BAGHDAD, IRAQ - After nearly four weeks of thrilling sporting conflict in the Asian games, Yehya Mehal, the coach of The Lions of Mesopotamia, Iraq's football team, expressed relief that he has returned to the comforts of his own unlit home.
He said “The pressure was too much and referees can be very unpredictable”, adding, as he filled a water bucket, it was disturbing to play in a country that has a monarchy and has not yet made sweeping democratic advances.
Gunshots had been heard throughout Iraq as the unified nation watched the Lions progress to the gold-medal match. They were narrowly beaten 1-0 by hosts Qatar.
The side greatly surpassed expectations. It had been blighted by injury problems such as groin strains, metatarsal fracture and cornea tissue damaged by shards of windscreen.
Preparations were also marred when they lost their Head of Medicine to a kidnapping but worse followed when they lost their Pilates Instructor to Bolton Wanderers.
“I was so incensed I was shaking with anger” said Mehal
When asked how he coped with the setbacks, Mehal shrugged: “The success is purely down to the lads. Usually when I coach, my voice is drowned out by F-16s so I was not used to the atmosphere in Qatar. I simply played on their pride and said - Remember where you are right now. And remember where you will go back to”
After such a stirring tournament, thoughts in some fortified areas are already turning to Guangzhou in 2012 but Mehal is reluctant to engage: “Like any international coach, I might not be able to pick the same players and, also, I may retire. At home, I feel comfortable and triumphant every time I survive the day. Nothing in football matches that”
He said “The pressure was too much and referees can be very unpredictable”, adding, as he filled a water bucket, it was disturbing to play in a country that has a monarchy and has not yet made sweeping democratic advances.
Gunshots had been heard throughout Iraq as the unified nation watched the Lions progress to the gold-medal match. They were narrowly beaten 1-0 by hosts Qatar.
The side greatly surpassed expectations. It had been blighted by injury problems such as groin strains, metatarsal fracture and cornea tissue damaged by shards of windscreen.
Preparations were also marred when they lost their Head of Medicine to a kidnapping but worse followed when they lost their Pilates Instructor to Bolton Wanderers.
“I was so incensed I was shaking with anger” said Mehal
When asked how he coped with the setbacks, Mehal shrugged: “The success is purely down to the lads. Usually when I coach, my voice is drowned out by F-16s so I was not used to the atmosphere in Qatar. I simply played on their pride and said - Remember where you are right now. And remember where you will go back to”
After such a stirring tournament, thoughts in some fortified areas are already turning to Guangzhou in 2012 but Mehal is reluctant to engage: “Like any international coach, I might not be able to pick the same players and, also, I may retire. At home, I feel comfortable and triumphant every time I survive the day. Nothing in football matches that”
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