Iraq national team coach Graham Arnold has revealed his future beyond the upcoming World Cup remains uncertain, as his contract is set to expire following the tournament and no formal extension talks have taken place. However, retirement is not on his mind.
The 62-year-old Australian, who took charge of Iraq in May last year, is keeping his options open as he prepares to lead the team into their first World Cup appearance in 40 years.
“The book is open. My contract finishes straight after the World Cup. There has been talk about them wanting me to stay on, but I haven’t had anything formal yet,” Arnold told AAP.“ I really don’t want anything formal yet. I want to go to the World Cup and enjoy it and after that I’ve got to make a decision whether to stay on or move on.”
Having previously guided Australia to the round of 16 at the 2022 World Cup, Arnold says he remains motivated by the challenge of leading teams with limited major tournament experience.
“There are some nations that I look at and I think to myself, they haven’t qualified for a long time, I’d like to do it again,” he explained. “I’ve obviously had the experience throughout Asia, but I’m nowhere near ready to retire.”
Iraq secured their World Cup ticket with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Bolivia in Mexico during the inter-confederation playoff earlier this month. Arnold believes the underdog status could work in Iraq’s favor on the global stage.
“We’re going out there with nothing to lose and everything to gain, and with the chance to shock the world,” he said. “We’ll be the underdog. We’ll be fighters. If no one is giving us a chance, we can go there and achieve something special.”
For now, Arnold’s sole focus is on preparing Iraq for a historic World Cup campaign, with any decision on his future to come after the tournament.
