# 2008–09 Al-Zawraa SC season

This is a list of Al-Zawraa's results at the Iraqi Premier League 2008-09 and AFC Cup 2009. The club is competing in the Iraqi Premier League and AFC Cup.

## Al-Zawraa’s massive problems
### Financial problems

Before the start of the 2008-09 season, The Iraq Football Association announced that they are no longer able to afford financing the Iraqi clubs and hence each club had to get an official sponsor. Since the Iraqi clubs are based on institutions, military bases and ministries, Al-Zawraa's official sponsor is Ministry of Transport.
The Problem began when Amer Abdul-Jabbar, the Minister of Transport offered financing the club but in exchange of changing the club's name From Al-Zawraa to Transport. But when Al-Zawraa fans heard this news, 8 million Iraqis announced their Civil disobedience if they change Al-Zawraa name. Even the Iraq Football Association refused the idea of changing Al-Zawraa's name. Salam Hashim the current President of the club made a middle Solution to change Al-Zawraa name from Al-Zawra to Al-Zawraa Transport, both the fans and the Minister of Transport refused the idea.

### Withdrawal threats

In the middle of the 2008-09 season, Salam Hashim announced that Al-Zawraa will withdraw from the Iraqi League and the AFC Cup if no one give Al-Zawraa a helping hand, but the Prime Minister of Iraq Nouri al-Maliki reacted and gave Al-Zawraa 10 Million Iraqi Dinars for their camping in the Iraqi League and the AFC Cup, he promised monthly finance backing.

### Transfer problems

At the beginning of the season. Al-Zawraa had to sell their key players like top scorer Abdul-Salam Abood, the Defensive Midfielder Mohannad Nassir and the main goalkeeper Ahmad Ali Jaber due to financial problems. They bought only young players and using some from Al-Zawraa's youth team. But in a brave act from the Iraq national football team’s goalkeeper Mohammed Gassid who moved to Al-Zawraa for a cheap salary saying he doesn’t care about the money and he loves Al-Zawraa and playing for Al-Zawraa is like a dream to him. Similar act happened from Haidar Sabah who preferred to come back to Al-Zawraa instead of extending his contract with Arbil FC, the richest team in Iraq.
Before the winter transfers period, the 34-year-old striker and the son of the club Hesham Mohammed promised that he will come back to Al-Zawraa and try to help them with his experience. Hesham is famous in wearing number 8 and when he asked what is the number he will pick, he answered that Haidar Sabah earned this number and he will choose another number, thinking of picking number 88. In the winter transfers period he fulfilled his promise and signed for Al-Zawraa.

### Banning the whole team

Before the end of the season, Al-Zawra’s President Salam Hashim banned 25 players for playing for Al-Zawra. The story began when 15 players asked for their wages, complaining that they didn’t receive any money in the last three months. But Salam Hashim blamed the Ministry of Transport for not supporting Al-Zawra and he told the players that he doesn’t have any money in the moment and he will give them next season, the players refused to play giving the reason that they are human and they need to eat and to pay for their houses rent. The rest of the team stood up solidarity with the team, which made Salam Hashim banning the whole team. Al-Zawra had 4 postponed matches and if Al-Zawra win them all Al-Zawra would reach the second place in Group B which it will makes them the play the decisive 3rd-4th place match. The Team played the postponed matches with the u-16 team with Ahmad Salam Hashim the son of Salam Hashim being the Captain of the team. Al-Zawra lost three matches and draw one.

