At the age of 19, Habib Jafar had the world at his feet.
The latest in a long line of talented Iraqi forwards, he only just missed out on making the country’s squad at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico.
Iraq, along with Kuwait, had dominated Gulf and Asian football from the mid-1970s until their World Cup appearances in 1986. By 1988, most of the previous decade’s golden generation had retired, but Iraq, despite a devastating war with Iran that had raged since 1980, could still call on a formidable team.
Enter their latest prodigy, the flying winger Jafar.
In Riyadh, Iraq were looking to reclaim the title they had last won six years earlier in Oman.
Part of a team already packed with experienced players such as Ali Hussein and Ahmad Radhi, Jafar turned out to be Iraq’s trump card.
He scored only one goal, in the 3-0 win over Qatar, but his outstanding wing play provided a constant supply of chances to his forwards, in particular Radhi, who scored four goals to help Iraq lift the cup.
It proved to be Iraq’s last triumph and Jafar was the main driving force behind it.
aklaled@thenational.ae
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