Fellow Arab countries, Saudi Arabia and Iraq have made their way to the finals of the 2007 AFC Asian Cup. The final encounter will be venued at the Bung Karno Stadium, Jakarta on the 29th of this month.
Despite endless political hardships that confront Iraq daily, they remain at top of the charts amongst the West Asian football countries in Asia. War and civil instability continue to plague this country but it has never brought football to a standstill. Iraq has never won the Asian Cup but has qualified for the quarterfinals in the last three tournaments. Under the able guidance of Coach Jorvan Vieira the team has cruised along well to make to the grand finale. Iraq stunned South Korea 4-3 on penalties to surge through to the final.
Saudi Arabia on the other hand go into the finals of the AFC Asian Cup looking to put the disappointment of three years ago behind them, when they failed to reach the final of the competition for the first time in their history. Helio Anjos of Brazil is the present coach who joined the team recently in March.
Saudi football fans elated with their national team overpowering Japan in the second semi-final winning by 3-2 led to mammoth gatherings in the main cities.
Unlike in Iraq, where car bombs in Baghdad killed at least 26 fans among thousands sharing a rare moment of national joy, celebrations in Saudi remained peaceful.
Via: espnstar
