TEHRAN – Iran football team defeated Uzbekistan 1-0 at the CAFA U18 Women’s Championship on Friday.

Negin Zandi scored the only goal of the match in the 38th minute.

Uzbekistan were reduced to 10 in the 68th minute and went down to nine 10 minutes later.

Four Central Asian teams take their first preparatory steps on the road to the 2024 AFC U20 Women’s Asian Cup as Tajikistan plays host.

The tournament has brought Tajikistan, Iran, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyz Republic in the round-robin event, which will give young prospects the chance to shine on the regional stage.

“First, I would like to congratulate all Iranian people for this win. I think we could have scored four goals since Uzbekistan were reduced to nine players in the last minutes of the match,” Iran coach Maryam Azmoun said in the post-match news conference.

This tournament feature players from the age group that will compete in the opening qualification stage of AFC U20 Women’s Asian Cup, which is scheduled to be held in March 2023.

All six matches will be held at Central Republican Stadium, where the action will conclude on Tuesday.