Jesús Casas

KUWAIT CITY, Dec 29: Spanish coach Jesús Casas of Iraq described the penalty that led to Saudi Arabia’s opening goal as the pivotal moment in their 3-1 loss, which secured Saudi Arabia's spot in the semi-finals of the "Khaleeji Zain 26".

Speaking at the post-match press conference, Casas highlighted that his team’s performance was impacted by several key absences throughout the tournament, making the match against Saudi Arabia particularly challenging.

Despite the loss and Iraq’s elimination from the Gulf Championship, Casas emphasized that this setback would not derail the team’s campaign in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, where Iraq currently holds second place in its group after six rounds.

Casas accepted shared responsibility for the defeat, stressing the importance of participating in tournaments like the Gulf Championship. He added that the competition provided a valuable opportunity to test new players, even though not all squad members were available for various reasons.