The sporting community is eagerly awaiting the crucial match that will bring together the UAE's national team and the Iraqi national team as part of the third Asian playoff, which grants a spot in the intercontinental playoff. The match will take place next Thursday, as it will give the winner of the two-legged tie a new opportunity to qualify for the upcoming 2026 World Cup. Nimat Abbas, an expert on goalkeeping coaches in Emirati clubs, told 'Al-Ittihad Al-Youm': 'The Iraqi national team is experiencing a period of anxiety in the attack line, and it is very clear that the absence of the team's top scorer, Ayman Hussein, will create a technical problem for coach Arnold, especially with the absence of Ibrahim Baish, and full reliance will be on the Iraqi player of Dibba club, Mahand Ali.' He continued: 'The Iraqi national team suffers from a lack of cohesion among players who are in seven or eight different leagues, and in climatic conditions different from those of the UAE and Iraq, which affects the coach's tactical performance and deprives him of the possibility of closely monitoring the players.' He also pointed out that the Iraqi bench in the attack line lacks the technical capabilities of both Ayman Hussein and Mahand Ali, and confirmed that the latter will be effectively monitored by the UAE's 'Al-Ahmar' defenders, noting the better stability in the midfield and defense lines. Nimat Abbas described the team's slow playing style in the first quarter of each match as a prominent weakness in the performance of 'Lions of the Euphrates', noting that Ayman Hussein's absence will cost the Iraqis their header skills towards the goal, and relying on long balls without building attacks from the back is a negative point in their performance. In contrast, Nimat Abbas touched on the strengths of the Iraqi national team, saying: '(The Lions of the Euphrates) have the presence of goalkeeper Jalal Hassan, who is one of the most important strengths of the team due to his well-known international experience,' and he also pointed out that 'Mahand Ali's adaptation to the playing conditions in the UAE stadiums, through his presence at Dibba club, is a strong point if he can escape the close marking of the Al-Ahmar defenders.' Nimat Abbas described Iraq's habit of playing most of its matches away from home and being used to it as a positive point, in addition to the support of the Iraqi community in the UAE. He added that the presence of 'Lions of the Euphrates' players with high skill levels, such as Zidan Iqbal, who plays in the Dutch league, and Yousuf Al-Amin in the Saudi league, in addition to Mimi and others, is a positive point that gives the team additional strength. The slow playing style in the first quarter of matches is a 'prominent weakness' in the performance of 'Lions of the Euphrates'.
