AFC President hails Turkmenistan’s efforts to raise football standards
Asian Football Confederation (AFC) President Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa held a positive and productive bilateral meeting with Football Federation of Turkmenistan (FFT) President Guvanchmuhammet Ovekov in the Malaysian capital on Friday.
Sheikh Salman congratulated the FFT President on his unanimous appointment to the post he received last November and noted that his extensive experience as a former player and coach puts him in a unique position to achieve even greater success in Turkmen football in the coming years, according to an AFC press release.
Recognizing the Central Asian team’s victorious start to the final round of the 2027 AFC Asian Cup™ qualifiers in Saudi Arabia in the first match of Group D last month, the AFC President expressed confidence in Turkmenistan’s ambition to become the Pearl of Asia for the third time.
At the same time, Sheikh Salman also hailed the achievements of Arkadag FC, which defeated East Bengal FC 2-1 in the second leg of the 2024/25 AFC Challenge League™ quarter-finals last month to advance to the semi-finals.
The AFC President said: “Football in Turkmenistan continues to grow at an incredible pace and the qualification and progress of teams in the AFC competitions is truly a testament to the strategic and focused plans being implemented by the FFT.”
Sheikh Salman welcomed the opportunity to discuss pressing issues for the FFT and reiterated the AFC’s commitment to unlocking the undeniable potential of Turkmen football through the AFC’s tailor-made development programmes.
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