Russia no more: Uzbeks turn to Turkey
For years, Uzbekistan's best went to Russia or Ukraine, now Turkey is a better bridge to Europe
Uzbekistan Football Finds Its Moment
It has taken plenty of time, lots of heartbreak and several what-ifs but 2025 will go down in history as the year Uzbekistan football finally arrived on the global stage.
It began in January when Aboukodir Khusanov signed for Manchester City. The highly-rated central defender was not only the first player from Uzbekistan but the first from all of Central Asia to sign with an English Premier League club —and the defending champions at that. It made, and continues to make, big news in Tashkent and elsewhere in the region.
Then in June came a bigger breakthrough. Uzbekistan, after countless near-misses and painful campaigns stretching back to their debut qualification attempt in 1998, finally booked a place at the FIFA World Cup. For the team known as ‘Asia’s chokers’, it was a special moment.
And with the World Cup around the corner, these White Wolves will find themselves in the biggest shop window of all but whatever happens in North America next summer, a new generation of players is already looking further afield than Russia or Ukraine, long the default destinations.
The Turn to Turkey
The focus has moved to Turkey, and it’s not just because Russia is currently isolated in European football.
In 2024, Turkey’s Football Federation introduced a rule that could reshape the career paths of an entire region. Players from Turkic nations—including Uzbekistan—would no longer occupy foreign-player slots in the Süper Lig. With quotas restricting clubs to 12 foreigners and then 11 by 2027, suddenly Uzbek passports became a more attractive commodity.
There is also the Turkic Scout Bloc, founded in 2024 to promote youth leadership, training, and cross-border collaboration —all of which are also essential pillars in football development –between Azerbaijan, Hungary, Kazakhstan, and Turkey. Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan are also present.
Add in the cultural closeness, shared religion, the sense of Turkey as a bridge between Asia and Europe—the appeal was obvious. For many big name stars the league has been a stopping off point after the top European competitions but for players from Central Asia, it could be the opposite.
The Old Path
During the Soviet Union, Uzbekistan teams like Pahktakor played in the league and supplied players for the USSR national team. After its break-up, it made sense that Russia and Ukraine were the first, and often only, calling points for players looking to move abroad.
The shared football culture meant that the transition was easier than elsewhere, and Russian remained a second language for most. On the pitch, too, Uzbekistan’s style sat closer to Europe’s physical traditions than to Asia’s more technical approach. It bred a certain familiarity with Moscow and Kyiv.
Maksim Shatskikh was the best-known of that first generation, leaving for Dynamo Kyiv in 1999. Over a decade in the Ukrainian capital, the striker scored title-winning goals and faced off against Europe’s elite in the Champions League season after season. Had a mooted move to West Bromwich Albion materialised, he might have been Uzbekistan’s first in the Premier League 20 years earlier.
There were moves to Russia. CSKA Moscow and clubs of similar stature maintained scouting networks in Tashkent and Samarkand, eyeing up young Uzbek talent. That pipeline heading west delivered Abbosbek Fayzullaev in 2022.
Fayzullaev: The Rising Star
The winger, versatile enough to play across the frontline, had already impressed at Pakhtakor and made his senior international debut by the time he headed to Moscow at just 19. Quickly, he gained a reputation as one of Asia’s brightest young prospects and, in 2023, he won the award of the AFC’s Young Player of the Year.
It was clear that a move was on the cards —but where? Many hoped for England. A photo made waves in the Uzbek media and supposedly revealed the notebook of Wolverhampton Wanderers boss Vítor Pereira which listed Fayzullaev as a transfer option for midfield. It didn’t look real and it didn’t happen but allowed fans to dream for a while.
When Fayzullaev’s contract in Moscow ended, the direction was clear. He signed for Istanbul Başakşehir in a club-record €7.5 million deal, the biggest in their history. For a side that finished fifth last season and prides itself on developing young players, both club and player see this as a win-win.
The 21-year-old is set to show the world what he can do next summer.
Shomurodov: The Veteran Trailblazer
Just across the dressing room from the youngster, for both club and country, sits Eldor Shomurodov, perhaps Uzbekistan’s best-known player of the last decade. Tall, lean, and athletic at 6’3”, he embodies the modern forward: mobile, versatile, and capable of playing as both target man and wide runner.
Shomurodov’s journey was, at first, traditional. He began at home with Pakhtakor and then Bunyodkor, before heading to Rostov in Russia. There he impressed and there were consistent reports of a move further west.
Italy was an unusual move for Uzbek footballers,and went to Genoa in 2020 and settled well. Then came Roma. It never really happened in the capital but it wasn’t for a lack of application from the forward.
Now at 30, on loan at Başakşehir with an option to buy, Shomurodov’s European wanderings may be nearing their end. A return closer to home in a few years seems likely but in Turkey, he can ensure that he continues to play at a high level and go to North America next summer in fine shape.
Aliqulov: The Steady Presence
If Fayzullaev is the rising star and Shomurodov the trailblazer, Husniddin Aliqulov has been there for a while, impressing quietly under the radar. A defender of few frills but immense reliability, he made the move to Rizespor in 2023 straight from Nasaf. There,he played 33 league games last season, scoring three goals and impressing with his consistency.
The 26 year-old centre-back made, in many ways, made the perfect Turkish move: straight from home, learning fast, and establishing himself as a dependable player in a challenging but supportive environment.
Looking to 2026
All three players—Fayzullaev, Shomurodov, Aliqulov—will be heading to the United States in 2026.
In the meantime, attention will increasingly turn to Turkey. For now, it is the Süper Lig, not the Premier League, that looks set to shape Uzbekistan’s near football future
Turkey offers opportunity. Between the rule changes, growing scouting networks such as the Turkic Scout Bloc, and the visibility of the Süper Lig, Uzbek football has found a new gateway to Europe.
I’m really hyped about Uzbekistan in the World Cup, a country full of mystique and history, finally stepping onto the football stage. I got to watch their on field at the U-20 team here in Argentina in 2023 and they really impressed.