NY Times · Nov 21, 2015
Long Way for a Snub in a Qualifying Match
Photo Columbus’s Justin Meram, left, during a game against the Red Bulls on Oct. 3. The teams will meet Sunday in the first leg of the M.L.S.’s Eastern Conference finals. Credit Bill Kostroun/Associated Press Justin Meram apologized in advance for any yawns that might occur during the interview. He had just endured a 27-hour journey from Chinese Taipei that had included two layovers, 13 time zones and one very troublesome, existential question:
Why had Meram bothered to join the Iraqi national soccer team on the other side of the globe right in the middle of the Major League Soccer postseason to play in a World Cup qualifying match — or, as it turned out, not to play?