Rene Meulensteen, assistant coach to Graham Arnold of the Australian national team, confirmed that the technical staff, led by the Australian coach, succeeded in making three fundamental transformations within the ranks of the Lions of Mesopotamia after about a year of taking on the task. Meulensteen joined the team after the Iraqi Football Federation contracted Arnold to lead the team towards the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

Meulensteen said in media statements: "We went through a difficult and challenging period during the preparation for the World Cup play-off, due to the unstable conditions surrounding the match's arrangement, and there was a state of uncertainty in the past phase due to events in the region."

He added: "We held continuous meetings to follow up on developments, while FIFA was keen to fix the play-off match dates despite the difficulties. We aim to reach the finals deservedly, and this represents a big step for Iraqi football."

He explained: "Qualification has an important moral and economic impact on the country, as football is an integral part of the lives of Iraqis, and reaching the World Cup will give a big boost to the sports community and open horizons for developing infrastructure. The talents are there and need an advanced organizational and training environment."

Regarding the main goal of the technical staff, Meulensteen concluded by saying: "We must continue to develop the national teams' system, especially the age groups, to feed the first team in the future. We have changed three things: organizing the defense, shifting the mentality to a clearer offensive tendency, and making ball possession a prevalent feature in players' performance."

He concluded: "Some ideas may not succeed on the ground, but we are working on establishing a positive culture within the group, enhancing defensive discipline, and developing the style of play, paving the way to achieve the bigger goal of securing a ticket to the finals, a dream that haunts every Iraqi citizen."

Iraq will meet Bolivia next Wednesday morning in the final of the global play-off qualifying for the 2026 World Cup, while the Lions of Mesopotamia continue their preparations in the city of Monterrey.