Iraqis take on Norway ::: War-hardened Iraq team "promise" to battle it out on their World Cup return after 1986

Skill-wise, Team Iraq may well be a few steps behind Norway, twice world champions France and Senegal in Group I. 

But in mental resilience, it will be a mistake to underestimate the Iraqi footballers, who are banking on the Ghairah (unwavering fighting spirit, pride and honour) to show mettle.  

Team Norway 

Team Iraq 

When Erling Haaland and his fellow Norwegians at the Boston Stadium on Tuesday (3.30 am IST, Wednesday), it will mark Iraq’s first Fifa World Cup clash in 40 years.

The last and only occasion when Iraq featured in the World Cup, they had suffered a group-stage exit, losing to Paraguay, Belgium and hosts Mexico in 1986. 

Having spent almost the entire phase of their Asian qualifying cycle in gruelling, high-temperature desert environments, cardiovascular endurance is a massive strength of the players, who are training in West Virginia ahead of their Cup opener.

But not everything is going well for the Iraqi contingent in the US. Seasoned striker Aymen Hussein and a team photographer, Talal Salah, were detained at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport earlier this month. The US customs and border patrol agents questioned Hussein for seven hours before he was allowed into the country, but the team photographer was denied entry due to “vetting concerns.”

But come what may, the Iraqis won’t back down. “We always find a way back,” midfielder Amir Al Ammari summed up in a recent interview with fifa.com.