Tue, 30 Nov, -0001
Dubai: Former AFC Asian Cup champions Iraq made a winning start in qualification for the 2015 edition of the continental championship with a 1-0 victory over Indonesia in Group C on Wednesday.
Playing in front of a small but vocal crowd at the neutral Al Rashid Stadium, Younus Mahmoud’s 66th minute strike was all that separated the two sides but it was a match that Iraq dominated from start to finish.
Hakeem Shakir, taking charge of a continental qualifier for the first time since Zico’s departure late last year, said it was a deserved three points for the 2007 winners.
“It was quite a difficult match, said the Iraqi coach. “From the very first minute it was clear that we were playing against a strict defensive team and this made it tough for us to penetrate.
“We also missed many chances due to the inexperience of our players but it was a win, maybe not the best way, but at the end of the day we got the three points and I’m very happy about that.
“This is a new Iraq team and we have to show we have what it takes to grow and that we are the future of Iraq football.”
Indonesia, thrashed days earlier by Jordan, were content to sit back and wait for a chance on the counter but for the opening hour they were so deep that Iraq could attack at will.
Despite having the overwhelming majority of possession, though, it was from set pieces where Iraq threatened most over the opening hour.
On 24 minutes Ali Adnan’s curling freekick flew past Endra Prasetya in the Indonesia goal only to be ruled out after a teammate had strayed into an offside position.
As the half wore down Humam Tareq saw his first-time effort sail wide before Shakir reacted to the massed Indonesian defence by introducing Alaa Abdul Zahra in place of Hammadi Ahmed.
The hosts had a series of free kicks over the opening stage of the second half but when the goal came it was almost against the run of play.
A misplaced pass when Indonesia were in a rare advanced position saw the ball fall to Iraq captain Younus Mahmoud just past the halfway line.
The veteran forward then powered ahead of Wahyu Wijiastanto and flashed his shot across Endra and into the far corner to spark mass celebration from the Iraq fans inside the Al Rashid Stadium.
Thereafter Iraq launched wave after wave of attacks as Indonesia continued to look for chances on the counter to no avail, a decision coach Nil Maizar claimed post-match had backfired.
“We came here looking for a point with the thinking being that we could claim all three points against Iraq in Indonesia,” he said.
“We wanted to defend 60% and try for a counterattack but today we made one mistake and conceded one goal.
“Now I will go back to Indonesia and think how we can defeat Iraq in our home.”