Basil Gorgis
Encyclopedia
Basil Gewargis Hanna or Basil Korkis (born September 6, 1961 in Iraq
) was a former Iraq
i, and ethnic Assyrian
Christian international football player. Despite having a short career, he is considered to be one of the best players of all time in Iraq, being known for his tenacity and attacking threat.
As a player, Basil took the national team to uncharted territory, where he was part of the Iraqi "golden team" of the 1980s that included Hussein Saeed
and Ahmad Radhi
.
As a teenager, he played with the youth league team Homentmen, a youth club belonging to Nadi Al-Armeni (Armenian Club). At the age of 16, he moved on to the club of Tammuz, a Junior team belonging to Nadi Al-Athori, where he caught the eye of the then first division Al-Amana
coach Mustufa Auda. Throughout his youth, Basil points to Zaya Isaac as the one who coached him into the player he would become. Basil remained in the Iraq Super League
for all his career, where he went on to play for Al Shabab
and Al Talaba
.
. In 1984 he participated at the Gulf Cup
, despite losing to Qatar
1–2 - the game saw Basil scoring an own goal - Iraq won the tournament beating Qatar on penalties in the final.
He stayed on the national team roster and became a big part of the team in the 1985 Pan Arab Games in Morocco. Coach Anwar Jassam and the IFA
chose to go ahead with their B team and 5 players from the A team, that included Basil and Ahmed Radhi. The team went on to win the tournament, where Basil scored on a header in the final game, giving Iraq the title.
In the 1986 World Cup qualification stage
, Iraq found itself against Syria on a head-to-head match to determine the Asian representative. The first game in Damascus ended in a 0–0 tie, but in the second leg, Basil led Iraq pass Syria 3–1. The win gave Iraq is first appearance in The World Cup
. Iraq did not surpass the group stage round in the World Cup, and Basil received a red card against Belgium.
In 1988, Basil helped Iraq to claim the third and personally his second Gulf Cup
, scoring a goal at the decisive 2–0 vicitory over hosts Saudi Arabia
at the King Fahd Stadium in Riyadh
. Three months later he scored the equalizer again Syria during the final of the Arab Nations Cup
, Iraq went on to win on penalites. Basil also participated at the Summer Olympics
in Seoul later.
Basil was forced out of Iraq and led to his professional retire at the young age of 30 in 1992. He arrived in Canada where he currently resides and waited for the arrival of official release from the Iraq Football Association
, but never received them, thus not allowed to play in the Canadian league.
Basil's own personal favorite goal was against Al Shorta in the 1981 Iraqi league final.
He is quoted as saying "I dream of the day when I can go back and walk through the facilities at Al Shabab club in Baghdad." He returned back to visit Iraq after 18 years on December 5 the same day expatriate players Falah Hassan
, Sadiq Ghanim and Emad Elias arrived in Baghdad.
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
) was a former Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
i, and ethnic Assyrian
Assyrian people
The Assyrian people are a distinct ethnic group whose origins lie in ancient Mesopotamia...
Christian international football player. Despite having a short career, he is considered to be one of the best players of all time in Iraq, being known for his tenacity and attacking threat.
As a player, Basil took the national team to uncharted territory, where he was part of the Iraqi "golden team" of the 1980s that included Hussein Saeed
Hussein Saeed
Hussein Saeed Mohammed is a former Iraqi football player. Hussein Saeed is in 10th place in FIFA’s list of most international matches at 126 matches. He was also in the Iraq national football team's golden team in 1986. He competed for Iraq at the 1980, 1984 and 1988 Summer Olympics.Saeed is also...
and Ahmad Radhi
Ahmad Radhi
Ahmad Radhi Amaiesh Al-Salihi is a former Iraqi football player and a current politician. Widely regarded as Iraq's best player of all-time, Radhi scored the only Iraqi goal in the 1986 FIFA World Cup against Belgium...
.
