Akmal Mustafaevich Tursunbaev (, ; born 14 July 1993) is an

Uzbekistan , image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg , image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg , symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem , national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a

goalkeeper In many team sports that involve scoring goal (sport), goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie, or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or i ...

Club career

Having made his development at Uzbek football powerhouses Pakhtakor and

Bunyodkor Football Club Bunyodkor () is an Uzbek professional football club based in Tashkent that competes in the Uzbekistan Super League. Bunyodkor, a relatively unknown club at the time, made international headlines when it claimed to be close to sig ...

, Tursunbaev went on loan to

FK Andijon Football Club Andijan, also known as FC Andijon and Andijon Futbol Klubi, is an Uzbek professional football club based in Andijan. The club plays in Uzbekistan Super League. History The club was formed 1964 under the name Spartak. In 1969, the c ...

of the

Uzbekistan First League Uzbekistan First League ( Uzbek: ''O'zbekiston Birinchi ligasi / Ўзбекистон Биринчи Лигаси''; Russian: ''Первая лига Узбекистана'') is the third level (after the Super League and Pro League) football le ...

in 2013, and won promotion to the

2014 Uzbek League The 2014 Uzbek League was the 23rd season of top-level football in Uzbekistan since independence in 1992. Bunyodkor were the defending champions from the 2013 campaign. Teams FK Guliston and Shurtan Guzar were relegated in the last edition of ...

. He was transferred to Pakhtakor where he played as a backup goalkeeper as the

Tashkent Tashkent (), also known as Toshkent, is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uzbekistan, largest city of Uzbekistan. It is the most populous city in Central Asia, with a population of more than 3 million people as of April 1, 2024. I ...

club twice became league champions while he was there. He subsequently returned to Andijon but could not save them from relegation at the end of the

2016 Uzbek League The 2016 Uzbek League was the 25th season of top-level football in Uzbekistan since 1992. FC Pakhtakor, Pakhtakor were the defending champions from the 2015 campaign. Teams Sogdiana Jizzakh remained for 2016 Uzbek League after winning in releg ...

season. He moved to other Higher League clubs such as

FK Buxoro FK Buxoro () is an Uzbek professional football club based in Bukhara. Founded in 1989, the club competes in the Uzbekistan Super League. History The club was founded in 1960 under name ''Bukhoro''. In 1989 club was renamed to ''Nurafshon''. Du ...

and

Metallurg Bekabad PFK Metallurg Bekabad () is a former Uzbek football club based in Bekabad. They last play in Uzbekistan Super League until 2024. History The club was founded in 1945. Metallurg played in one of the regional zones of Soviet Second League until 19 ...

before dropping a division to play for

FK Turon Yaypan FK Turon is an Uzbekistani football (soccer), football club based in Yaypan that currently plays in the Uzbekistan Pro League. History Domestic history Current squad Honours Domestic *Uzbekistan Pro-B League ...

where they finished third in the 2022 season. He played in the promotion/relegation play-off against

Lokomotiv Tashkent PFC Lokomotiv Tashkent () is an Uzbek professional football club based in Tashkent. The owner and main sponsor of the club is the state-owned Uzbek Railways. History Lokomotiv was founded in 18 February 2002. In 2002–2003 the club played in ...

on 25 November and won 2–1, sending Turon to the top flight. Tursunbaev moved to

Brunei Brunei, officially Brunei Darussalam, is a country in Southeast Asia, situated on the northern coast of the island of Borneo. Apart from its coastline on the South China Sea, it is completely surrounded by the Malaysian state of Sarawak, with ...

an club

DPMM FC Duli Pengiran Muda Mahkota Football Club (English language, English: His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of Brunei Football Club; Abbreviation, abbrev: DPMM or Brunei DPMM) is a professional association football, football club based in Bandar S ...

after completing a trial in January 2023. He put pen to paper on 28 February of that year. He made his debut away against

Lion City Sailors Lion City Sailors Football Club, commonly referred to as the Sailors or LCS, is a Singaporean professional association football, football club based in Bishan, Singapore, Bishan. It competes in the Singapore Premier League, the top tier of the Si ...

on 3 March which resulted in a defeat to the Bruneian side 3–1. After only featuring for six games, he was released by the club on 1 June. In February 2024 he returned to

playing in the

2024 Uzbekistan Pro League The 2024 Uzbekistan Pro League was the 32nd since its establishment in 1992. The competition started on 12 March 2024 until ended on 28 November 2024. Teams Foreign players The number of foreign players is restricted to five per UPL team. A tea ...

International career

Tursunbaev was part of the national youth setup of his country from 2010 to 2014. He was part of the Uzbekistan under-20 squad for the

2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup The 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the nineteenth edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, since its inception in 1977 as the FIFA World Youth Championship. It ran from 21 June to 13 July 2013. At the FIFA Executive Meeting in Zürich on 3 March 2011, ...

held in

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. He then played three games for the under-23s for the

2016 AFC U-23 Championship qualification The 2016 AFC U-23 Championship qualification was a men's under-23 association football, football competition which decided the participating teams of the 2016 AFC U-23 Championship. Players born on or after 1 January 1993 were eligible to compete ...

matches hosted by

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

. He kept clean sheets against

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and the host nation.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tursunbaev, Akmal 1993 births Living people Men's association football goalkeepers Uzbekistani men's footballers 21st-century Uzbekistani sportsmen Uzbekistani expatriate men's footballers FC Bunyodkor players Pakhtakor Tashkent FK players FC Andijon players FC Bukhara players PFK Metallurg Bekabad players FK Turon Yaypan players DPMM FC players Uzbekistan Super League players Uzbekistan Pro League players Singapore Premier League players Expatriate men's footballers in Brunei Uzbekistani expatriate sportspeople in Brunei