Zakho team failed to achieve an ideal start in the Iraqi Stars League 2025-2026, after losing to Al-Student by a goal to none, in the match that took place on Saturday evening at the International City Stadium in Baghdad, as part of the first round of the tournament.

The only goal of the match was scored by player Zaid Ismail in the 21st minute, giving his team three valuable points at the start of the journey, while Zakho left with a first loss despite having the upper hand in most periods of the match.

Qatari coach Wissam Rizq expressed his dissatisfaction with the loss, confirming that his team was the more dominant side, but individual mistakes and failure to capitalize on opportunities deprived them of points:

He added: "We were the dominant side most of the time, but a small mistake cost us the loss. Football is not always fair; good performance must be translated into goals, and if that doesn't happen, you will concede goals and lose points."

He continued: "The journey is still in its early stages, and we will move steadily until we reach what we aspire to. We understand that the task will not be easy at all, but we will try to improve from day to day, and with the efforts of the players, the coaching staff, and the great support from the management, we will show better results."

Rizq also pointed to the impact of absences on his squad since the first match:

He explained: "The absence of Amjad Atwan was very significant, in addition to the fact that players Osama Rashid and Sherko Karim only joined training for two days before the match, and this reflected on the level of cohesion. Nevertheless, we are confident in the rest of the players and we seek to improve their levels soon."