Mustafa Saadoon #25

Profile

After an early exit from the Gulf Cup in Kuwait at the end of 2024, the then-Iraq coach Jesús Casas came out defending his players from criticism, especially one of the youngest, Mustafa Saadoon. Fans had nicknamed the right-back “Saadoon Street”, believing he was the reason for that side of the Iraqi defence being wide open for opponents to exploit. “It is very easy to be a fat man sitting in front of the TV, talking bad about our players,” Casas said. “Mustafa is a very good player, he is young, and all players make mistakes – in Iraq, at Real Madrid, in Argentina, in all teams in the world.” Saadoon comes from the town of Al-Nahrawan, 35 km from the Iraqi capital, and has worked hard to get where he is at one of Iraq’s biggest clubs, Al-Shorta. When he first started, he studied and worked in a brick factory while playing, eventually graduating from university. After progressing from the lower divisions to the Iraq Stars League, he has gone on to represent the national side and played at the 2024 Olympics.

Key stats