Iraq knocks out Saudi Arabia!

What a great story developing in Chengdu! (And it has nothing to do with the J-10 or the FC-1.)

Iraq knocked off 3-time champs Saudi Arabia and is going to the quarter finals of the Asian Cup!

Their next opponent is the host, China.

http://www.canada.com/sports/soccer/story.html?id=438F1FD6-C04D-40AF-9243-10236B92EE58

Far from Baghdad’s chaos, Iraq’s soccer team shows country can still win

CHRISTOPHER BODEEN
Canadian Press

Tuesday, July 27, 2004

CHENGDU, China (AP) – Iraq may be awash in violence, political upheaval and economic malaise, but Adnan Hamd and the 22 players of the national soccer team have other concerns this week.

Iraq is turning heads at the Asian Cup, where Hamd’s scrappy young team has opened a tiny window of hope to their beleaguered countrymen.

“Our quarter-final match (Friday) against China is going to be very tough. We’ve got to prepare well, we’ve got to be ready,” says Hamd,

Iraq moved into the quarter-finals by beating former champion Saudi Arabia 2-1 Monday, snapping a 16-year victory drought against its Persian Gulf rivals who promptly fired their coach.

The Iraqis have already qualified for next month’s Athens Olympics and are still hopeful of making it to the 2006 World Cup in Germany.

“My friends and family are watching the Asian Cup games at home on television and it makes them very happy,” said forward Ahmad Salah. “They see that we are still a normal country, a good country.”

The team has had to overcome incredible odds on the road to China.

Suicide bombings, kidnappings and firefights have made practising within the country virtually impossible. Home games have to be played in Jordan and earlier this month, German-born coach Bernd Stange quit over safety fears, leaving the job to Olympic coach Hamd.

Athletes’ pay and team funding have also been halved under the new Iraqi government, more focused on restoring security and the economy than winning tournaments. Six players work for clubs in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar and Iran, but the rest are signed with teams in Iraq’s domestic league, which is in recess until conditions in the country improve.

Players talk little about those difficulties, though, sticking mostly to soccer and their impressions of China.

“Playing in Iraq, it was about half good and half not so good,” Salah, one of two Iraqis signed with Egyptian club Zamalek, says simply.

Yet the players’ cool demeanour masks the pressure they’re under, says team doctor Imad Abdul Nabi.

“It’s very hard for them because their families are still back home and still exposed to danger. The psychological strain on them is intense,” Abdul Nabi says.

While few if any Iraqi fans have made it to the games, the team’s grit and determination has won them enthusiastic backing from Chinese fans in Chengdu, where Iraq played its group round matches. Some attend games wearing improvised Arab headdress.

“We really sympathize with them because of the war and everything they’ve had to go through. They are real heroes to us,” said Chengdu college student Wang Kai, who watched Iraq beat the Saudis.

Tournament organizers are also lavish in their praise.

“This shows tremendous willpower by the players, that whatever is happening in the country, politically, security-wise, they want to keep the Iraqi flag flying,” said Peter Vellapan, secretary general of the Asian Football Confederation.

How far the Iraqis will go is anyone’s guess. The team’s best showing in the Asian Cup was fourth in the 1976 tournament in Iran.

Captain Abdul Wahab says he’s not setting any limits.

“We are very strong and technically very sound,” Wahab said. “There is no reason we can’t go all the way to the final.”

“Thank you, Chengdu! – Iraq”