The tournament will take place in Saudi Arabia, featuring 16 teams.
In preparation for this tournament, the Kyrgyzstan team held a training camp in the United Arab Emirates, where they planned two friendly matches against the Chinese team, which is also preparing for the Asian Cup. These matches were scheduled for December 23 and 29.
According to Chinese media, both sides agreed on a "home and away" match format. The first match was to take place in Ajman, where the Kyrgyz team was training, while the return match was scheduled for December 29 in Ras Al Khaimah, where the Chinese team was located.
“In the first match, which took place on December 23 in Ajman, the referee mistakenly showed a red card to a defender of the Chinese team in the 10th minute, leading to his ejection. About 10 minutes later, a player from the Kyrgyzstan team received two yellow cards in quick succession and was also sent off. However, it was agreed before the match that a player who receives two yellow cards can be substituted, while a player who receives a straight red card continues to play off the field,” the Chinese press reports.
Thus, Kyrgyzstan played almost the entire match with a disadvantage of 11 to 10,” the journalists add.
The Chinese team won the match 1-0 thanks to a long-range shot from Wang Yudong from a distance of 65 meters.
After the match, representatives of the Kyrgyzstan team decided to cancel the second match and instead hold a meeting with a club from the UAE.
As a result, in the second match, the Kyrgyzstan team achieved a convincing victory over a third-division club from the UAE with a score of 6-0 and then headed to Saudi Arabia.
