OMM Newsroom
Azerbaijan’s futsal team lost 5-1 to Latvia in the main qualifying round for the 2028 Futsal World Cup. After the match, Elvin Guliyev, who is serving as the team’s interim head coach, said the result was unexpected.
Guliyev said the team had analysed Latvia’s playing style and prepared for its possible moves, but the players appeared nervous at the start of the match.
Reasons for the defeat
The coach said Azerbaijan conceded four goals from set pieces. He added that a lack of experience may also have contributed.
Guliyev said the team struggled against long passes and gave Latvia an advantage in some situations through positioning and in individual duels. In his view, Azerbaijan needed to play faster against the physically strong Latvian team and reduce technical errors when receiving the ball.
The coach said the team had struggled for several matches to start the second half as it wanted and needed time to adapt to the game. He added that its performance improved somewhat after the break.
Azerbaijan, competing in Group 12, played the match at the Baku Sports Palace. The team has collected one point from three matches in the qualifying round.
Context
On October 15, 2026, Elvin Guliyev said Azerbaijan would aim to win all its group matches in the main round of the 2028 Futsal World Cup qualifiers and advance to the next stage.
