sports of the country for their support and creation of conditions for the team's preparation in such a short time.

It is worth noting that in parallel with the preparation for the qualifying tournament, the coaching staff of the Turkmenistan U-20 team found time to attend the matches of the Futsal World Championship held in Tashkent.

"The work schedule in Tashkent was very busy, and we had games every other day, so the players were not taken to futsal. Instead, we went with the coaching staff. We got great pleasure from high-quality futsal. Such a chance does not come often. I am very glad that everything turned out this way," the coach noted.

Today, September 25, the Dolen Omurzakov Stadium in Bishkek will host the matches of the first round of the qualifying round of the 2025 Asian Cup among youth teams under 20 years old in Group "I".

The youth team of Turkmenistan will play with the Japanese team. The meeting will begin at 14:00 Ashgabat time.

On September 22-23, 2024, in Ankara, the Embassy of Turkmenistan in the Republic of Türkiye and the International Organization of Turkic Culture (TURKSOY) organized a chess tournament in honor of the 33rd anniversary of Turkmenistan's Independence.

Representatives of foreign diplomatic missions and their families, chess enthusiasts and the media were invited to the chess tournament held in the building of the Gökyay Foundation Chess Museum.

As part of the events, an exhibition was launched, which presented the works of Makhtumkuli Fragi, as well as exhibits reflecting the rich cultural heritage of the Turkmen people, their history and traditions.

“Altyn Asyr” forward Mikhail Titov has scored 5 goals in the last 4 matches of the Turkmenistan Football Premier League. Yesterday, Titov scored in the 62nd minute of the match against “Kopetdag” in the 25th round of the championship and helped his team win with a score of 3:0.

Before that, the 26 years old striker scored twice in the match against “Nebitchi” and scored one goal each in the games against “Shagadam” and “Merv”.

In addition, Titov distinguished himself in the qualification of the second AFC Champions League, scoring a goal in the match against “East Bengal”, which ended with a 3:2 victory for “Altyn Asyr”.

Turkmen midfielder of “Kitchee” Ruslan Mingazov scored a goal and made four assists in the Hong Kong Premier League match against “Hong Kong Rangers”. The match ended with a convincing victory for “Kitchee” with a score of 8:0.

The winners' goals were scored by Juninho (14th minute), Luis Machado (21st and 37th), Velton Sampaio (40th and 56th), Ruslan Mingazov (54th), Sherzod Temirov (79th) and Poon Pui Hin (88th). Mingazov made four assists in one game for the first time in his career. In this match, the Turkmenistan national team midfielder was in the starting lineup and played 63 minutes.

After three rounds of the Hong Kong Championship, “Kitchee” earned 5 points and is in fourth place in the standings.

His Excellency

Mr. Serdar Berdimuhamedov,

President of Turkmenistan

Dear

Serdar Gurbangulyevich,

Please accept my warmest congratulations on the occasion of your birthday.

You know how the deep strategic partnership between our countries is gradually developing.

We are convinced that we continue our constructive joint work on current bilateral and international issues for the benefit of the friendly peoples of Russia and Turkmenistan, as a result of ensuring security, stability and change in the Central Asian and Caspian regions.

With all my heart, dear Serdar Gurbangulyevich, I wish you good health, happiness and success in your state activities.

Respectfully,

Vladimir Putin,

President of the Russian Federation.

* * *

His Excellency

Mr. Serdar Berdimuhamedov,

President of Turkmenistan

Dear Mr. President!

On your birthday, I express my sincere congratulations and best wishes to you.

Last year, we met by chance, jointly announced the elevation of Chinese-Turkmen relations to the level of a comprehensive partnership, as well as the realization of the common destiny of China and Turkmenistan, outlined new plans for the development of traditional friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries.

I pay great attention to the development of Chinese-Turkmen relations and am ready to include joint efforts with you to further develop a multifaceted partnership for the benefit of the peoples of the two countries.

I wish you good health and success in your work, and happiness and life to the friendly people of Turkmenistan.

Xin Jinping,

Chairman of the People's Republic of China.

* * *

His Excellency

Mr. Serdar Berdimuhamedov,

President of Turkmenistan

Dear

Serdar Gurbangulyevich!

Please accept my heartfelt congratulations and best wishes on the occasion of your birthday!

Your effective work as head of state and the pursuit of a positive policy of neutrality are the key to limiting the development of fraternal Turkmenistan, improving the well-being of citizens and enhancing the authority of Ashgabat in the international arena.

Kazakhstan sincerely rejoices in the high achievements of the fraternal Turkmen people and pays priority attention to the prospects for deepening bilateral cooperation in the spirit of friendship, good neighborliness and third-party partnership.

