Pakhtakor have found a solution to their head-coach licensing issue ahead of the AFC Champions League Elite. Moldovan specialist Emilian Caras will officially be listed as the Tashkent club’s head coach at AFC events, while Kamoliddin Tojiev will continue to run the team in practice.
“Due to AFC requirements for club competitions, Emilian Caras, who holds the necessary coaching licence, will participate in official AFC Champions League events as head coach. He will be listed as Pakhtakor’s head coach on the match sheet and will attend press conferences and other official events,” the club said in a statement.
The arrangement is linked to Asian Football Confederation licensing requirements. A top-level coaching licence is required to work as a head coach in the AFC Champions League Elite. Caras holds a UEFA Pro Licence, while Tojiev does not yet meet the relevant requirements.
There has been no change in who actually runs the team. Tojiev remains in charge of Pakhtakor, while Caras, who had already been working as his assistant, will officially hold the head-coach role in AFC competition.
The 58-year-old Moldovan joined Pakhtakor in January 2026. Before moving to Uzbekistan, Caras worked at Dynamo Kyiv, first as part of Mircea Lucescu’s coaching staff and later under Oleksandr Shovkovskyi.
Much of Caras’ international coaching career has been spent as an assistant. For many years he worked alongside Dan Petrescu at Kuban Krasnodar, Dynamo Moscow, Alania Vladikavkaz, Qatar’s Al-Arabi, China’s Jiangsu Sainty, UAE club Al-Nasr and Romanian side CFR Cluj.
Caras has also worked as a head coach. In Moldova, he managed Dacia Chisinau, FC Tiraspol and Olimpia Balti.
Pakhtakor’s AFC Champions League Elite qualifying match against Jordanian side Al-Hussein on August 11 will also mark a notable milestone for Moldovan football. Caras will become the first Moldovan specialist to officially serve as a club’s head coach in the AFC Champions League Elite.
Asia’s top club competition has been played under the AFC Champions League Elite name since the 2024/25 season following the AFC’s restructuring of its continental tournaments.
A Moldovan coach had, however, previously worked in the former AFC Champions League. Serghei Dubrovin was in charge of Indonesian club Petrokimia Putra during the inaugural 2002/03 edition.
Dubrovin’s side defeated China’s Shanghai Shenhua 3–1 at home in qualifying before losing the return leg 5–1 and being eliminated.
Kamoliddin Tojiev has been in charge of Pakhtakor since 2025. He took over following the departure of Portuguese coach Pedro Moreira and guided the Tashkent club to second place in the Uzbek championship last season.