## 2008-09 squad and starting lineup

* 24 Gassid
* 18 Attiya
* 15 Abdul-Ghani (C)
* 5 Zaboon
* 6 O. Ibrahim
* 16 Rehema
* 25 A. Ibrahim
* 8 Sabah
* 28 S. Hussein
* 23 M. Ahmad
* 19 Abdul-Jabar
* 2008-2009 starting lineup.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 1 | GK | IRQ | Osama Hussien Ali |
| 2 | DF | IRQ | Amer Khalif |
| 3 | MF | IRQ | Mohammed Najm |
| 4 | DF | IRQ | Akram Sattar Jabar |
| 5 | MF | IRQ | Hasan Zaboon |
| 6 | DF | IRQ | Ous Ibrahim |
| 7 | MF | IRQ | Ali Yousif |
| 8 | MF | IRQ | Haidar Sabah |
| 9 | FW | IRQ | Omar Kadhim |
| 10 | FW | IRQ | Hussam Saeed |
| 11 | MF | IRQ | Nasim Jassim |
| 12 | MF | IRQ | Mohammed Fadhel |
| 13 | DF | IRQ | Omar Sabah Jassim |
| 14 | FW | IRQ | Mohammed Abdul-Jabar |
| 15 | DF | IRQ | Gaith Abdul-Ghani (captain) |
| 16 | MF | IRQ | Abbas Hussein Rehema |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 17 | DF | IRQ | Ahmad Salam Hashim |
| 18 | DF | IRQ | Adnan Attiya |
| 19 | MF | IRQ | Salar Abdul-Jabar |
| 20 | MF | IRQ | Sinan Fawzi |
| 21 | FW | IRQ | Marwan Hussein |
| 22 | GK | IRQ | Ammar Ali Al-Azzawi |
| 23 | FW | IRQ | Mustafa Ahmad |
| 24 | GK | IRQ | Mohammed Gassid |
| 25 | MF | IRQ | Ahmad Ibrahim |
| 26 | MF | IRQ | Thamer Fouad |
| 27 | FW | IRQ | Mezher Ahmad |
| 28 | MF | IRQ | Sajjad Hussein |
| 29 | DF | IRQ | Ali Kamel |
| 30 | FW | IRQ | Mussa Sattar Hashim |
| 88 | FW | IRQ | Hesham Mohammed |
Bold = National team players

### Changes in

| No. | Position | Player | Age | Moving from | League |
| 1 | GK | Osama Hussien Ali | 22 | Al-Talaba | Iraqi Premier League |
| 8 | MF | Haidar Sabah | 23 | Arbil FC | Iraqi Premier League |
| 24 | GK | Mohammed Gassid | 22 | Al-Shorta | Iraqi Premier League |
| 27 | FW | Mezher Ahmad | 23 | Samaraa FC | Iraqi Premier League |
| 88 | FW | Hesham Mohammed | 34 | Jableh SC | Syrian League |

### Changes out

| No. | Position | Player | Age | Moving to | League |
| 1 | GK | Ahmad Ali Jaber | 27 | Arbil FC | Iraqi Premier League |
| 10 | FW | Abdul-Salam Abood | 22 | Al-Talaba | Iraqi Premier League |
| 16 | MF | Mohannad Nassir | 26 | Dohuk FC | Iraqi Premier League |
| 30 | GK | Sarmad Rasheed | 27 | Al-Amana | Iraqi Premier League |

## Iraqi Premier League

The 2008-09 season is the 35th edition of the Iraqi Premier League, it starts on 1 November 2008 and is scheduled to end on 10 May 2009. 28 teams from all over the country are competing for the title. Arbil FC are the defending champion and Al-Zawraa are the runner-up.
The IFA decided to cancel the old group system, which was used from 2004 until 2008. This time, the 28 teams will be divided into two groups with each 14 teams. There will be a northern and southern group, with the clubs from the capital Baghdad being drawn into either one of these groups. After playing home and away games, the two group winners are going to play for the League Title in a final. The two runners-up are playing for the third place and a spot at the 2009-10 Arab Champions League. The league champions and runner-up will qualify for the 2010 AFC Cup. Furthermore, it was announced that this will be the last season featuring groups.
Al-Zawraa is grouped in Group B.

### Group B standing

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 2 | Al-Amana | 24 | 13 | 11 | 0 | 37 | 15 | +22 | 50 | Qualified to Third place match |
| 3 | Al-Talaba | 24 | 14 | 5 | 5 | 32 | 15 | +17 | 47 | |
| 4 | Al-Zawraa | 24 | 9 | 9 | 6 | 30 | 24 | +6 | 36 | |
| 5 | Naft Al-Junoob | 24 | 9 | 9 | 6 | 27 | 23 | +4 | 36 | |
| 6 | Al-Minaa | 24 | 10 | 6 | 8 | 20 | 24 | −4 | 36 | |

### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |

### Results by round

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
| Ground | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | A | H |
| Result | W | D | D | L | D | D | L | W | W | W | W | W | L | D | D | L | D | L | W | D | L | D | W | W |

