Tuesday 14 January 2014

World Cup 2014: Australia coach Ange Postecoglou facing tough challenge following unforgettable sporting summer


Following a summer that has seen Australia regain the Ashes and Rugby League World Cup, Ange Postecoglou's side can expect a harsh reality check this summer

Tim Cahill - World Cup 2014: Australia coach Ange Postecoglou facing tough challenge following unforgettable sporting summer

High hopes: Tim Cahill, the former Everton forward, can expect to make Ange Postecoglou's final selection for this summer's World Cup 

Photo: GETTY IMAGES

It is fair to say the Aussie sporting public is on a Bondi wave of summer sporting euphoria. The recent 5-0 whitewash of England in the Ashes series, the Wallabies winning practically all their matches on the spring tour and Oh! the Kangaroos rounding it out with a victory in the Rugby League World Cup at Old Trafford have made it a few months of sports viewing to remember. Maybe unfortunately, the Australian sporting public demands as much from their heroes in the Socceroo’s shirt, and despite their team drawing the might of world football in Group B (for Bad, Brutal and Brilliant if we can get out of it), they expect solid competitive performances.

Australia’s World Cup hopes began to fade quicker than a fake summer spray tan when they were pulled from the bowl after Spain, Holland and Chile. Realistically, when comparing the sides of our greatest World Cup triumph back in Germany 2006 with today’s squad, there are plenty of variables that set them apart.

The final squad for Brazil is yet to be decided by new coach Ange Postecoglou, but it is fairly certain that former stars Harry Kewell and Brett Emerton will not be listed on the team sheet. Tim Cahill, Marco Bresciano and Lucas Neill’s prospects are brighter but there’s an unsettling storm brewing over Neill’s captaincy as he struggles for competitive club football in the countdown to Brazil. Neill continues to reassure fans and administrators that he is the one to lead the side, but his fate could be decided in the boardroom rather than on the pitch.

The other notable absence is the sentimental favourite Mark Schwarzer. The Socceroos brand has dined out on Schwarzer’s commitment to the national football side since his debut in 1994 against Canada in a World Cup qualifier (a time when he and a few more of us weren’t so follically challenged). The 41 year-old and the first Australian to join the Premier League “500” club, held his No 1 spot on solid, consistent performances, the kind he recently turned in for Chelsea in their fourth-round FA Cup win against Derby County.

The veteran together with Jon Aloisi were responsible for one of Australia’s most memorable sporting moments after their penalty save and subsequent shot heroics ensured his country would be represented at their first World Cup finals campaign since 1974.

The obvious difference between the teams competing in Group B is the staggering disparity in team values. Australia is certainly the footballing poorer cousins. In Aussie dollar terms Spain is worth a staggering $623.5m, while the Dutch and Chileans hover around the $200m mark. The Socceroos’s collective value, at around $28m, is probably more in line with the worth of the Spaniard’s kit man. Money isn’t always an indicator, though, and converting wealth into results and trophies is never assured, but given Spain are the current world and European champions, it’s clear it certainly can help.

Australia’s young talent prospects appear to be healthy with Robbie Kruse performing well for Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga, although rising star Tom Rogic has been struggling to gain the much needed playing time for his adopted Scottish Premiership club Celtic.

In some real positive news just in off the January transfer and loan wires has Celtic manager Neil Lennon agreeing to a loan deal with Rogic’s former mentor Graham Arnold’s J-league side Vegalta Sendai. This is wonderful news that will no doubt benefit the 21-year-old in getting match hardened before the June tournament kicks off.

Another recent bolter to the squad is A-League Brisbane Roar midfielder Ivan Franjic. He played right back in the Socceroo’s recent friendly against Costa Rica, but his versatility and goalscoring ability could add an extra dimension to the squad’s attacking options.

One thing for certain is for the Socceroos to be competitive in Brazil, they require players at the peak of their powers on the pitch. Just warming the lush leather seats on the substitution’s bench will not please a hugely competitive minded Postecoglou as he defines the make-up of his side. Not many are confident of a knock-out stage berth, but limiting the goal margins to something other than resembling a tennis score is high at the top of the wish list after the disastrous “friendly” 6-0 6-0 losses to Brazil and France last year.

Deep down us Aussies love nothing more than being cast as the perennial underdogs. Our performances, whilst poor to learned football pundits, were all cleverly designed to lull our more fancied talent rich opponents into a deepening false sense of security.



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