Kolkata: Iraq’s unexpected 1-1 draw against two-time champions Mexico was a tactical victory, coach Qahtan Chitheer said on the eve of their second outing against Chile at the Vivekananda Yuva Bharati Krirangan here.
Iraq surprised one and all when star striker Mohammed Dawood opened the scoring in the 16th minute to take a shock lead before Mexico’s Roberto De La Rosa drew level in the second half to share the spoils.
“We need to learn from mistakes we made in the last game. We played a tactical game but we may play with different tactics tomorrow,” Chitheer told reporters on the sidelines of Iraq’s training session.
“Players had two days of recovery. Although Chile lost to England, they are not a bad side. Situations are different in every game and we need to keep that in mind,” the coach of the Asian U-16 champions added.
Midfielder Bassam Shakir admitted they dropped in intensity in the second half when Mexico threatened to take the lead after equalising, stating they have learnt from their mistakes.
“We played well in the previous game. We did what the coach asked us to do. There was some drop in intensity in the second half but we are learning from our mistakes. We don’t know Chile too well but South American teams are good. We want to make a new start,” he said. (IANS)
