Iraq's U-20 national team coach, Ahmed Salah, confirmed on Sunday evening that the players' retreat to the defensive area in the second half of the match against Thailand was "part of the tactic," praising the players' performance in the match.
Salah said during the post-match press conference, which was followed by Video News Agency, "Perhaps luck was not on our side in the first match, but we compensated for the loss by winning against the UAE in the second match, and we delivered a great performance in the last match against Thailand, where we secured the top of the group."
He added, "It is true that we defended for many minutes, but that was part of the tactic, and I thank the players for their commitment and discipline from the first day of the camp until the last day of the qualifiers."
For his part, team player Mu’ammal Malik confirmed that qualifying was the result of determination and perseverance, stating, "After the Turkmenistan match, we promised ourselves and the coaching staff that we would give everything we have and return to Baghdad with the qualification ticket."
He continued, "I thank all the players for their heroic performance in today's match, and my receiving the Man of the Match title was the result of everyone's cooperation and applying the duties set by the technical staff."
The Iraqi U-20 football team secured its place in the Asian Cup finals after achieving a significant victory over its Thai counterpart with a score of 3-1, in the Asian qualifying tournament.