Iraq and Iran meet 'as friends' "football"

Iran coach Ghotbi said he hoped that the Asian Cup Group D match against Iraq could help to 'mend hearts' [Reuters]

Iraq scored one of sport's unlikely successes when they won the Asian Cup four years ago and it would be almost as big a surprise if they retained the trophy after kicking off their Group D campaign against neighbours Iran on Tuesday.
A meeting between Iran and Iraq naturally evokes memories of their 1980-88 war but both camps were eager to emphasise the sporting aspect of their rivalry on Monday.
Waleed Tabra, Iraq's general manager, said on Monday that none of the players or coaching staff would be thinking of anything other than winning the match.
Tabra told the Reuters news agency: "Iran and Iraq are friendly neighbours. We have a shared border, a deep history and relationship that goes back centuries.
"We have the same religions, Iranians marry Iraqis, Iraqis marry Iranians, it's good for the two countries.

Results & fixtures

Friday January 7Group A  Qatar 0-2 Uzbekistan Saturday January 8 Group A  Kuwait 0-2 China Sunday January 9Group B  Japan 1-1 Jordan  Saudi Arabia 1-2 Syria Monday January 10 Group C  India 0-4 Australia  South Korea 2-1 Bahrain Tuesday January 11Group D  North Korea v UAE  Iraq v Iran

"But football is something different, it's competitive. We are playing to win, they are playing to win. It has nothing to do with what happened in the 1980s.
"We have played against Iran for decades, we are rivals on the field. Nobody mentions the war now, it was beyond the reach of most people, it is history now."