I highly appreciate your personal contribution to strengthening Kazakh-Turkmen relations, as well as your steady support for the trend in achieving the common goal of the noble goal of relations - bringing our multifaceted interstate ties to a qualitatively new level.

I take this opportunity to wish you, dear Serdar Gurbangulyevich, inexhaustible energy, family behavior and, gradually, success in responsible state activities for the benefit of the fraternal people of Turkmenistan.

Respectfully yours

Kassym-Jomart Tokayev,

President of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

* * *

His Excellency

Mr. Serdar Berdimuhamedov,

President of Turkmenistan

Dear

Serdar Gurbangulyevich,

It is with great pleasure that I send you my heartfelt congratulations and best wishes on the occasion of your birthday.

On this significant day, I wish you good health, happiness and further success in your state activities for the benefit of sustainable progress and prosperity of the fraternal people of Turkmenistan, as well as consistent strengthening of the international positions of your country.

Taking this pleasant opportunity, I would like to once again note our deep interest in the comprehensive development of Tajik-Turkmen relations of friendship and cooperation in line with the deep strategic partnership.

I am confident that through joint efforts we will continue to promote the development of the entire range of multifaceted relations between Tajikistan and Turkmenistan in accordance with the fundamental interests of our fraternal peoples.

With respect and best wishes

Emomali Rahmon,

President of the Republic of Tajikistan.

* * *

His Excellency

Mr. Serdar Berdimuhamedov,

President of Turkmenistan

Dear Serdar Gurbangulyevich,

I congratulate you on your birthday and express my best wishes.

I am confident that we will continue our successful joint efforts to further develop relations between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan in the interests of our peoples, bound by ties of friendship and good neighborliness.

On this significant day, I wish you good health, happiness and success in your activities for the well-being of the people of Turkmenistan.

With respect

Ilham Aliyev,

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

* * *

To His Excellency

Mr. Serdar Berdimuhamedov,

President of Turkmenistan

Dear Serdar Gurbangulyevich,

I sincerely congratulate you on your birthday.

Thanks to your hard work, political will and professionalism, fraternal Turkmenistan is developing at a rapid pace, unity and harmony in Turkmen society are being ensured, stability and security in the country are being strengthened.

I am firmly convinced that through joint efforts we will further expand Kyrgyz-Turkmen cooperation. Active political dialogue will continue to serve as a reliable basis for strengthening relations in all areas of mutual interest.

Dear Serdar Gurbangulyevich, I wish you good health, happiness and success in your public activities, and peace and prosperity to the people of fraternal Turkmenistan.

Respectfully,

Sadyr Japarov,

President of the Kyrgyz Republic.

* * *

His Excellency

Mr. Serdar Berdimuhamedov,

President of Turkmenistan

Dear Serdar Gurbangulyevich,

I sincerely congratulate you on your birthday.

Please accept my sincere wishes for good health and successful implementation of all plans in the highest government post. I wish happiness, peace, goodness and prosperity to you and your loved ones.

Sincerely,

Alexander Lukashenko,

President of the Republic of Belarus.

* * *

His Excellency

Mr. Serdar Berdimuhamedov,

President of Turkmenistan

Your Excellency,

Please accept my heartfelt congratulations and best wishes on the occasion of your birthday.

I am confident that joint efforts aimed at developing and expanding cooperation between Armenia and Turkmenistan will continue to contribute to the consistent strengthening of bilateral interstate relations for the benefit of the centuries-old friendship of the peoples of our countries.

I take this opportunity to wish you good health and new successes in your responsible activities aimed at ensuring the well-being and prosperity of the people of Turkmenistan.

Please accept, Your Excellency, the assurances of my highest consideration.

Nikol Pashinyan,

Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia.

* * *

To His Excellency

Mr. Serdar Berdimuhamedov,

President of Turkmenistan

Dear Serdar Gurbangulyevich,

On behalf of the Government of the Russian Federation and on my own behalf, I congratulate you on your birthday.

I would like to especially note your constant attention to strengthening Russian-Turkmen relations of friendship, good-neighborliness and strategic partnership. In pursuance of decisions taken at the highest level, trade, economic and investment cooperation is steadily developing, promising joint projects in energy, industry and innovation are being implemented. Interregional ties and business contacts are expanding.

I am convinced that further expansion of practical cooperation, promotion of new mutually beneficial initiatives in various fields fully meet the interests of Russia and Turkmenistan.

I sincerely wish you, dear Serdar Gurbangulyevich, good health and new successes in your responsible state activities.

With sincere respect

Mikhail Mishustin,

Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation.

* * *

To His Excellency

Mr. Serdar Berdimuhamedov,

President of Turkmenistan

Dear Serdar Gurbangulyevich!

