The Socceroos squad that will face Bangladesh and Tajikistan in World Cup qualification action has been revealed today by Ange Postecoglou.
With some new surprises and old favourites included, Outside90’s James Cauglin looks at the key features of the Australian side that will battle on the road to Russia 2018.
The search is on for a backup goalkeeper
With regular backups Mitch Langerak and Eugene Galekovic unavailable, Postecoglu has turned to former squad regular Adam Federici and the relatively unknown Alex Cisak. Federici has been back in the Premier League with AFC Bournemouth, however, he is currently a backup for Artur Boruc, making it difficult to get regular game time. Neither one will likely see the field against Bangladesh or Tajikistan unless Mat Ryan picks up an injury, but it will be a good opportunity to examine who can fill in if needed.
Next generation of midfielders set to impress
If you have spent time on Football Manager or FIFA, you may have heard of Jackson Irvine as a young prospect currently plying his trade in Scotland. Otherwise your reaction of “who is that?” would be totally justified. Irvine’s lone appearance came two-years ago against Canada in the post-Oseick sacking game that most fans would like to forget. During his time in the Olyroos he played as a holding-midfielder, and may get a chance late in one or two of the games to showcase his skills. Aaron Mooy also gets an opportunity to impress after an impressive first season with Melbourne City and his recent FFA Cup heroics, while a finally healthy Tom Rogic could feature as a playmaker, having had a strong start to the season with Celtic.
In form forwards to lead the line
Perhaps the easiest decision of the entire process was that to include Tim Cahill in the team. Having been in phenomenal form over the last couple of months in China, the Australian hero is showing no signs of slowing down as yet. Sure the Socceroos may be overly reliant on Cahill right now, but why not use him as your primary striker while the option is still available? He could find himself paired with recent J-League acquisition Nathan Burns, who appears to be developing into one of Australia’s most reliable hitmen.
SQUAD:
Goalkeepers: Mat Ryan, Alex Cisak and Adam Federici
Defenders: Aziz Beich, Jason Davidson, Tarek Elrich, Ryan McGowan, Matthew Spiranovic, Alex Wilkinson, Bailey Wright
Midfielders: Jackson Irvine, Mile Jedinak, Massimo Luongo, Matt McKay, Mark Milligan, Aaron Mooy, Tom Rogic
Forwards: Nathan Burns, Tim Cahill, Tomi Juric, Robbie Kruse, Matthew Leckie, Tommy Oar
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