"Our away 5-0 victory last week over Malaysia was very important, but we have to work on the few problems we have created at the start of the game," the Frenchman said hinting at the rear flank.

Bathaney said the result was good as it’s always something positive to start your campaign with three points, Khaleej Times Online reported.

"But this time, we will be facing a tougher test against a very different side. Uzbekistan have many good players, who are playing in Ukraine and Russia," he noted.

For Bathaney, the players need to test their strength and the amount of progress they have achieved on the pitch to find out where they are standing. "We need to improve to believe that we are making real progress. We have to stay focused for the full 90 minutes. We have suffered in the past with a dip in our concentration. So we have to make sure we don’t make the same mistakes," he said.

Bathaney warned that Uzbekistan is not a joke and without starting very strongly and carefully enough, they may make things quite difficult for them. "We have to be really focused, especially in the beginning of the game and make sure we don’t concede an early goal. If that happens, they will make it really difficult for us to come back," he said.

"We must think of stopping them from scoring first. We need to score before conceding a single goal to put them on the backfoot,’ he clarified. "If one is enough, why two? What really matters is to claim full points of the game irrespective of the number of goals we score. A win in this game will mean we have virtually sealed our qualification," he said.

Regarding the level of performance he has achieved with the national team, Bathaney said he’s satisfied with what he has been doing. "Things went against our will in the Gulf Cup. Our objective was to reach the last four but that did not happen.

"We have some new players and they need time to settle in. We have also made a lot of changes after the departure of Bruno Metsu. Now we play 4-4-2 and the players need time to master the new formation. "We are progressing bit by bit and this game against Uzbekistan will show us how we stack up," he said.

Team’s manager Ismail Rashid reiterated that they are flying high after their impressive performance against Malaysia. "We are starting our game against Uzbekistan with great confidence and the vision is very clear in front of our eyes. The players are more disciplined and more responsible than ever and they are determined to please their fans," he added. "Let’s hope to win the three points of the game ahead to seal our place in the finals. Therefore, the players are all out to make it a winning evening," he said.

"If we get three points in this game, I think we will be assured of a place in the Asian Cup. So our players will be going out for a win. We know that Uzbekistan is not Malaysia. They are one of the strongest teams in Asia. But we need to go out with a positive frame of mind and with the belief that we can win this game," he concluded.