Club career
Like all up and coming Iraqi players, "It all started in the streets" as Basil was once quoted.As a teenager, he played with the youth league team Homentmen, a youth club belonging to Nadi Al-Armeni (Armenian Club). At the age of 16, he moved on to the club of Tammuz, a Junior team belonging to Nadi Al-Athori, where he caught the eye of the then first division Al-Amana
Al-Amana
Baghdad FC , is an Iraqi football team based in Baghdad.- History :On July 1, 1957 Al-Baladiyat were formed by the merger of Maslaha Naqil Al-Rakab and Esalet Al-Mai . In 1977 Al-Baladiyat renamed to Al-Amana , until August 5, 2009 the team renamed again but to Baghdad FC.- Stadium :Since 2011...
coach Mustufa Auda. Throughout his youth, Basil points to Zaya Isaac as the one who coached him into the player he would become. Basil remained in the Iraq Super League
Iraq Super League
Iraqi Premier League is the highest league in the league system of Iraqi football and currently contains the top 20 Iraqi football clubs. It is translated into English as "The Premier League"...
for all his career, where he went on to play for Al Shabab
Al-Shabab (Iraq)
Al-Shabab is an Iraqi football club that is based in Baghdad. It currently plays in the Iraqi Premier League. Its home colours are a shirt with blue and black Inter Milan style stripes with black shorts and blue socks and its away colors are a white shirt with blue shoulders and blue on the sides...
and Al Talaba
Al Talaba
Talaba Sport Club is an Iraqi football club based in Baghdad. The word Talaba means Students in the Arabic language...
.
National career
Basil made his debut for Iraqi on the national level in 1981 against Jordan, in BaghdadBaghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
. In 1984 he participated at the Gulf Cup
1984 Gulf Cup of Nations
The Gulf Cup of Nations 1984 took place in Muscat capital of Oman, from March 9, to March 28, 1984. Iraq won this tournament after beating Qatar in the decisive match between the two teams. Both Iraq and Qatar had finished with the same count of points at the round robin tournament earlier...
, despite losing to Qatar
Qatar national football team
The Qatar national football team is the national team of Qatar and is controlled by the Qatar Football Association. They have never qualified for a FIFA World Cup but are hosting the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The team has also appeared in seven AFC Asian Cup tournaments and hosted the 2011 AFC Asian...
1–2 - the game saw Basil scoring an own goal - Iraq won the tournament beating Qatar on penalties in the final.
He stayed on the national team roster and became a big part of the team in the 1985 Pan Arab Games in Morocco. Coach Anwar Jassam and the IFA
Iraq Football Association
The Iraqi Football Association is the governing body of football in Iraq, controlling the Iraqi national team and the Iraq Super League. It was founded in 1948, and has been a member of FIFA since 1950 and the Asian Football Confederation since 1971....
chose to go ahead with their B team and 5 players from the A team, that included Basil and Ahmed Radhi. The team went on to win the tournament, where Basil scored on a header in the final game, giving Iraq the title.
In the 1986 World Cup qualification stage
1986 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC)
Listed below are the dates and results for the 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for the Asian zone . For an overview of the qualification rounds, see the article 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification....
, Iraq found itself against Syria on a head-to-head match to determine the Asian representative. The first game in Damascus ended in a 0–0 tie, but in the second leg, Basil led Iraq pass Syria 3–1. The win gave Iraq is first appearance in The World Cup
1986 FIFA World Cup
The 1986 FIFA World Cup, the 13th FIFA World Cup, was held in Mexico from 31 May to 29 June. The tournament was the second to feature a 24-team format. Colombia had been originally chosen to host the competition by FIFA but, largely due to economic reasons, was not able to do so and officially...
. Iraq did not surpass the group stage round in the World Cup, and Basil received a red card against Belgium.
In 1988, Basil helped Iraq to claim the third and personally his second Gulf Cup
1988 Gulf Cup of Nations
The 1988 Gulf Cup of Nations was the 9th edition of this tournament. It was held between March 2 and March 18, 1988 in Saudi Arabia. It was the second time after 1972, that Saudi Arabia hosted this regional football tournament. The tournament was won by Iraq...
