Iraq’s head coach Graham Arnold has indicated that his future following the World Cup remains uncertain, with his contract set to expire after the tournament and no official discussions held thus far. However, he insists that retirement is not on his agenda.
The 62-year-old Australian, who took the reins of the Iraq team in May last year, stated he is keeping his options flexible as he wants to concentrate entirely on the World Cup, a tournament in which the team will be competing for the first time in four decades.
“The book is open. My contract ends right after the World Cup. There has been some chatter about wanting me to stay on, but I haven’t received anything formal yet,” Arnold told AAP.
“I really prefer not to have anything formal at the moment. I aim to head into the World Cup, enjoy the experience, and then I’ll need to decide whether to continue or move on.”
Arnold, who previously led Australia to the round of 16 at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, mentioned that the idea of guiding nations that have struggled to qualify for significant tournaments drives his passion.
“There are certain nations I look at and think they haven’t qualified in quite some time; I’d love to help them achieve that again,” he remarked.
“I have gained plenty of experience throughout Asia, but I’m far from ready to hang up my boots.”
Iraq secured their World Cup spot by defeating Bolivia 2-1 in Mexico during their inter-confederation playoff earlier this month.
According to Arnold, Iraq’s qualifying journey has strengthened his conviction that the team can pose challenges to more established teams on the international stage.
“We’re heading out there with nothing to lose and everything to gain, and we have the opportunity to surprise the world,” he said.
“We’ll be the underdogs. We’ll fight hard. If no one believes in us, we can still go out there and accomplish something remarkable.”
Compiled by SportArena.au
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