Iraq celebrated their first victory over Japan in 42 years on Friday, winning their Asian Cup Group D encounter 2-1 at the Education City Stadium.
Their triumph was thanks to a first-half double from Aymen Hussein, which secured their place in the knockout stage of the competition.
Japan had been unbeaten against Iraq in their last nine games, but the West Asian side’s victory propelled them to the top of the group standings with six points from two games, while Hajime Moriyasu’s side had three points.
Following the game, Iraq coach, Jesus Casas, expressed his pride in his players’ performance, stating that they should all be proud of themselves.
He also added that while it was a great day for Iraqi people, the team needed to focus on their upcoming game against Vietnam and rest.
Roared on by thousands of Iraqi supporters in the stadium, Iraq took a quick lead within five minutes of the game, with Hussein heading the ball into the top corner after Japan goalkeeper, Zion Suzuki, failed to deal with a cross.
Iraq’s strategy to unsettle Japan was to stay compact and use their physicality early on, which worked to an extent until the East Asian side began using their pace and finding space on the wings to put crosses into the box.
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Japan had a golden opportunity to equalize in the 22nd minute from a set piece when a header fell to Wataru Endo at the edge of the six-yard box, but the skipper was unable to direct an overhead kick into the net.
Iraq doubled their lead on the stroke of halftime when Ahmed Al-Hajjaj skipped past his marker and floated in a cross that was headed home from point-blank range by Hussein as the Iraqi fans went delirious.
However, Hussein went down injured just before the break and was replaced in the second half.
Despite their hero not taking the field, the Iraqi fans found their voice again when Japan was denied a penalty despite a VAR check.
Moriyasu made five substitutions after the restart, but the Samurai Blue rarely tested the keeper until the 94th minute when Endo headed home at the far post from a corner.
The atmosphere was tense in the dying minutes as Japan frantically sought an equalizer, but Iraq held on for the three points to move top.
Speaking after the game, Moriyasu lamented his team’s poor performance and admitted that they struggled to cope with Iraq’s aggressive start.
He accepted responsibility for the loss and vowed to learn from his team’s mistakes ahead of their next game against Vietnam.