Holding Iraq up as a shining example of stability might sound completely insane given the recent invasion and current insurrection, but that has been the key to success and failure during the group stage of the Asian Cup.
Iraq may have lost German coach Bernd Stange just before the tournament and not have been able to arrange a proper domestic season given the war, but the core of their squad have been working with Adnan Hamd for years.
Meanwhile, Jordan, first-timers at the Asian Cup, are through to the last eight, thanks to the work of Mahmoud Al Gohary, the Egyptian who has had his side soaring up the Fifa rankings in the past few years.
Compare them to the Gulf nations who have richer Asian Cup pedigrees and who are already working their way home: The United Arab Emirates, finalists in 1996, and Kuwait, quarter-finalists in 2000 who beat the Koreans and only fell to Saudi Arabia in extra-time four years ago.
Both nations changed coaches this year and their exits were not surprising.
Qatar, meanwhile, came in disarray. Philippe Troussier, the man dubbed the 'white witchdoctor', proved too potent a potion in the Gulf. The Arab nations, if it is fair to generalise, prefer their coaches with a scintilla of humility. Squad morale was so low that Troussier's exit, followed shortly by the team's, was anything but unpredictable.