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"They were strangers, I can't identify their identity or language, but they seemed to be Uzbek or Chechen," Mr Fares told me by phone.

While it would be romantic to say Khusanov is forging a path for more Uzbeks to play in Europe's top leagues, that process has been long under way in the former Soviet state.

Authorities in the United Arab Emirates say they have identified three Uzbek nationals as the suspects arrested over the murder of an Israeli-Moldovan rabbi and said they were working to determine a motive.

Ani is Uzbek American and knows the language from her grandmother, but she’s barely proficient.

It’s a young Uzbek messenger, riding a Bactrian camel, wearing an old wide-brimmed hat.