DOHA: Jordan booked their place in the semifinals of the FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2025 with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Iraq on Friday at Education City Stadium. The win sets up a semifinal clash with Saudi Arabia, who edged Palestine 2-1 after extra time.
The decisive moment came in the 41st minute when Ali Alwan calmly converted a penalty awarded after VAR confirmed a handball by Iraqi defender Mustafa Saadoun. The spot kick gave Jordan a deserved lead after a first half in which they held a slight edge in possession and created the clearer chances.
Jordan threatened early through Mahmoud Al Mardi’s inventive backheel in the 10th minute, but the move was stopped by the Iraqi goalkeeper. Their plans were disrupted just minutes later when striker Yazan Al Naimat went off injured, forcing coach Jamal Sellami to reshuffle his attack.
Iraq responded with pressure of their own, as Amjad Atwan and Mohanad Ali both went close midway through the first half. Jordan regained control, however, with Alwan testing the goalkeeper in the 34th minute before their sustained pressure resulted in the penalty that broke the deadlock.
Awda Al Fakhoury thought he had doubled Jordan’s lead in first-half stoppage time, only for the goal to be ruled out for offside.
Iraq dominated much of the second half in search of an equalizer, repeatedly threatening through Ali Jassim and substitute Hassan Abdul Karim. Jordanian goalkeeper Yazeed Abu Laila produced key saves, notably stopping Jassim’s low drive in the 70th minute, to preserve the narrow advantage.
Despite Iraq’s late surge, Jordan held firm to secure a place in the last four as the tournament in Doha continues toward its December 18 finale.
