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Neighbors Iraq and Syria lock horns at a neutral Rashid Stadium in Dubai, UAE on Tuesday for their final 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying match.
The Lions of Mesopotamia face a must-win game as they're fourth in Group A with eight points, just one behind the UAE, who play leaders South Korea.
In addition to a win, Abdul-Ghani Shahad's side will need other teams to drop points to progress into the fourth round.
Syria, meanwhile, are at the bottom of the standings with just five points, already eliminated from the race to qualify.
Having been winless in their campaign so far, the Qasioun Eagles beat Lebanon 3-0 on Thursday for their first victory and will be eager to pull the curtains down on the qualifiers with back-to-back wins.
Syria vs Iraq Head-To-Head
There have been 27 previous clashes between the sides, with Iraq winning nearly half of them (13).
Syria have beaten their neighbors only six times, the last of which came in March 2016.
Syria Form Guide (all competitions): W-L-L-L-D
Iraq Form Guide (all competitions): W-W-D-L-W
Syria vs Iraq Team News
Syria
Alaa Al Dali opened his account for Syria with a goal in their win over Lebanon in his seventh cap and will be hungry for more.
Goalkeeper Ahmad Madania saved all three shots he faced in the Lebanon match before getting subbed, making a strong case for him to start again.
Injured: None
Suspended: None
Unavailable: None
Iraq
Zidane Iqbal, who featured in the Champions League for Manchester United in December, has earned two caps off the bench for Iraq.
He will be hoping to start this encounter.
After Aymen Hussein's 50th cap on Thursday, Mohannad Abdul-Raheem could follow suit with half a century of appearances here.
Injured: None
Suspended: None
Unavailable: None
Syria vs Iraq Predicted XI
Syria (4-4-2): Ahmad Madania; Khaled Kurdaghli, Thaer Krouma, Omar Midani, Amro Jenyat; Mohammed Marmour, Mahmoud Al-Mawas, Kass Kawo, Mustafa Jneid; Yassin Samia, Mardik Mardikian.
Iraq (3-4-2-1): Jalal Hasan; Ahmed Ibrahim, Dhurgham Ismail, Ali Faez; Saad Abdul-Amir, Hussein Ali, Justin Meram, Ibrahim Bayesh; Zidane Iqbal, Ahmed Farhan; Mohannad Abdul-Raheem.
Syria vs Iraq Prediction
On paper, these are largely even sides who are still aiming to finding their best first-team combinations.
Unlike Syria, Iraq still have something to play for, but have lacked consistency, a theme that could see them settle for a share of the spoils.
Prediction: Syria 1-1 Iraq
