Umarbek Eshmurodov, Uzbek national defender, was today officially announced as the Red Giants' latest import player to face the Malaysian League for the upcoming 2024/2025 season.

Born in Koson, Uzbekistan, began his professional career with FC Shurtan Guzar at the age of 21. He has made 83 appearances for the squad in 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017, scoring four goals in total.

This 185cm-tall stopper has gained the attention of one of the most famous clubs in Uzbekistan, namely FC Nasaf Qarshi. Umar was with the club from July 2017 to 2023, making FC Nasaf Qarshi his longest-serving club. On top of that, he recorded 218 appearances in the first division of the Uzbek League and was called up to play for international matches while with this club.

He was appointed as the team captain due to his strong leadership qualities, and one of his most notable accomplishments with the FC Nasaf Qarshi squad included lifting the Uzbek Cup for three consecutive years in 2021, 2022 and 2023, as well as the Uzbek Supercup for the 2022/2023 season. Meanwhile, on the Asian level, FC Nasaf Qarshi was one of the finalists of the 2021 AFC Cup, wherein the team finished second for the whole tournament.

Furthermore, Umar was called up to the senior team of Uzbekistan for the first time in 2020. He made his debut with the national team, also known as the White Wolves Turanians, in an international friendly against Belarus after impressing with outstanding accomplishments for FC Nasaf Qarshi.

Selangor FC will be the first club he will play with outside of his home country. Umar feels that his experience will assist the team in achieving its goal for the 2024/2025 season.

"To be honest, I have always wanted to play with a club abroad. Selangor FC was the first club I chose to expand my football career after 12 years of playing in Uzbekistan and I am confident in this decision.

"I hope that the extensive experience of playing at the international level, both at club level and for the national team, Uzbekistan, will help Selangor FC achieve success for the new season,” said Umar.

Umarbek Eshmurodov's experience and leadership have attracted the interest of Selangor FC manager, Tan Cheng Hoe.

"I'm certain that Umar's experience in the Asian Cup and Champions League will help him, especially with establishing the defensive line, since we struggled in that area last season. Having him at Selangor FC would boost the team's confidence in its ability to perform in ACL 2. He is also one of the captains of his former club and the Uzbekistan national team, I feel his leadership qualities will assist the squad, especially the young players to perform better and more composed this season." 

Before concluding the interview, Umar indicated that he will do his best not to disappoint the Red Giants supporters, and he hopes that they will continue to support the team through the ups and downs in order to achieve success together.

For everyone’s information, Umar is currently playing in the 2023 Asian Cup tournament. Uzbekistan is scheduled to meet the hosts, Qatar on February 3rd for the Quarter Finals after beating Thailand in the Round of 16 recently with a 2-1 result. 

Selangor FC hopes he will be able to strengthen our defensive lineup for the Malaysian League season 2024/2025 and the ACL 2 2024. Welcome to the Red Giants family, Umar! 

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Demi Kebanggaan!