Quote of the day

"But then we learnt about the atrocities in Baghdad: two suicide bombers had killed 50 people, and left many more wounded. Naturally, we were very upset. What made it worse was that the people who had caused those explosions had deliberately targeted our supporters - Iraqis had gone out on to the streets, as is their tradition, to celebrate our win over South Korea and the bombers had then moved in.

That night, we had a team meeting to discuss whether we should carry on. It went on until half one in the morning. The players said: 'If we win, there will be more killing; if we lose, there will be more killing; and if we pull out, there will be more killing. At least if we stay on and win, we might be able to bring some happiness into people's lives'. And we did."

Coach Jorvan Viera tells the remarkable story of Iraq's Asian Cup victory this summer in the latest issue of Observer Sport Monthly.

The issue also includes this piece, in which former 'EastEnders' star Tom Watt follows David Beckham around as he adjusts to life in America and a salary of $5.5m a year as a player with "the Galaxy"...