New names in Azerbaijan squad

Azerbaijan coach Asker Abdulayev has named a 21-man squad for the UEFA EURO 2004™ qualifying match against Serbia and Montenegro at the Shafa stadium in Baku on 11 June.

Two debutants
There are two debutants in the squad. FK Karabakh-Azersun's 24-year-old left midfield player Azer Jabbarov, who has previously been selected in the squad but is yet to play in a full international, is joined by FK Shafa's powerful 22-year-old striker Senan Gurbanov, who currently leads the domestic goalscoring charts with six goals from three games. Abdulayev has had ample opportunity to observe Gurbanov's talent at close quarters, as he is also coach of Shafa

Overseas experience
Russian-based duo Dmitri Kramarenko and Emin Agaev are both recalled to the squad, with Kramarenko expected to be the first-choice goalkeeper while Agaev was called up to replace the suspended Ramiz Mamedov, who plays his club football in Iran.

Championship significance
Abdulayev is hoping that the restart of the Azerbaijani First Division will reinvigorate his side's challenge. "I think that the renewal of the championship helped us very much and I would like to thank everybody who has contributed to that," he said.

'Main playmaker'
"The start of the league means that we have some new players in the squad and I am relying very strongly on them. I was pleased with the last Shafa game as Zaur Tagizade, Emin Imamaliev and Ruslan Musayev all scored. Musayev is in great form and he must be our main playmaker."

Creditable draw
Azerbaijan currently lie bottom of Group 9 with a single point from their five games so far, although that was a creditable 2-2 draw against Serbia and Montenegro in February.

Azerbaijan squad
Kramarenko, Hasanzade, Mahammedov, Agaev, E Guliyev, Akhmedov, Yadullaev, Kerimov, Sadygov, K Guliyev, Imamaliev, R. Musayev, M Gurbanov, Hasanov, Jabbarov, Tagizade, Aliyev, S Gurbanov, G Gurbanov, K Mamedov, Ismaylov.