Satisfied with a point from their opening match, the Argentine is convinced that the draw will inject his team with fresh self-belief ahead of their remaining clashes.

“The team was well-prepared and followed the game plan as we had discussed earlier. I am very happy with their performance and I think this will boost their morale immensely,” said Cuper.

“Uzbekistan are a strong team who not only have a good mix of young and experienced players, but they have also had the opportunity to play together for a good three years. So, I am glad that we put up a strong game against them.”

Cuper, who is one of the most experienced coaches at the AFC Asian Cup, further pointed out that the performance of his players was especially commendable as the squad had had little time to prepare as a collective unit.

“Ideally, it is great to have a different strategy for each opponent but in the short while that we had, we have had to make do with a setup where we make minor adjustments ahead of each match. But I think with four days in hand before our match against Australia, we should be well-prepared,” he said.

Syrian goalkeeper Ahmad Madanieh, who was judged the best player of the evening, was also not deterred by the task of facing 2015 champions Australia, who defeated India 2-0 on Saturday.

“On a personal level, I think it is very important to not lose the opening game and thus, I am happy we came away with a point. Moreover, I think our defence was quite solid and we are more than equipped to face a team like Australia,” said Madanieh.

“I think after our performance against Uzbekistan, we really believe in our chances of making it to the knockout stage for the first time ever, and with the help of the technical staff and the fans in the stadium, there is a lot of confidence among us.”

Uzbekistan head coach Srecko Katanec, on the other hand, did not mask his disappointment and was eager to move on to focus on the upcoming ties against India on Thursday, followed by Australia on January 23.

“Obviously I am disappointed with the scoreline, but I cannot put any blame on the team. They tried everything but they had 10 well-built Syrian players playing at the back and they just couldn’t score,” said Katanec.

With the White Wolves missing a valuable member of their pack, Eldor Shomurodov, Katanec is keen to help his charges find a way around the glaring absence upfront.

“This is not a problem exclusive to Uzbekistan. If you lose your main striker, it will pose a problem for any team. Even Argentina will falter if you take Lionel Messi away from them,” he said.

“That being said, we cannot be impaired by the absence of Shomurodov and hopefully we will rectify our mistakes by the time of our next match.”