Iraq coach: We will beat Vietnam to aim for the 2023 Asian Cup championship

Iraq has officially qualified for the round of 16 and secured the top spot in the group after their victory over Japan. Therefore, the match with Vietnam is just a formality for both teams.

However, speaking at a press conference on the afternoon of January 23, coach Jesus Casas of the Iraqi team still wants to have a victory against the Vietnamese team and aim for the championship.

''We have qualified, but for me every game is important. We need to improve, we need to show our best form, our best way to win. We want to win against Vietnam. We have a few players with minor injuries, but not injuries. The others are playing well. We will decide who will play tomorrow. As I said, all the players want to win.''

Coach Jesus Casas wants his players to forget the impressive victory against Japan and focus on the match against Vietnam.

''It was a great day for Iraqi fans (beating Japan), but it was still just a win. We will have to think about the match against Vietnam. I am proud of the players in my squad and all Iraqis should be proud of the players.

They are Iraqi players who are trying very hard to dedicate themselves to their fans and their country. This tournament is very difficult, just one mistake can lead to consequences. Now we will think about the match with Vietnam. It is meaningless to think about the round of 16 or facing any team and forget about Vietnam. We will solve each match separately."

Mr. Jesus Casas has great respect for the Vietnamese team: Although Vietnam lost two matches, I watched Vietnam play against Japan. They played well, leading at times. They coordinated well, creating opportunities. I think tomorrow's match will be difficult. Vietnam will be a very difficult opponent.

However, the captain of the Iraqi team is also very confident and believes that tomorrow's match will be different from the 2026 World Cup qualifying match at My Dinh Stadium recently.

''I can't stop people from thinking about Iraq as a champion. But this is a new tournament. From the beginning, I said we want to win this tournament, but of course it won't be easy, there are many strong teams like Japan or Korea. We will fight our best to win, but we don't know what will happen. The match with Vietnam tomorrow is very different from the match at My Dinh Stadium. This is a different tournament, a different situation. The goal is to win,'' concluded Mr. Jesus Casas.

The match between Vietnam and Iraq will take place at 6:30 p.m. tomorrow (January 24)./.