Earlier this month, Iraq coach Graham Arnold was stranded in Fujairah, on the east coast of the United Arab Emirates, because of the war in the Middle East. He wondered if his national team would even be able to compete for one last place to qualify for the 2026 World Cup.
After a long and winding journey to Mexico, Arnold and Iraq will attempt to return to the World Cup after a 40-year absence when they face Bolivia in the final of the intercontinental qualifiers in Monterrey in northern Mexico on Tuesday.
Eight teams from the Asian region have already qualified for the championship that will begin in June in the United States, Mexico and Canada. If Iraq qualifies, it will join Australia, Iran, Japan, Jordan, South Korea, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Uzbekistan in the 48-team tournament.
“It’s been very difficult to get stuck; I’d rather not talk about it, I’m trying to get all that out of the players’ minds because there’s a lot going on in the Middle East,” Arnold said Monday in a press conference.
At least 101 people have been killed in Iraq since the conflict erupted on February 28, according to an AFP tally.
“Representing 46 million people is a unique experience,” Arnold said. “A large part of my work has focused on the intellectual sphere.
