From the southeast of Azerbaijan, Qarachala made it to the UEFA Regions' Cup finals with a team which includes a physical education teacher, a florist, waiters, a car salesman and a player who runs a fruit stall. Those diverse threads came together in style in Lithuania, as they won all three of their Group 4 games, with a last-gasp strike from Samir Guliyev in their final game against Belgrade proving to be decisive. "We still can't believe that we won all three matches and qualified for the final tournament," said coach Adil Makhmudov, whose side have been training together three or four times a week for some time. "I hope we can keep that momentum going in Italy."

Coach: Adil Makhmudov
Just 37, Sumqayit-born Makhmudov studied sports science and has been working as a youth coach with top-flight team İnter Bakı PİK.