The Iraq national team are packing their bags and returning home to Baghdad today after a three-week training camp in Bavaria.
The trip has proved a welcome if temporary respite from the hardships and dangers of life in post-war Iraq. It also supplied German coach Bernd Stange's team with the experience of actually playing competitive football.
"Normally you get 50,000 fans turning up at a game in Iraq but with so many people carrying arms it's impossible to stage matches at the moment," Stange said.
On their arrival last month the former East German manager set out one simple objective, saying: "We have come from hell in Baghdad. We want to forget that and play football."
And the experience has proved invaluable. Team manager Ali Ahmed Mohammed explained: "This is the first time the players have been able to play freely."
A far cry then from the time when the team received a chilling message of encouragement from Uday Hussein, Saddam's late son, ahead of a 2002 World Cup qualifier.
"Before a game against Saudi Arabia we were told -- `if you make a wrong pass you will be punished for that,'" reported defender Ahmad Assad, who despite his 23 years is one of the veterans in the squad.
The climax of the tour was a 4-1 win over German second division outfit Unterhaching, a game that was watched by 900 Iraqi exiles.
The win was greeted with fireworks as well as a noisy car procession around the Ottobrunn stadium while Stange, 55, was carried shoulder high from the pitch.
Despite the success of the visit Stange is only too aware of what is waiting for then on their return.
"There's nothing there anymore -- no infrastructure, no administration, no federation. The national stadium's been destroyed and is now used as a car park for American tanks.
"All the equipment's been stolen," he reported grimly.
Stange recognizes football is not a top priority in a land where "there are many more important problems like insecurity and lack of medication."
But he pointed out: "Football is part of every day life. Imagine if you were to stop baseball in the United States for six months?"
Despite being far away from home, the precarious security situation in Iraq constantly preyed on the players' minds.
"We are always thinking about Baghdad. The players are counting the days before they'll see their wives and families again," said Mohammed.
Stange's side has one major objective in mind -- qualification for the 2006 World Cup finals in Germany 20 years after their sole appearance in the competition.
"If we have other training camps like this one anything's possible," ventured Mohammed.
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