, scoring a goal at the decisive 2–0 vicitory over hosts Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia national football team
Saudi Arabia national football team is the national team of Saudi Arabia and is controlled by the Saudi Arabia Football Federation...
at the King Fahd Stadium in Riyadh
Riyadh
Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of Riyadh Province, and belongs to the historical regions of Najd and Al-Yamama. It is situated in the center of the Arabian Peninsula on a large plateau, and is home to 5,254,560 people, and the urban center of a...
. Three months later he scored the equalizer again Syria during the final of the Arab Nations Cup
1988 Arab Nations Cup
The 1988 Arab Nations Cup is the 5th edition of the Arab Nations Cup hosted by Amman, Jordan. The defending champion Iraq won the title for the 4th time.-Overview:Algeria and Saudi Arabia did not send their senior national teams to the competition...
, Iraq went on to win on penalites. Basil also participated at the Summer Olympics
Football at the 1988 Summer Olympics
Final results for the football competition at the 1988 Summer Olympics. The tournament was held from September 17, 1988 to October 1, 1988.-Medal summary:...
in Seoul later.
Basil was forced out of Iraq and led to his professional retire at the young age of 30 in 1992. He arrived in Canada where he currently resides and waited for the arrival of official release from the Iraq Football Association
Iraq Football Association
The Iraqi Football Association is the governing body of football in Iraq, controlling the Iraqi national team and the Iraq Super League. It was founded in 1948, and has been a member of FIFA since 1950 and the Asian Football Confederation since 1971....
, but never received them, thus not allowed to play in the Canadian league.
Basil's own personal favorite goal was against Al Shorta in the 1981 Iraqi league final.
He is quoted as saying "I dream of the day when I can go back and walk through the facilities at Al Shabab club in Baghdad." He returned back to visit Iraq after 18 years on December 5 the same day expatriate players Falah Hassan
Falah Hassan
Falah Hassan is a former Iraqi international football player.Early lifeFalah Hassan was born in 1951 in the village of Mimouna, in a district of Qalat Salih...
, Sadiq Ghanim and Emad Elias arrived in Baghdad.
International goals
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01. | 16 August 1985 | Rabat Rabat Rabat , is the capital and third largest city of the Kingdom of Morocco with a population of approximately 650,000... , Morocco Morocco Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara... |
1985 Pan Arab Games 1985 Pan Arab Games The 6th Pan Arab Games were held in Rabat, Morocco between August 8 and August 16, 1985. 3442 athletes from 17 countries participated in events in 18 sports.-Medals won by country:... |
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| 02. | 25 February 1988 | Tunis Tunis Tunis is the capital of both the Tunisian Republic and the Tunis Governorate. It is Tunisia's largest city, with a population of 728,453 as of 2004; the greater metropolitan area holds some 2,412,500 inhabitants.... , Tunisia Tunisia Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area... |
Friendly | |||
| 03. | 16 March 1988 | Riyadh Riyadh Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of Riyadh Province, and belongs to the historical regions of Najd and Al-Yamama. It is situated in the center of the Arabian Peninsula on a large plateau, and is home to 5,254,560 people, and the urban center of a... , Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World... |
1988 Gulf Cup of Nations 1988 Gulf Cup of Nations The 1988 Gulf Cup of Nations was the 9th edition of this tournament. It was held between March 2 and March 18, 1988 in Saudi Arabia. It was the second time after 1972, that Saudi Arabia hosted this regional football tournament. The tournament was won by Iraq... |
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| 04. | 21 July 1988 | Amman Amman Amman is the capital of Jordan. It is the country's political, cultural and commercial centre and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. The Greater Amman area has a population of 2,842,629 as of 2010. The population of Amman is expected to jump from 2.8 million to almost... , Jordan Jordan Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing... |
1988 Arab Nations Cup 1988 Arab Nations Cup The 1988 Arab Nations Cup is the 5th edition of the Arab Nations Cup hosted by Amman, Jordan. The defending champion Iraq won the title for the 4th time.-Overview:Algeria and Saudi Arabia did not send their senior national teams to the competition... |
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