Iraq's fairytale run to the final had already brought joy to the strife-ridden country (and some sorrows), and the Asian Cup final was a chance to take that even further. Iraq are the new pitied nation du jour, and winning a prestigious tournament like this would give them a chance.

They did not disappoint, with captain Younis Mahmoud scoring the only goal of the game in the 71st minute. Iraq were by far the better team, and even 2 or 3-0 would not have been an unfair scoreline. They attacked well, and although they were wasteful, the Saudi 'keeper Yasser Al Mosailem was largely responsible for keeping his team in the tie.

Iraq have never been a particularly fancied football country, but they showed great strength and resolve to reach this final. Mind you, they are not short of technical ability - Younis Mahmous was player of the tournament, and Nashat Akram (a rumoured target for Premiership clubs) is an unbelievably inventive, skillful players - but they had to put in a whole lot of guts and determination as well. They beat much more fancied teams en route to the final, and this had a lot to do with their team spirit, and will to fight for their country. The Iraqis had to train and play all their qualifiers in neutral countries, many have lost friends and family in the fighting, and the coach had just 2 months to put the team together - it really is a fairytale story of triumphing against all the odds. What makes it so much more heartening is that the squad is composed of a mixture of Shi'ites, Sunnis and Kurds; it's what Iraq needs to see right now... its various factions coming together to progress.