Please accept my warmest congratulations on your birthday.

At the highest state post of Turkmenistan, you solve large-scale tasks of building a strong prosperous state, ensuring the growth of the well-being of citizens. In this complex and multifaceted work, your best qualities are revealed - a sharp mind, vital energy, readiness to make important decisions and take responsibility for them. You are worthily leading the country along the path of progress, carefully preserving the cultural and historical traditions of the Turkmen people, confidently building a dialogue with partners on the world stage.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for the attention you pay to the development of Russian-Turkmen strategic partnership relations and their parliamentary component.

With all my heart, I wish you, dear Serdar Gurbangulyevich, good health, prosperity and success in implementing all your plans for the benefit of friendly Turkmenistan.

Please accept the assurances of my highest consideration.

Valentina Matviyenko,

Chairwoman of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation.

* * *

To His Excellency

Mr. Serdar Berdimuhamedov,

President of Turkmenistan

Dear Serdar Gurbangulyevich!

Please accept the assurances of my deepest respect and congratulations on your birthday!

Under your leadership, Turkmenistan is confidently moving along the path of socio-economic development, plays an important role in international affairs, rightfully enjoying high authority on the world stage.

With all my gratitude to you for your every effort to preserve the soul and improve the multifaceted ties between the Astrakhan region and Turkmenistan. I am confident that in the future, the established constructive dialogue will fully deepen bilateral cooperation.

On this significant day for you, I wish you, deeply respected Serdar Gurbangulyvich, good health, development and successful implementation of all plans and beginnings for the benefit of the people of Turkmenistan.

With deep respect

Igor Babushkin,

Governor of the Astrakhan Region of the Russian Federation.

* * *

His Excellency

Mr. Serdar Berdimuhamedov,

President of Turkmenistan

Dear Serdar Gurbangulyevich!

Please accept my sincere congratulations on the occasion of your birthday!

Your deep knowledge and high personal qualities will help you study the policy aimed at the development and statehood of your country.

I wish you good health, development and, consequently, success in your state and international activities!

Respectfully,

Bakytzhan Sagintayev,

Chairman of the Board of the Eurasian Economic Commission.

* * *

His Excellency

Mr. Serdar Berdimuhamedov,

President of Turkmenistan

Your Excellency,

Please accept my warmest congratulations and sincere wishes on the occasion of your birthday.

I pray to the Almighty for success in granting you long life, honest health, devotion to happiness, family development and great success in these great endeavors as the head of state, the brotherly people of Turkmenistan - happiness and prosperity under your wise leadership.

Your Excellency, please accept the confidence of my deep respect.

Your brother

Faisal bin Nasser bin Hamad Al Thani,

member of the right family in the State of Qatar.

The women's team of Turkmenistan won its sixth victory at the 45^th World Chess Olympiad, which is ongoing in Budapest (Hungary). In the 9^th round, it won with black pieces against the 42^nd seeded team of Montenegro (average rating - 2142) - 2.5:1.5.

A significant contribution to the victory of our team was made by the champion of the country Meryem Agajanova (2^nd board) and Enesh Arazmedova, who played at the 4^th board as a reserve player, who won against the female international master Alexandra Milovich and Mateja Popovich, respectively. And Leyla Shohradova (3^rd board) played a draw with the female FIDE master Nikolina Kolyevich.

It is noteworthy that the 5^th place winner at the 2024 Turkmenistan Championship, 17-year-old Enesh Arazmedova, did not lose a single point in the five games she played, showing a 100% result in our team at the 2024 Olympiad.

After this victory, the Turkmen chess players (73^rd seed; average rating - 1956) moved up 7 steps in the tournament table, occupying 30^th place among 169 women's teams with 12 points and lagging behind the leading Kazakhstan by 4 points.

The men's team of Turkmenistan (73^rd seed; average rating - 2332) also moved up 5 positions on the «tournament ladder», having tied in the 9^th round - 2:2 with the team of Canada, seeded at number 50 (average rating - 2468). In this match, it is worth noting the victories of International Master Saparmyrat Atabayev (1^st board) over Grandmaster Sean Rodrigue-Lemieux and the current champion of the country Allayar Shirliyev (4^th board) over International Master Nikolay Naritsyn.

In addition to A. Atabayev and A. Shirliyev, the Turkmen team in the men's tournament at the Olympiad is also represented by International Grandmaster Meylis Annaberdiyev (2^nd board), 18-year-old Amanmuhammet Hommadov (3^rd board) and reserve player Vepaly Halyniyazov.

With two rounds to go, the chess players of Turkmenistan are in 50^th place among 188 teams with 11 points. The Indian team is leading the men's tournament with 17 points.

