Amir Al-Ammari: Iraq’s Lions of Mesopotamia ready to roar again at Iraq’s Lions Asian Cup

Lions of Mesopotamia won the 2023 Arabian Gulf Cup in January for the first time in a quarter of a century, added an inaugural Thailand King’s Cup to their trophy cabinet in September. (AFP)
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Updated 03 January 2024
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Amir Al-Ammari: Iraq’s Lions of Mesopotamia ready to roar again at Iraq’s Lions Asian Cup

  • Coach Jesus Casas takes a well-prepared squad — and winner of the 2023 Arabian Gulf Cup — into the delayed tournament in Qatar

When Iraq produced one of football’s most remarkable underdog stories to win the 2007 AFC Asian Cup, their preparation for the tournament was marked by chaos and tragedy.

Sixteen years later and Iraq’s build-up could not have been better. The Lions of Mesopotamia won the 2023 Arabian Gulf Cup in January for the first time in a quarter of a century, added an inaugural Thailand King’s Cup to their trophy cabinet in September, and began 2026 World Cup qualifying with a pair of victories last month.

Hopes are now high among Iraq’s players and fans that Jesus Casas can follow in the footsteps of legendary coach Jorvan Vieira and emulate the achievement of the 2007 vintage. Midfielder Amir Al-Ammari has been a near ever-present under Casas and feels the team could be on the verge of something special.

“It is a huge opportunity to make history and right now we have a winning mentality,” Al-Ammari told Arab News in an exclusive interview. “The team will be ready, and everybody is willing to put in everything they can to win this tournament.”

Al-Ammari may have been born and raised in Sweden, but Iraq was never far from his thoughts. Two days after his 10th birthday, he watched with his father and brother as Iraq stunned Saudi Arabia in the 2007 Asian Cup final in Jakarta.

“I can still remember the winning goal of (Younis) Mahmoud,” Al-Ammari recalled. “I knew that it was a big result and a big tournament, but I was just happy for Iraq to win the game; I didn’t realize that it was this incredible moment for the whole country.”

During January’s Arabian Gulf Cup triumph, Al-Ammari, who plays for Swedish club Halmstads BK, experienced the passion of Iraqi football fans first-hand as the team beat Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and then Oman in the final in Basra.

“When I started playing for Iraq, our ‘home games’ were in Doha or Jordan — wherever we could play,” Al-Ammari said. “I had heard about the atmosphere in Iraq, but you only believe it when you see it with your own eyes. Before the final, the stadium was full before the warm-up and there were people outside trying to come in too.

“Playing that tournament in front of our people, our friends, on our home ground, and then with my family from Sweden, my parents and sisters, there too — it was a huge, special thing to win it in front of them.

“We hope it will be the same in Qatar as it is close to fly (there) and there are also a lot of Iraqi people there and in the other countries around the Gulf. We hope they will make it like another home tournament.”

Al-Ammari was given his international debut by Dick Advocaat in 2021, but the Dutchman struggled to get the best out of Iraq, with Zeljko Petrovic, Abdul-Ghani Shahad, and Radhi Shenaishil also coming and going before ex-Spain assistant manager Casas was appointed last November. The difference in the team since has been stark.

“We’ve been improving every time we come together, and I see players now wearing the shirt with confidence when before it felt a little like we just went out to play,” said Al-Ammari.

“The new coach has done amazing work, and we have the same core of players who understand how he wants to play. Everybody knows their role, we are a strong team, we don’t concede a lot of goals and we can adapt tactics to win games in different ways.

“There have been a lot of changes in small details that have made a big difference in the long term; it means we can focus on football and just play our game.”

Part of Casas’ approach to building his new-look side has been calling on the Iraqi diaspora, particularly in Europe. In Iraq’s recent World Cup qualifiers, players traveled from Portugal, Spain, Sweden, France, Germany, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic and England to play.

Despite their different backgrounds, Al-Ammari insists he and his teammates have gelled well.

“I speak English, Arabic, and Swedish so I feel like, personally, I can communicate with everybody,” said Al-Ammari. “Obviously, we have some players who don’t speak Arabic so that can be difficult, but I try to take responsibility and make everyone feel welcome.

“We have still managed to build the relationships on the pitch, and I think that’s the beautiful thing with football; we might not speak the same language off the pitch, but we understand each other on it.

“It feels like one big family, and our training camps are always fun; we are laughing with each other and we are excited to come and play together for Iraq. And we keep in touch on WhatsApp between games; we watch each other play and support each other.”

