Iraq's No. 1 star "threatens" Vietnam before the match

DNUM_CJZADZCABG 16:07

In the pre-match press conference, Ali Adnan - the player nicknamed "Asian Gareth Bale" of the Iraqi national team affirmed that his team is in a better position than Vietnam.

The Iraqi team is preparing for the final match in Group F, the second qualifying round of the 2018 World Cup in Asia against Vietnam in a state of anxiety. Having only won 1 lucky point against Thailand 5 days ago, the West Asian team has no chance of finishing first in the group and getting an early ticket to the next round. They are even at risk of losing the second place if they lose to Vietnam - a team only 2 points behind Iraq - in tonight's match.

Difficulties piled up when coach Yahya Alwan suddenly announced his resignation. The hot seat was urgently handed over to Abdul Ghani Shahad of the Iraq U23 team - the 15th person to become Iraq coach in less than a decade.

Facing the storm and pressure, the number 1 star of the Iraqi team at the moment, Ali Adnan, immediately spoke up to relieve the tension for the whole team. The left-back nicknamed "Asian Gareth Bale" affirmed: "The whole team has to deal with the sudden change on the coaching bench when coach Yahya Alwan left. The Iraqi players will try to adapt to the new coach to win."

Ali Adnam -
Ali Adnam - "Asian Gareth Bale" of Iraq National Team.

Ali Adnan is certainly the most notable name in the Iraqi national team, alongside veteran captain Younis Mahmoud. The 22-year-old player is a key player on the left flank of Udinese (Italy) with 21 appearances this season and 1 goal. In the first leg at My Dinh Stadium, although he did not directly score, Ali Adnan's attacks on the flanks made the Vietnamese defense struggle to defend.

Also at the press conference, Ali Adnan confidently declared that Iraq is completely stronger than Vietnam, and is determined to win all 3 points in hopes of becoming one of the four best second-placed teams to participate in the final qualifying round of the 2018 World Cup in Asia.

Iraq's new coach Abdul Ghani Shahad also shares the same opinion with his players: "Iraq has the right to decide its own fate and the whole team will aim for a victory. We have good players and are fully capable of overcoming Vietnam."

The match between Iraq and Vietnam will take place at Ghavamin Stadium (Iran) at 9:00 p.m. tonight, Vietnam time. Iraq will wear blue shirts and blue pants. Meanwhile, Vietnam will also wear their traditional red uniform./.

According to Bongdaplus

RELATED NEWS