Mehdi Mahdavikia's team will commence the campaign with a match against Nepal on sunday.

Iran has been drawn in Group B along with host Tajikistan, Nepal and Lebanon. 

With the excitement building up, 39 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Member Associations (MAs) will be vying for 15 available spots to join host Uzbekistan at the keenly anticipated AFC U-23 Asian Cup in 2022, which will be staged in the Central Zone for the first time in Asian football history.