Sports analyst and former Iraqi national team player Karim Saddam called for the necessity to focus and seriously approach the match against Sudan, following the important victory achieved by the Lions of Mesopotamia in the opening match against Bahrain within the competitions of Group Four of the Arab Cup Qatar 2025.

Saddam confirmed that the results of the first round and the evolving atmosphere inside the Iraqi national team camp prompted the technical staff to change their goals in the tournament, explaining by saying: 

"According to the results of the tournament matches and the atmosphere inside the team, I see that the goals have changed today. After the main goal was preparation and trying out new players, the Iraqi national team is now thinking very seriously about competing for the title, despite football being full of surprises and results can quickly change from the next round."

Saddam pointed out: "The Sudanese team is not an easy team, and they achieved a very important draw against the Algerian national team, the champion of the last edition and the biggest favorite to win the title, so caution must be taken against them in tomorrow's match."

He confirmed: "All results are possible and can happen, so it is necessary to maintain focus and deal with fatigue in the best possible way. Underestimating the opponent may create problems for the team, especially in a tournament witnessing great closeness among most teams."