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Australia faces the most daunting road trip in Asia on Tuesday when it faces a dominant Japan at Saitama Stadium, knowing a win would put the Socceroos back on track for a sixth successive World Cup appearance after a mixed start in the third round of qualification.
The Group C meeting is also a chance for new coach Tony Popovic, appointed in September to replace Graham Arnold, to make a statement win in his second game in charge and cross swords with a former team-mate.
Popovic played for Japanese club Sanfrecce Hiroshima from 1997 to 2001 alongside Hajime Moriyasu – now coach of Japan. “I know their head coach very well; he was my captain during my time in Japan. A remarkable person who has dedicated years to developing the national team,” said Popovic.
Japan is on course for an eighth successive World Cup appearance with three wins against China, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, scoring 14 goals and conceding none.
“This is undoubtedly a significant challenge, but it also presents a fantastic opportunity to etch our name in history by winning in Japan,” Popovic said after defeating China 3-1 in his first game in charge on Thursday, a result that took Australia to four points in the group, five behind Japan.
The top two teams from each of the three groups of six qualify automatically for the 2026 World Cup with the third and fourth place finishers advancing to the next stage.
Like Australia, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain have four points and meet in Jeddah, while winless China hosts Indonesia at home.
The top two in Group B meet as South Korea hosts Iraq with both teams on seven points. The game has been switched to the city of Yongin, due to the poor condition of the playing surface at Seoul World Cup Stadium.
South Korea will be without English Premier League stars Tottenham Hotspur captain Son Heung-min and Hwang Hee-chan of Wolverhampton Wanderers due to injury.
Third-placed Jordan hosts Oman in fourth while the bottom two meet as the Palestinians take on Kuwait with both looking for a first win.
In Group A, Uzbekistan and Iran are top with seven points each. Iran will host fourth-place Qatar in Dubai, due to the security situation at home while Uzbekistan takes on the United Arab Emirates in third.
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3-0 to Japan is my prediction. Australia have punched above their weight in the past but the reality is, soccer is just a minor sport in Australia. A flogging tonight will not be a surprise for any Aussie.
Soccer being the stand-out international sport where a fledgling team can at times overcome a fully developed team, perhaps tonight this is not the case.
As earsay has indicated – Australia often performs to it’s extreme limit, but that’s not enough to consistently be near the world beaters.
AFL & Rugby takes the cream of athletes leaving a smaller piece of the player pie with which to build a truly top team capable of challenging the best.
But never say never. Alls possible in Soccer.
Heh Heh! – Alls possible in soccer.
What a score – 1 – 1 and 2 own goals.
Alls possible in soccer.
And what a debacle. Australias bus held up in traffic and arrived at the stadium only 49mins before starting time after spending over 2 hours on board.
Pleas to delay the start so they could warm up acclimatize to the ground etc denied.
That’s an Asian Football Confederation own goal if there ever was.
Pathetic.
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