The Iraqi national team explained why it declined to travel to Sochi in advance for the scheduled clash with Russia. Team officials pointed to a mismatch between the travel plan proposed by the Russian side and Iraq’s own training schedule, making a pre-match trip impractical for the players and staff. Mohammed Imad, the spokesperson for the Iraqi squad, stated that the cancellation stemmed from this misalignment with Iraq’s preparation program, a decision taken after careful review by the federation and coaching staff. The announcement underscored that the team would instead focus on preparing within Baghdad before engaging in the forthcoming friendly sequence.
According to the Iraqi federation, the national side is set to stage a friendly in Baghdad, with a second engagement anticipated on March 24 in St. Petersburg, and a match scheduled against Russia on March 26 at the Gazprom Arena. The plan envisions Iraq completing its domestic build-up while Russia completes its own overseas preparations ahead of their encounter on neutral terms within Russia’s own stadium landscape. This sequence of matches reflects the broader calendar considerations and the late-winter scheduling that often shapes international friendlies during this period.
In the days ahead of the March fixture, the Russian side has penciled in one additional preparatory match. On March 23, Valery Karpin’s team is expected to meet the Iranian national squad in Tehran, with the Russian players who are part of the broader program already having arrived in the Iranian capital. This sequence of fixtures illustrates the broad regional outreach undertaken by both programs as they fine-tune squad selections, tactical cohesion, and team chemistry ahead of competitive fixtures.
Reflecting on the broader context, it is recalled that in the spring of 2022, the International Football Federation (FIFA) and the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) made a decisive decision to suspend Russia from participation in all competitions governed by these bodies, a move that affected the national team and all Russian clubs. The consequence of those sanctions was to reshape international engagement, forcing clubs and national sides to adjust travel, friendlies, and competition plans in a markedly constrained environment.
Historically, in 2022 the Russian team managed to stage three friendly matches with Asian opponents, including Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, within a landscape of evolving international participation rules. The absence of the Russian national team on the European and global stage has been a point of discussion among players and analysts alike, with some former Russian midfielders and national team figures offering pointed commentary about the lack of international matches during the period.
In commentary about the broader situation, former Russian midfielders Alexander Golovin and Alexei Miranchuk, who have played in European leagues, spoke candidly about the impact of not having the national team participate in traditional international windows. Their reflections highlighted the sense among supporters and pundits that a missing element in Russia’s football narrative was the extended exposure and competitive pressure that come from regular international fixtures. [citation: sports analysis network]