In the upcoming Asian Cup, Iraq face Japan — perennially among the favorites to win the tournament — as well as Indonesia and Vietnam in Group D. Casas’ side beat both of the latter nations recently in World Cup qualifying, thrashing Indonesia 5-1 at home before narrowly winning 1-0 away to Vietnam.

Al-Ammari feels it was the perfect preparation for Iraq’s tilt at Asian Cup glory and despite the second match against Japan looking like a potential group decider, he stresses that the Lions of Mesopotamia’s focus is firmly on showing their credentials in the opening game against Indonesia on January 15.

“That (Indonesia) match is the key one for the whole tournament, and we have to take three points,” Al-Ammari said. “The performances in World Cup qualifying have given us a lot of confidence and I really think this team is ready.

“Of course, the Iraqi fans like to remind us about 2007 and tag us in posts on Instagram. The beautiful thing is that two years ago, the fans wouldn’t expect us to win the tournament because of our performances at that time.

“But now they believe, and we believe, we can achieve this too. We know that (2007) is a big part of Iraq’s history, but now we want to write our own history.”


Messi’s PSG reunion, Real Madrid face Juventus in Club World Cup last 16

Updated 2 sec ago
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Messi’s PSG reunion, Real Madrid face Juventus in Club World Cup last 16

Botafogo are the reigning Brazilian and South American champions
Highly rated Flamengo coach Filipe Luis has his work cut out to keep Bayern at bay

PHILADELPHIA: From Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi facing former side Paris Saint-Germain to Real Madrid meeting Juventus and Chelsea taking on Benfica, AFP Sport looks ahead to the Club World Cup last 16.

Saturday, June 28, in Philadelphia (1600 GMT)
All four Brazilian representatives reached the last 16 and at least one will be in the quarter-finals, as Palmeiras and Botafogo face each other.

Botafogo are the reigning Brazilian and South American champions and beat European champions PSG on the way to qualifying from their group at Atletico Madrid’s expense.

Sao Paulo side Palmeiras — featuring Brazil prodigy and future Chelsea winger Estevao Willian — won their group and are above Botafogo in the Brazilian league. However, Botafogo are unbeaten in their last five meetings with Palmeiras, including the two legs of a Copa Libertadores last-16 tie last year.

Saturday, June 28, in Charlotte (2000 GMT)
Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea finished second in their group but avoided a strong Bayern Munich side by doing so, pitting them against Benfica. The Portuguese powerhouses, who boast veteran playmaker Angel Di Maria, edged the German giants in their final group game.

Benfica will believe they can upset their inconsistent Premier League opposition and former Benfica midfielder Enzo Fernandez. New Chelsea striker Liam Delap is looking to continue adding to his tally after getting off the mark in the group stage.

Sunday, June 29, in Atlanta (1600 GMT)
Messi’s Inter Miami were a surprise package in the group stage, beating Porto on their way to progressing to the last 16, but a late collapse against Palmeiras meant they finished second and must face the Argentine playmaker’s former side PSG.

This season PSG ended a long wait to win the Champions League for the first time and Luis Enrique’s side are expected to vanquish their MLS opponents, but Botafogo beat them in the group stage to prove they are not untouchable.

Sunday, June 29, in Miami (2000 GMT)
Brazilian side Flamengo stunned Chelsea in the group phase to claim top spot but must overcome the might of Vincent Kompany’s Bayern if they are to progress.

With Harry Kane, Michael Olize and a Thomas Mueller looking to end his time at Bayern with a new trophy, the possession-hungry Bundesliga giants have as much firepower as anyone left in the tournament.

Highly rated Flamengo coach Filipe Luis has his work cut out to keep Bayern at bay.

Monday, June 30, in Charlotte (1900 GMT)
Recent runners-up in the Champions League, Inter ground out wins over Urawa Red Diamonds and River Plate to finish top of their group and will now hope to avoid becoming the latest European team to stumble against Brazilian opposition.

Fluminense, of Rio, held Borussia Dortmund en route to qualifying for this stage and will be full of motivation to claim a major scalp against Cristian Chivu’s side.

Monday, June 30, in Orlando (0100 Tuesday, July 1)
City come into the knockout phase in ominous form after being the only team at the tournament to win all three group games.

They have scored 11 times in their last two matches, with a 5-2 destruction of Juventus coming after they put six past Al Ain of the United Arab Emirates.

