Group I - France | Senegal | Iraq | Norway

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4 days ago
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I'm an optimistic pessimist. 
I'm positive things will go wrong.
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3 days ago · edited 3 days ago · History
Great to see two former A-League coaches guiding teams in this year's WC - Popovic and Arnold.
And both are very much guys who cut their coaching teeth in the A-League.
It's a very nice redemption story involving Graham Arnold losing the Socceroos job part-way through qualifying but quickly bouncing back with Iraq.
Another former A-League coach, Rob Stanton who used to coach Newcastle Jets, is Arnold's assistant.
A-League players who have played for Iraq in qualifiers for this WC:
  • Mohamed Al-Taay: Played for Newcastle Jets, Wellington Phoenix, and Western Sydney Wanderers. Debuted for Iraq whilst a Wellington Phoenix player.
Charbel Shamoon: Western United and currently a Perth Glory player.

Quite likely to be selected by Arnold:
  • Ali Auglah: A current Central Coast Mariners winger and former Aussie age group international who has switched allegiance.
Another A-League player who played for Iraq in the past:
  • Ali Abbas: A prominent figure who played for Newcastle Jets, Sydney FC, and Wellington Phoenix between 2009–2021. He was a member of the 2007 Asian Cup-winning squad.

Big Pete 65, Christchurch

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