The goalie, Abdul Phalanx, will be returning to his job with the US Navy.
Posted on 07/29/2007 9:59:48 AM PDT by Kaslin
JAKARTA, July 29 (Reuters) - Iraq completed one of sport's great fairytales by beating Saudi Arabia 1-0 in the Asian Cup final on Sunday to provide a rare moment for celebration in their war-torn homeland.
The Saudis had been bidding to become the first four-times winners of the tournament but Iraq, riding a wave of global sentiment, upset the hot-favourites for a rare slice of sporting glory.
Iraqi captain Younis Khalef scored the winner in the 71st minute when he climbed above the defence at the far post and headed a perfectly-weighted corner from Hawar Mulla Mohammed into the Saudi net.
When the final whistle sounded, the Iraq players collapsed to the ground in a mixture of shock and an unbridled emotion, kissing the turf and embracing each other after their country's finest sporting moment.
Saudi Arabia were outplayed by an Iraqi team riding high on a wave of national support.
The Iraqis created a string of chances, only to be denied by sloppy finishing and extraordinary saves from Saudi goalkeeper Yasser Al Mosailem.
Saudi Arabia had been the best attacking team in the tournament, scoring 12 goals on their way to the final, but could not find a way past the Iraqis, who had the best defence in the competition, conceding just two goals in six matches.
Few people had given Iraq any chance of winning the tournament after a haphazard preparation brought about by the war at home and facing opponents who were appearing in their sixth final in 23 years.
Iraq were forced to train and play their qualifiers in neutral countries and their coach, Brazilian coach Jorvan Vieira, who said he planned to quit after the match, only had two months to mould a team that included Shi'ite, Sunni and Kurdish players.
None of the Iraqi players have been untouched by the war and although they have tried to mask their grief, there were constant reminders of the sectarian violence at home.
At least three players in the squad have lost relatives in the past two months and all the players wore black armbands during the final in memory of the 50 people killed by suicide bombers after Wednesday's semi-final win over South Korea.
FIFA President Sepp Blatter, who was at the Gelora Bung National Stadium for the final, said Iraq's achievement had inspired millions and was proof of sport's unique power to unite people in the most desperate circumstances.
Didn’t Saddam once torture or kill some players on the Iraq national team because they didn’t win?
Qusay and Uday did.
The goalie, Abdul Phalanx, will be returning to his job with the US Navy.
Not Saddam, but one of evil sons did
I was in a hotel in Baghdad in 2003 when the Iraqis beat S. korea, thought it was the tet offensive all over again. people firing crew served machineguns and AKs from their houses.
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Prayers answered.
.
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The same people here in America who long ago brought upon a once Free South Vietnam...
Pictures of a vietnamese Re-Education (SLAVE LABOR) Camp
http://www.Freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1308949/posts
http://www.JourneyFromTheFall.com
...would not have a besieged Free Iraqi People happily celebrating their winning of today’s Asian Cup Championship.
For it’s a real UNIFIER.
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Good news soccer bump
Fantastic news...well played Iraq!
Congratulations Iraq! Well done!
IN FACT THIS WIN SPEAKS VOLUMES ON WHAT'S HAPPENING IN IRAQ. And there just ain't know way to cover it up even with spin...how could a country win a game like this if their country was in shambles? IT COULDN'T...
There have been postings on other threads about the fact that there are a considerable number of Saudi Arabians that are part of the Terrorist network -- to undermine a Free Iraq.
I wonder if any MSM or even Conservative Talk Radio might address this -- along with the fact that this is an indication of the progress being made in Iraq.
How could a soccer team practice and recruit players if the picture of Iraq presented by the MSM liberal a$$holes is accurate.
How can Nancy Pelosi and Murtha be justified in their efforts to destroy a Free Iraq?
Seems like there needs to be re-birth in the Yellow Ribbon campaign here in the United States.
Contradictory quote:
To a man, members of the Iraqi Olympic delegation say they are glad that former Olympic committee head Uday Hussein, who was responsible for the serial torture of Iraqi athletes and was killed four months after the U.S.-led coalition invaded Iraq in March 2003, is no longer in power.
But they also find it offensive that Bush is using Iraq for his own gain when they do not support his administration's actions.
BAGHDAD (AP)--Despite mounting sectarian violence at home, and the increasing inability of U.S. forces to contain it, the Iraqi national soccer team defeated Saudi Arabia, 1-0, in a test between that war-torn nation and a country that critics claim is unduly influenced by the Bush Administration, and the U.S. thirst for oil.
BS...an AP report...just ain’t true...go see for yourself...
That was me taking a stab at being an AP news-writer.
OK...these days here at FR...one has to be in an attack mode, it appears the moonbats that have been hanging in the shadows for yrs...have been out in full force lately. ;o)
I actually took your response as a compliment. I have one more comma than necessary, though (bad habit of mine).
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