A game against Al Hilal, the 2021 Asian champions, will give City no reason to be afraid, even if the Saudi club boast numerous former stars of leading European leagues, including Joao Cancelo.

Tuesday, July 1, in Miami (1900)
This is a clash between two traditional European titans who have met 21 times before. There have been two Champions League finals between the clubs, both won by Real.

A 5-2 defeat for Juventus against Manchester City suggests they may find the going tough against Madrid.

Real are adapting to life under a new coach in Xabi Alonso, who experimented with a three-man defense against Salzburg. He will hope to have Kylian Mbappe back after the Frenchman missed the group stage with illness.

Tuesday, July 1, in Atlanta (0100 Wednesday, July 2)
Dortmund coach Niko Kovac has not held back on expressing his feelings about having to play in extreme heat at the tournament so he will be happy the game against Mexican side Monterrey is at the covered and air-conditioned Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Despite their complaints Dortmund have grown into the tournament. They face former Real Madrid star Sergio Ramos and a Monterrey team that has impressed, notably a creditable draw against Inter Milan.

Max Verstappen heads into Red Bull’s home race with upgrades and growing uncertainty

Updated 4 min 42 sec ago
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Max Verstappen heads into Red Bull’s home race with upgrades and growing uncertainty

  • The defending Formula 1 champion has an upgraded car for his team’s home race in Austria
  • Verstappen remains at risk of a one-race ban for too many penalty points

VIENNA: Max Verstappen at the Red Bull Ring is usually a recipe for success.

The defending Formula 1 champion has an upgraded car for his team’s home race in Austria — where he’s won five times — on the back of an encouraging second place in Canada, where his two McLaren rivals collided.

Zoom out, though, and the situation is much more uncertain.

Verstappen remains at risk of a one-race ban for too many penalty points, Red Bull teammate Yuki Tsunoda is usually too far adrift to help him, and Verstappen’s own future is far from clear.

“I don’t think we need to talk about that,” Verstappen said Thursday when asked to confirm whether he’ll stay with the team for 2026. “It’s not really in my mind. It’s just driving and trying to push the performance, you know. And then we focus on next year.”

Fast in Friday practice
Red Bull’s upgrades seemed to work well in Verstappen’s first outing in Friday practice. He was second-fastest, 0.065 of a second off George Russell for Mercedes.

Standings leader Oscar Piastri was third-fastest for McLaren, .155 off the pace, but the star of the session was young driver Alex Dunne, who took over Lando Norris’ McLaren for the session and placed fourth.

Lewis Hamilton was ninth-fastest for Ferrari and Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate Yuki Tsunoda only 17th.

What are Verstappen’s options?
Verstappen has a long-term contract through 2028, so in theory his Red Bull seat should be one of the safest on the grid. However, the deal has performance-related clauses which could reportedly allow a move.

In that case, the most obvious option could be Mercedes, which has yet to confirm either driver for 2026. That would mean Verstappen teaming up with an old foe in Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, who’d also have to choose to drop either Russell and Kimi Antonelli.

Dramatic changes to how F1 cars look and perform are coming in 2026, and Red Bull has to adapt more than most.

For the first time in nearly two decades, it heads into a new era of F1 rules without design guru Adrian Newey, who left last year and is now at Aston Martin.

The other leading teams are sticking with their current engine arrangements, but not Red Bull. The team has an in-house engine developer, Red Bull Powertrains, but it’s switching partners for 2026 from Honda to newcomer Ford.

The second seat
No team in F1 depends as much on one driver as Red Bull does on Verstappen. He’s scored 155 of the team’s 162 points this season.

His teammates — first Liam Lawson, then Tsunoda — have struggled all season. That’s helped to restore the reputation of Sergio Perez, who was dropped by Red Bull after scoring barely one-third of Verstappen’s points last season.

“I know, deep down, they really regret it,” Perez said on a podcast this week. “And I know that from a very reliable source. It’s tough. I have very good friends there, and people might think I take pleasure in what happened, but no.”

Red Bull’s car seems to favor Verstappen’s driving style over anyone else’s, but the Dutch driver says he can’t diagnose the issue because he’s been with the team since 2016 and has nothing else to compare it with.

“The thing is that I don’t know any better, right?” he said Thursday. “I mean, I’ve basically started with Red bull, so I only know one car and that’s how I drive. I adapt to it. Is it the best? Is it the fastest? Is it not? I don’t know.”


