SYDNEY — Iraq coach Graham Arnold said his future beyond the 2026 World Cup remains undecided as his contract ends after the tournament and no formal talks have yet taken place, though retirement is not on his mind.
The 62-year-old Australian, who took charge of Iraq in May of last year, said he was keeping his options open and wanted to focus fully on the World Cup, where the team will make its first appearance in 40 years, Reuters reported.
“The book is open. My contract finishes straight after the World Cup. There has been talk about them wanting me to stay on, but I haven’t had anything formal yet,” Arnold told AAP.
“I really don’t want anything formal yet. I want to go to the World Cup and enjoy it and after that I’ve got to make a decision whether to stay on or move on.”
Arnold, who guided his native Australia to the round of 16 at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, said the prospect of leading teams that have struggled to reach major tournaments continues to motivate him.
“There’s some nations that I look at and I think to myself, they haven’t qualified for a long time, I’d like to do it again,” he said.
“I’ve obviously had the experience throughout Asia, but I’m nowhere near ready to retire.”
Iraq qualified for the World Cup by beating Bolivia 2-1 in Mexico in their inter-confederation playoff earlier this month.
Arnold said Iraq’s qualification campaign had reinforced his belief that the team could trouble more-established sides on the global stage.
“We’re going out there with nothing to lose and everything to gain, and with the chance to shock the world,” he said.
“We’ll be the underdog. We’ll be fighters. If no one is giving us a chance, we can go there and achieve something special.”
