#5 A moment of bliss for a country in dire straits
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Al-Jawiya’s victory made them the first club from Iraq to be crowned the winners of the AFC Cup. While they were creating history, however, it was quite a different atmosphere back home. The club, in fact, required special permission to even play in the competition and had to play all of their home games at a neutral venue as clubs were unwilling to play in Iraq.
In a country plagued by war and battles against ISIS, such moments are few and far between and deserve to be cherished. Just recently, Iraqi goalkeeper Munir Abid lost his wife and four kids to a roadside explosive planted by ISIS. Many of the players’ fathers and friends are currently in the army fighting against the militant group. In such moments, people turn to the ‘Beautiful Game’ for some beautiful moments and boy did they get it tonight.
According to Sattar Jabbar, a former player, the soldiers often call on the players and request them to win games so that they could have a reason to celebrate. Whether or not the players received a call on the night, they seemed to draw inspiration from somewhere and pulled off a great victory to unburden the hearts of a whole nation.