Brentford appoint set-piece coach Andrews as manager to replace Frank

Updated 9 min 52 sec ago
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Brentford appoint set-piece coach Andrews as manager to replace Frank

  • Andrews began his coaching career as assistant manager at MK Dons
  • “He is someone we have known for a while,” Brentford Director of Football Phil Giles said

LONDON: Brentford have named former Ireland international Keith Andrews as manager on a three-year contract to replace Thomas Frank, Sky Sports reported on Friday, continuing the West London club’s trend of promoting from within.

Frank, who left to take over at Tottenham Hotspur, stepped up from the assistant role at Brentford to take charge in 2018, and now Andrews has been handed his first managerial role having served as the club’s set-piece coach for one season.

Andrews, who made 35 appearances for Ireland, began his coaching career as assistant manager at MK Dons where he finished playing in 2015 before joining the Ireland Under-21 set-up as assistant coach to Stephen Kenny.

Kenny became manager of Ireland’s senior side in 2020, taking Andrews with him, where they both remained until Kenny’s contract ended three years later, but Andrews found himself newly employed in a matter of weeks.

Andrews joined Sheffield United’s coaching staff when Chris Wilder took over in December 2023, with the Irishman leaving at the end of the season to take up his role at Brentford.

“He is someone we have known for a while and always had in mind for a role at some point in the future,” Brentford Director of Football Phil Giles said at the time of the appointment.

While Frank took assistant first-team coach Justin Cochrane, head of athletic performance Chris Haslam and first-team analyst Joe Newton with him to Spurs, Andrews remained at Brentford, a clue perhaps to his future at the club.

Frank, who took Brentford into the top flight for the first time in 74 years and made them a competitive force in the Premier League, will be a hard act to follow for the inexperienced Andrews, but his predecessor also went into the job relatively unknown.


Swiatek cruises past second-seed Paolini to reach first ever grass final

Updated 34 min 59 sec ago
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Swiatek cruises past second-seed Paolini to reach first ever grass final

  • “I just did my job and I knew what I wanted to play and I went for it,” Swiatek said
  • The Pole did not play any other grass tournaments this season

BAD HOMBURG, Germany: Five-times Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek crushed second seed Jasmine Paolini 6-1 6-3 on Friday to reach the Bad Homburg Open final and stay in the hunt for her first career title on grass.

With Wimbledon starting next week, the former world number one showed she was on the right track on the surface, outclassing the Italian, last year’s Wimbledon finalist.

“I am super happy and I was not expecting this. I just did my job and I knew what I wanted to play and I went for it,” Swiatek said in a post-match interview.

“I’m happy I kept the momentum going until the end of the match. Jasmine, you can’t let her get back in the game because she’s a fighter. I just wanted to go for it, and go for my shots.” Swiatek has a 5-0 lead in their head-to-head matches.

The Pole, who has won the French Open four times along with one US Open, did not play any other grass tournaments this season ahead of next week’s Wimbledon start, instead opting for a week of training in Mallorca before competing in Bad Homburg.

She was never troubled by the Italian in the first set as she raced through it in 29 minutes courtesy of three breaks.

The pair traded breaks at the start of the second set but Paolini continued to struggle to hold serve and contain the aggressive Pole who went 4-2 up.

Swiatek sealed victory with a forehand winner on her third match point to book a final spot where she will face either top seed Jessica Pegula or Czech Linda Noskova in Saturday’s final.


Top seed Sabalenka draws qualifier Branstine in Wimbledon first round

Updated 27 June 2025
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Top seed Sabalenka draws qualifier Branstine in Wimbledon first round

  • Friday’s draw also pitched defending champion Barbora Krejcikova, the 17th seed, against Alexandra Eala of the Philippines

LONDON: World number one Aryna Sabalenka’s quest for her first Wimbledon title will begin against Canadian qualifier Carson Branstine while second seed Coco Gauff’s opener will be versus Ukraine’s Dayana Yastremska.

Friday’s draw also pitched defending champion Barbora Krejcikova, the 17th seed, against Alexandra Eala of the Philippines.

Third seed Jessica Pegula’s first-round opponent is Italian qualifier Elisabetta Cocciaretto, while fourth seed Jasmine Paolini, runner-up last year, faces Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia.

Belarusian Sabalenka could meet Paolini in the semifinals while Gauff is in line for a clash with fellow American Pegula.

British number one Emma Raducanu faces an intriguing opening round match against compatriot Mingge Xu, one of three British teenaged wildcards in the draw.