Iraq's East German (Commie) Soccer Coach Takes Shot at Coalition for Ignoring Soccer

IRAQ'S football (soccer) coach yesterday denounced the United States-led coalition for ignoring the needs of the national team and threatened to resign unless authorities help the squad prepare for the upcoming Asian championships.

"In a country without any working cinemas or theatres, where people are afraid to go out at night, the successes of our team are a matter of huge national pride," he said. "That's important for the return of normalcy. Doesn't the coalition, doesn't Paul Bremer understand this?"

Bernd Stange complained that Mr Bremer, Iraq's chief US administrator, had provided no support for the team and had not even called to congratulate the players after they qualified for the Asia Cup, the continentâ€™s most prestigious competition, to be played in China, in June.

Football is by far the most popular sport in this country of 25 million people, and the national team was considered a regional powerhouse in the 1980s. In 1986, its team took part in the World Cup in Mexico.

Mr Stange, who used to coach East Germany and Australia's Perth Glory, took over the Iraqi national team in November.

He remained outside the country during the invasion, but returned to Baghdad soon afterwards to find the football infrastructure devastated by looters and by the invading forces. "I came here and found nothing - no balls, no nets, no funds, no competitions and no players," he said.

"The main stadium had been turned into a parking lot for American tanks and its turf destroyed."

Mr Stange quickly reassembled the team ahead of the qualifiers for the Asia Cup which Iraq had to play in Malaysia and Bahrain because it was impossible to have home games.

"We started from zero and we had three months to prepare for the qualifiers, but we did it," he said. "We came ahead in a group of teams that had spent millions to get to China."

FIFA - world football's ruling body - and the Asian Football Confederation provided funding and equipment. They are also helping to refurbish the national stadium and the football federation headquarters, which was destroyed during the war. The German Football Union paid for the team to train in Germany.

"Without that help we would not have been able to qualify for the Asia Cup at the top of our group," Mr Stange said.

The coach praised his "extremely talented and motivated" players, as well as the leadership of the Iraqi association, including the interim president, Hussain Saeed Mohamed and vice president Ahmed Rhady, and other volunteers "who are working 20 hours a day without pay to revive the national league".

"But for the coalition, I only have hard words," Mr Stange said. "I know that football is not the most important thing in life, but this country has always been crazy about the game and they should understand that our successes are helping boost morale and lift Iraq from the ashes."

He said that without an infusion of money, it will be impossible to keep the national team together.

"If there is no change, I will leave my job by the end of the year," he added.

Mr Stange has driven through a firefight between American troops and Iraqi resistance fighters while working in post-war Iraq. Despite this, he says he wants to remain in the country and oversee the teamâ€™s qualification for the 2006 World Cup.