Agencies
Doha
Ali Jasim is determined to play a major role for Iraq in their AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 Round of 16 tie against Jordan on Monday.
Jasim and Youssef Amyn are the youngest members of the Iraq side with the midfielder admitting he is pleased with his performances so far but wanting to do more.
“It’s a privilege to be part of the national team, whether it is at the senior level or at an age-group.
“Personally, I am quite pleased with how I have played but I hope Amyn and I can put up a good show that takes us through to the next round and makes our fans happy.”
In their most recent encounter last October, Iraq played Jordan in a friendly with the match ending in a 2-2 stalemate but Jasim believes that a lot has changed in the months since.
“We obviously have a lot of respect for our opponents, and we are fully aware that it won’t be an easy game,” said Jasim.
“In a way, it is good that we have faced them recently and we know how tough they can be. However, this is the Asian Cup, and everything, from our mindset to our calculations, is different and we are optimistic about our chances.”
With Iraq’s stunning victory over Japan raising hopes of a repeat of their 2007 title-winning campaign, Jasim asserted that the team’s focus is solely directed towards victory against Jordan and not any further.
“The win against Japan is already behind us and it is way too early in the competition to start thinking about becoming champions,” said the 20-year-old.
“Of course we want to make our fans happy and hopefully, with our hard work along with the support of the coaching staff, we will come away with a positive result and win ourselves a quarter-final berth. But we know how Jordan play and we are expecting a very difficult game.”