In the 10^th round, the men's team of Turkmenistan will play against the Singapore team, which is in 45^th place with 11 points, having won against the Algerian team the day before – 3.5:0.5. And our women's team will meet with their opponents from Greece (23^rd seed), who won against the chess players of Monaco in the previous round – 3.5:0.5 and are currently in 36^th place in the tournament table with 11 points.

The World Chess Olympiad is a team competition in which teams from different countries compete for the title of the strongest chess nation. This is one of the most prestigious and large-scale sporting events, bringing together the strongest chess players from all over the world.

The men's team of Turkmenistan in its second victory in a row and the fifth in the tournament at the 45th World Chess Olympiad, which is ongoing in Budapest. In the 8th round, it won with a score of 2.5:1.5 against the 46th seed team of Iceland (average rating - 2483), for which international grandmasters play on the first three boards, and an international master on the 4th.

The decisive contribution to the success of our team, seeded 73rd, was made by International Master Saparmyrat Atabayev and Grandmaster Meylis Annaberdiyev, who won on the first and second boards, respectively, over Vignir Vatner Stefansson and Gudmundur Kjartonsson, as well as Allayar Shirliyev, who tied on the fourth board with Hilmir Freyr Heimisson.

After this victory, the Turkmen chess players climbed another 20 steps in the tournament table, occupying 55th place among 188 men's teams with 10 points out of a possible 16, and 4 points behind the teams of Uzbekistan and Hungary, who share 2nd and 3rd place.

But the Turkmen chess players (73rd seed; average rating – 1956) after a series of successful games «slowed down». In the 8th round they lost to their opponents from Switzerland (21st seed; average rating – 2282) – 1:3 and with 10 points out of 16 possible dropped from 25th place in the table to 37th among 169 women's teams.

Vice-champion of Turkmenistan Lala Shohradova (personal rating – 2030) played a draw on the first board with the nominated for the title of the best chess player in the history of chess, former world champion, international grandmaster Alexandra Kostenyuk (personal rating – 2483), although during the game she had an advantage and a good chance to inflict her first defeat in the tournament on her famous opponent. According to the coach of the Turkmenistan national team Mergen Kakabayev, «at the decisive moments of the game Lala played too cautiously and lost the advantage». In fairness, it should be noted that in this game, 18-year-old Lala demonstrated an accuracy level of 95.9%, which corresponds to the grandmaster level.

Meryem Agajanova (2nd board; rating – 2007) also drew her game against FIDE Master Lena Georgescu (2266). But Leyla Shohradova and Jahan Rejepova, who played on the 3rd and 4th boards, unfortunately lost to Sofia Gryzlova and the European Champion under 16 Maria Manko, respectively. Jahan made a gross mistake already in the opening, and Leyla, having an advantage, miscalculated when approaching time trouble.

In the next, 9th round, the men's team of Turkmenistan will play against the Canadian team (seeded number 50; average rating - 2468), which is in 42nd place and has made several surprises at the 2024 Olympics, having won against the New Zealand team the day before - 3:1. And our women's team will meet with opponents from Montenegro (seeded number 42; average rating - 2142), who in the previous round won against the chess players of Algeria - 2.5:1.5 and currently occupy the 34th place in the tournament table.

The Indian team continues to hold the lead in the men's overall standings, not knowing defeats yet. And in the women's category, the Indian chess players suffered their first defeat from Poland - 1.5:2.5, and now there is a triumvirate here. India, Poland and Kazakhstan have 14 points out of 16.

Turkmenistan national team and Ashgabat “Altyn Asyr” striker Murat Annayev made history by scoring the first goal for Central Asian teams in the group stage of the 2024/2025 AFC Champions League 2. This achievement was significant not only for “Altyn Asyr”, but also for the entire region, represented in the two most important AFC club tournaments – the AFC Elite Champions League and the AFC Champions League 2.

The historic moment came in the 70th minute of the away match against Iraqi Air Force in Baghdad. Annayev equalized the score after converting an assist from Hoshgeldy Hojovov. Despite the heroic efforts of the 31 years old forward, the match ended with a 2-1 victory for the home team when Hiran Ahmed scored the decisive goal two minutes before the end of regulation time.

Annayev's goal was the only bright spot for the Central Asian teams participating in the group stage of both the AFC Elite Champions League and the AFC Champions League 2.

Other representatives of the region were unable to distinguish themselves: Tashkent's “Pakhtakor” lost to “Al-Wasl” from the UAE (0:1), Dushanbe's “Istiklol” lost to “Al-Sharjah” from the UAE (0:1), and Karshi's “Nasaf” and Kulyab's “Ravshan” played to a 0:0 draw with “Al-Kuwait” and “Mohun Bagan”, respectively.