Defending champ shocked by rival in its opening clash at Asian Cup

DOHA - Claiming the Asian Cup with a shock victory four years ago proved to be a unifying force in war-ravaged Iraq.

But the defending champion's aura dimmed on Tuesday in a 2-1 loss to archrival Iran.

"I think the pressure didn't come from the Iraq team, but from my people," said Younis Mahmoud, who scored the only goal in the final against Saudi Arabia to earn his nation its historic triumph at the 2007 tournament.

"All my people love football and they hope the Iraqi team will win every game," he said. "I'm sorry we lost the game and we will endeavor to avoid making mistakes and play better in the next game."

The tough Group D match was in the spotlight as the defending champion, whose soccer association was suspended by FIFA over the past three years for governmental interference, played three-time Asian Cup champion Iran, its gulf neighbor with whom it had fought an eight-year war in the 1980s.

However, both of the sides tried to play down the rivalry.

"The sport is football and we only focus on football," said German coach Wolfgang Sidka, who took charge of the Iraq side in July.

"I've spent five months in the country and I know all the people on the roads of Iraq are interested in football." said the 56-year-old. "I was contacted by fans and Iraq people on Facebook and by email and I know they are all with us and support us.

"I know the responsibility we have and what I can say to the people of Iraq is we will make every effort to perform to our best. We cannot promise results at the end, but we will do our best."

Iraq soccer reached a peak in the 1970s and 1980s when the country qualified for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico and the Olympic Games in Moscow (1980), Los Angeles (1984) and Seoul (1988).

The progress of the sport, however, was interrupted by the nation's domestic instability, which saw Iraq fall to 139th place in the world in 1996, the worst FIFA ranking in its history.

"We are one and we need to unify together and this is the target we achieved at the Asian Cup in 2007." said Iraq's team manager, Waleed Tabra. "People were very happy about the win and they thought let's accept each other, and celebrate the victory together. In one second all the people became brothers and friends."

Tabra was also glad to proclaim that the country is starting a new era and the government is giving more support to the sport.

"Since the middle of 2007, the security of the country has become more assured," said Tabra. "Maybe there are a few accidents, but all of the world has accidents.

"Sport is a primary activity and the government has started to pay attention to it," he said. "We hope for more stability, for more diplomacy, and we need time."

China Daily

(China Daily 01/13/2011 page24)