Iraqi star Ayman Hussein roared twice over “the oppression of men”
The Iraqi star, Ayman Hussein, could not control himself. His tears of joy flowed after he scored a double that gave his country a valuable victory over Japan (2-1), Friday, at the Education City Stadium in Doha, in the first surprise of the eighteenth edition of the Asian Football Cup.
The tall striker (189 cm) had the upper hand in beating Iraq to more than one birdie in his second match in Group D, as he succeeded in inflicting Japan’s first loss after 26 matches played in the group stage of the continental finals, in addition to achieving the first victory over the same team since 1982 during the Asian Games.
Social media was abuzz with a phone call between Ayman and his mother after the match (AFP)
While Ayman (27 years old) tried to explain his shedding of tears because he was suffering from the flu, former Iraqi star Nashaat Akram said that Ayman’s tears express “the oppression of men, given the bullying, pressure and abuse he was subjected to during his football career.”
Social networking sites were abuzz with a phone call between Ayman and his mother after the match, as she appeared saying, “God willing, you will always win. I prayed for you on Thursday before breakfast, and I kept praying and saying, Oh Lord, Ayman and a quarter of him (his teammates) will win, and I will always pray for you and the team.”
While the top scorers on par with Qatari Akram Afif (3) confirmed that the individual awards are good, but the most important thing remains the collective title, the Iraqi Air Force star told Agence France-Presse that he is not thinking about becoming a professional in Europe, “All I am thinking about now is Making the people happy, the important thing is that Iraq wins.”
Ayman Hussein has become the hope of Iraqis in Asia (AP)
The “Lion of Mesopotamia” roared twice, at the beginning and end of the first half, decisively qualifying Iraq to the round of 16 of the continental competition, which it won once in 2007.
Commenting on Ayman’s early goal, the Japanese newspaper “Asahi” said that the Iraqis “did not give us the 15 minutes we wanted, so we fell into a shock scenario, and they surprised us in the fifth minute.”
The newspaper had quoted “the Japanese coach and players as saying that they need 15 minutes at the start of any match to really get to know the opponent.”
Ayman says, “The Japanese team is the first candidate to win the tournament, but before the match we told ourselves, ‘We are Iraq’!” He added, “The feeling cannot be described after achieving the victory.” The players played a great match and were champions.”
Great Iraqi joy in the Japan match (AP)
Ayman, from the city of Hawija in the northern Kirkuk Governorate, lived a difficult childhood, after his father, who was a member of the Iraqi army, was killed at the hands of armed organizations in 2008.
During his career, he was also subjected to severe criticism in the local media, to the point of demanding his removal from the national team, but he always responded to his critics by going to the net and leading Iraq to achieve titles, the most recent of which was the Gulf Cup in Basra last year, which, according to Nashat Akram, shows “Ayman’s strength of character in Difficult moments.
After a long career in foreign professionalism that began in the summer of 2019 with CS Sfaxien of Tunisia, followed by experiences with Umm Salal and Al Markhiya of Qatar, Al Jazira of the Emirates and Raja Casablanca of Morocco, Ayman has settled since the beginning of the current season with his former club, Al Quwa Al Jawiya, achieving a distinguished start, sitting at the top of the scorers’ standings in the Iraqi League with ten. Goals, noting that he finished the 2020-2021 season at the top with 22 goals, when he also led Al-Jawiya to win the title.
– Drop 1993 – Despite playing only 75 minutes in two matches, Ayman caught the attention of the followers, with his high effectiveness, and was able to reserve a prominent place among the elite Iraqi players, which prompted many to liken him to the former Iraqi star Younis Mahmoud, who led Iraq to its only title in 2007.
But the most important “drop” came against former star Jaafar Omran, who in 1993 deprived Japan of qualifying for the World Cup for the first time in its history by scoring the equalizer (2-2) in stoppage time of the match that was held in Doha at the time, and the coach recalled it. Samurai” Hajime Moriyasu, saying, “Most of the players playing today were not born during that game.”
In response to a question whether victory over Japan, as the most prominent candidate, would pave Iraq’s way to the title, Ayman said, “Every match has its own calculations, and we are fighting this tournament, each match separately.”
Ayman, who made his difficult path for the first time with an unknown third-tier club in Kirkuk known as Al-Touz Club, noted for two seasons before moving between several local clubs, until 2019, that the focus will be on achieving victory in the next match against Vietnam, “because it will guarantee us… Leading the group, and going a long way in the tournament, towards winning the title,” knowing that a draw is enough for Iraq to take the lead.
The top scorer of the previous edition of the Gulf Cup championship praised the support of the fans in the match, “The support of the Iraqi and Arab fans had a great impact… and we promise them to achieve more.”
2024-01-20 18:31:45
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