### Matches

| # | Date | Home | Score | Away | Goal(s) |
| 1 | 1 November 2008 | Al-Zawraa | 4-1 | Al-Minaa | Mezher Ahmad 17' 38' - Haidar Sabah 50' - Mustafa Ahmad 75' |
| 2 | 7 November 2008 | Al-Sinaa | 0-0 | Al-Zawraa | |
| 3 | 15 November 2008 | Al-Zawraa | 1-1 | Maysan | Ous Ibrahim 17' |
| 4 | 22 November 2008 | Naft Al-Janoob | 2-1 | Al-Zawraa | Mezher Ahmad 47' |
| 5 | 6 December 2008 | Al-Zawraa | 2-2 | Kufa | Sajjad Hussein 50' - Gaith Abdul-Ghani 94' |
| 6 | 13 December 2008 | Al-Amana | 1-1 | Al-Zawraa | Ahmad Ibrahim 28' |
| 7 | 19 December 2008 | Al-Zawraa | 0-1 | Al-Talaba | |
| 8 | 26 December 2008 | Karbalaa | 0-1 | Al-Zawraa | Mustafa Ahmad 86' |
| 9 | 2 January 2009 | Najaf | 1-2 | Al-Zawraa | Salar Abdul-Jabar 61', 74' |
| 10 | 12 January 2009 | Al-Zawraa | 1-0 | Samawa | Mustafa Ahmad 29' |
| 11 | 17 January 2009 | Al-Zawraa | 3-1 | Al-Bareed | Mustafa Ahmad 27' - Haidar Sabah 43' - Salar Abdul-Jabar 60' |
| 12 | 24 January 2009 | Nassriya | 1-2 | Al-Zawraa | Salar Abdul-Jabar 14', 69' |
| 13 | 21 February 2009 | Al-Minaa | 1-0 | Al-Zawraa | |
| 14 | 27 February 2009 | Al-Zawraa | 1-1 | Al-Sinaa | Ahmad Ibrahim 48' |
| 15 | 10 June 2009 | Maysan | 1-1 | Al-Zawraa | Marwan Hussein 5' |
| 16 | 13 June 2009 | Al-Zawraa | 1-3 | Naft Al-Janoob | Hesham Mohammed 6' |
| 17 | 28 March 2009 | Kufa | 0-0 | Al-Zawraa | |
| 18 | 12 April 2009 | Al-Zawraa | 0-2 | Al-Amana | |
| 19 | 16 June 2009 | Al-Talaba | 0-2 | Al-Zawraa | Haidar Sabah 56' - Mustafa Ahmad 66' |
| 20 | 16 April 2009 | Al-Zawraa | 0-0 | Karbalaa | |
| 21 | 16 June 2009 | Al-Zawraa | 0-2 | Najaf | |
| 22 | 30 April 2009 | Samawa | 1-1 | Al-Zawraa | Salar Abdul-Jabar 19' |
| 23 | 11 May 2009 | Al-Bareed | 1-4 | Al-Zawraa | Ali Yousif 43' - Salar Abdul-Jabar 43', 83' - Omar Kadhim 71' |
| 24 | 1 June 2009 | Al-Zawraa | 2-1 | Nassriya | Haidar Sabah 13' - Mustafa Ahmad 31' |
* Pos = Postponed

### Top scorers

| # | Pos | Player Name | Goal(s) |
| 1 | FW | Salar Abdul-Jabar | 8 |
| 2 | FW | Mustafa Ahmad | 6 |
| 3 | MF | Haidar Sabah | 4 |
| 4 | FW | Mezher Ahmad | 3 |
| 5 | MF | Ahmad Ibrahim | 2 |
| 6 | FW | Hesham Mohammed | 1 |
| 6 | FW | Omar Kadhim | 1 |
| 6 | FW | Marwan Hussein | 1 |
| 6 | MF | Ali Yousif | 1 |
| 6 | MF | Sajjad Hussein | 1 |
| 6 | DF | Ous Ibrahim | 1 |
| 6 | DF | Gaith Abdul-Ghani | 1 |

## AFC Cup

Iraq was excluded from the AFC Champions League due to not fulfilling the AFC demand of having a fully professional league. Hence, the Iraqi clubs relegated to the AFC Cup with having 2 seats to participate in. The 2007-08 Iraqi Premier League's Champion and runners-up will participate this season.
Al-Zawraa as runner-up in the previous season will take part in the AFC Cup for the first time in their history alongside Arbil FC as last season champions.

### Group B

| Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| Al-Zawraa | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 3 | +5 | 13 |
| Safa | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 3 | +2 | 12 |
| Al-Hilal Al-Sahili | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 7 | −2 | 7 |
| Al-Suwaiq | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 8 | −5 | 3 |

### Top scorers (AFC Cup)

| # | Pos | Player Name | Goal(s) |
| 1 | DF | Adnan Attiya | 2 |
| 2 | FW | Salar Abdul-Jabar | 1 |
| 2 | FW | Mustafa Ahmad | 1 |
| 2 | FW | Omar Kadhim | 1 |
| 2 | MF | Haidar Sabah | 1 |
| 2 | MF | Sajjad Hussein | 1 |
| 2 | MF | Ahmad Ibrahim | 1 |
| 2 | DF | Ous Ibrahim | 1 |