Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Brisbane: Iraq coach Radhi Shenaishil was left bemoaning the lack of sharpness amongst his strikers after Japan handed the 2007 AFC Asian Cup winners a 1-0 defeat at Brisbane Stadium in Group D’s second round of matches on Thursday.
Keisuke Honda scored the only goal of the game from the penalty spot to give Japan a second straight win and move Javier Aguirre’s team to within a point of progressing to the quarter-finals as group winners.
Shenaishil, however, was left regretting the lack of a cutting edge in a team led by veteran forward Younus Mahmood, who came into the tournament without a current club.
“I thought they played well, we played well and they got the penalty,” said the former Iraq national team defender. “We missed some chances, but what can we do?
“If you look at the Japan team, they have six players who are dangerous on the counter while we had players who weren't capable of playing for the full game.
“We only had a short period preparing for this competition and we are working hard to bring our forwards up to the same level. You know Younus, Justin Meram they haven't played for a long time, so they’re not at the level to play a full match.
“Look at Honda, he comes from Italy to the national team and he produces. We have players who have not played since the last Gulf Cup and so we’re going step-by-step.”
Iraq go into their final group match against Palestine on Tuesday in Canberra knowing victory will take them through to the quarter-finals for the sixth tournament in a row.
“Our ticket for the next round will come from this match and it won’t be easy,” said Shenaishil.
“Palestine will want to have a positive result before they leave this tournament, but we will be working with our players and our staff to come out of this match with a positive result.”
Shenaishil took over at the helm of the Iraq national team after their appearance in the Gulf Cup in Saudi Arabia in November, and the 48-year-old lamented the lack of time with his team in the build-up to the AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015.
“The negative thing about the Iraq national team is the changing of the coaching staff and players,” he said.
“You need to keep the same coaching staff to work with them, so they get used to each other and their style. We hope that this will happen in the period to come.”
Photo: WSG