After seven months cooling his heels, it took Graham Arnold just five minutes to decide whether his next move was the right one for him – and less than a week to fall in love. “Mate, it’s been fantastic,” he says from his Baghdad hotel room, swept up in a tidal wave of purpose, possibility and passion. Arnold has begun one of the most fascinating journeys an Australian coach has dared to take on. The former Socceroos boss, who stepped down in September, was unveiled last Saturday as the new manager of Iraq. They stand on the brink of qualification for their first World Cup in four decades – and after the sacking of his predecessor, Jesus Casas, it is Arnold who has been tasked with delivering it. If he does, he will become a hero in a nation of 48 million people, most of whom are utterly obsessed with soccer. Which he, of course, knew already. But the extent has shocked him.