Director Arnold's Iraq debut on stage...Key striker Hussein's absence is Hong Myung-bo's "Hojae."

Director Arnold's Iraq debut on stage...Key striker Hussein's absence is Hong Myung-bo's "Hojae."

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Graham Arnold (Australia), who was mentioned as a candidate for the Korean national soccer team, will take the helm of Iraq and make his first appearance against Hong Myung-bo.

Iraq is ranking third in Group B with three wins, three draws and two losses (12 points) at the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-China World Cup. In the remaining two matches, the team will meet with South Korea (16 points) and Jordan (13 points), who are ranking first and second, respectively. The team is aiming at turning the tables at the last minute in order to win the berth to directly advance to the finals, which will give the team up to the second place in the group.

Iraq wants to advance to the World Cup finals for the first time in 40 years since the 1986 Mexico Games. The Iraqi Football Association dismissed Jesus Casas for poor performance in April and urgently appointed Arnold, showing its commitment to the finals.

Coincidentally, the Korean War is the first edition of the "Arnold" in Iraq.

Arnold was mentioned as a candidate for the Korean national team's leadership last year. He is fluent in Asian soccer. He has led the Australian national team to the round of 16 teams twice. He once led the team to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. He also led the team to the round of 16 teams in the Asian soccer community including Sydney FC, Central Coast Mariners (Australia), and Begalta Sendai (Japan).

Coach Arnold called up the team early in preparation for the match against Korea. We are waiting for the showdown after conducting a week of camp training.

Iraq's key striker Aymen Hussain (Al-Wakra) will not be able to join the match due to accumulated warnings. Hussain displayed his value by scoring six goals in four matches at the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup held in Qatar in February last year. In addition, he scored on an overhead kick in a showdown with Korea in October that year, when he scored against Hong. Hussain's absence will likely ease some of the burden on the national team's defenders, who will be without key player Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich). 토토사이트

Another key midfielder Zidane Iqbal (Widerecht) was not included in the call-up due to his injury. Levine Sulaka (Arbil SC), who briefly played for FC Seoul in the K-League, is also unable to play due to accumulated number of warnings.