Turkmenistan at the AFC Asian Cup

Ever since the collapse of Soviet Union, Turkmenistan has qualified for two Asian Cups, in 2004 and 2019.

Turkmenistan reached the 2004 Asian Cup by finishing top of their qualifying group, ahead of the United Arab Emirates, a nation Turkmenistan defeated in the first game during qualifying. When they reached the 2004 edition, Turkmenistan could only manage one point, albeit against Saudi Arabia, who had reached the Asian Cup final in their previous five tournaments.

As Turkmenistan is still an emerging nation, qualifying for the AFC Asian Cup is their greatest achievement in history, especially since Turkmenistan had chances to reach the Asian Cup in 2011 and 2015 via the AFC Challenge Cup, only for North Korea to defeat Turkmenistan in the final on both instances. That was none more evident when the country qualified for the 2019 edition. Turkmenistan's road began with a shock 1–0 loss to Guam, before an impressive 1–1 draw against Iran in June 2015. Due to the expansion of 24 teams for the 2019 Asian Cup, Turkmenistan got a second chance to play additional qualifiers, with their qualification to the tournament confirmed on 14 November 2017 thanks to a 2–1 victory over Chinese Taipei in Group E. Their last qualifier, a 4–0 loss in Bahrain, meant Turkmenistan qualified for the tournament despite a negative goal difference.

2004 China

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Group C

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Team Pts Pld W D L GF GA GD
  Uzbekistan 9 3 3 0 0 3 0 +3
  Iraq 6 3 2 0 1 5 4 +1
  Turkmenistan 1 3 0 1 2 4 6 −2
  Saudi Arabia 1 3 0 1 2 3 5 −2
Saudi Arabia  2–2  Turkmenistan
Al-Qahtani   9' (pen.), 59' Report N. Bayramov   6'
Kuliyev   90+3'

Turkmenistan  2–3  Iraq
V. Bayramov   14'
Kuliyyew   85'
Report H. M. Mohammed   12'
Farhan   80'
Munir   88'

Turkmenistan  0–1  Uzbekistan
Report Qosimov   58'


2019 UAE

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Group F

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1   Japan 3 3 0 0 6 3 +3 9 Advance to knockout stage
2   Uzbekistan 3 2 0 1 7 3 +4 6
3   Oman 3 1 0 2 4 4 0 3
4   Turkmenistan 3 0 0 3 3 10 −7 0
Source: AFC
Japan  3–2  Turkmenistan
Report
Attendance: 5,725

Turkmenistan  0–4  Uzbekistan
Report

Oman  3–1  Turkmenistan
Report

Record

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AFC Asian Cup
Year Result Position GP W D* L GS GA
  1956 to   1988 Part of   Soviet Union
  1992 Did not enter
  1996 Did not qualify
  2000
  2004 Group Stage 12th 3 0 1 2 4 6
        2007 Did not qualify
  2011
  2015
  2019 Group Stage 21st 3 0 0 3 3 10
  2023 To be determined
Total Best: Group Stage 2/8 3 0 1 5 7 16

References

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  1. ^ "People's Daily Online -- Photos: Saudi Arabia tie with Turkmenistan 2-2".