Like Odysseus and his stout companions, Ange Postecoglou and the Socceroos have safely navigated their first hazard on the long and arduous journey to Russia 2018 and a fourth consecutive World Cup appearance.
More Sirens than Cyclops perhaps, Iraq gently invited Australia to dash themselves on the rocks of their own expectations, rather than setting upon the hosts with raw bone-crunching power.
That the Socceroos for the best part of an hour were stymied and frustrated by their opponents however still warns of the challenges ahead; if they’re to meet Postecoglou’s demands – not just for good results, but for an exciting, attacking brand of football – then much improvement still needs to take place.
In Perth, Australia were at times ponderous in possession, careless in execution and lacking venom during key moments in attack. In the first half especially Iraq appeared well-drilled, composed and patient – happy to parry and counterpunch when possible.
But for two headers – one from Mathew Leckie was the best possible from an innocuous situation, the other from Mile Jedinak innocuous from the best possible opening – Australia hardly disturbed the Iraqi goal, despite the lion’s share of possession and territory.
With Ali Abbas and captain Saad Abdulameer working hard in midfield to harry the Australians, and a high defensive line contracting the space for ballplayers like Aaron Mooy or Tom Rogic to operate within, Australia huffed and puffed but were largely ineffectual in posing Iraq serious problems defensively.
For their part, Iraq were ultimately self-defeating. In looking primarily to stifle Australia’s attacking outlets – drafting Suad Natiq to shadow Rogic, burdening the attacking talents of Ali Adnan or Ali Hisny with more defensive responsibilities, and leaving Justin Meram isolated up front – they largely neutered their own attack, content to feed on the crumbs of errors or quarter-chances.
As the second half progressed the Socceroos eventually broke their visitors’ resistance, not only fair reward on the balance of play, but also instructive in the ever-ongoing search for post-Cahill attacking solutions. Tomi Juric’s miss in the 56th minute was as awful an error as any striker has ever conjured – the type that haunts a player’s ceiling, at 3am, night after harrowing night.
More importantly though was the former Western Sydney Wanderers player’s response. Within 90 seconds he’d manufactured a wicked cross for Massimo Luongo to tap home; and within seven minutes he’d found the net himself.
For seemingly as long as Postecoglou has been in the job the ever-nagging narrative has been the glaring need to find a source of goals that isn’t Tim Cahill-sized. Prior to kick off Australia’s all-time lead goalscorer boasted 47 goals in 91 appearances. Between them Robbie Kruse, Leckie and Juric had made exactly 91 appearances for a return of nine goals.
And in case you thought Cahill’s phenomenal goal tally was a leftover from the Oceania days of strikers hitting seven, nine or thirteen in a single game, remember that during the Postecoglou era it’s been the former Everton striker who has scored 19 of Australia’s goals – more than the next three players (Jedinak, Rogic and Luongo) combined, and invariably on the biggest stages against the most difficult opposition.
Fans and pundits who became restless during the first hour of this match, railing against the ‘narrowness’ of Australia’s play, should actually draw comfort from the fact that the opening goal was precisely the kind that accommodates the talents of Rogic, Mooy and Luongo (with Jedinak screening).
The late lung-busting run, reminiscent of those that saw the then Swindon midfielder awarded player of the tournament during Australia’s Asian Cup triumph, was exactly the type of movement a 4-4-2 midfield diamond sytsem relies on. This from a player who, if the team was playing in a 4-3-3 with two out-and-out wide forwards, would not have had a place in the starting XI.
It was also a run that typified the confidence and the sheer determination to energise a faltering contest that the Socceroos will need time and time again before this campaign is out. Having blooded nearly 20 new faces but selected countless more for camps, constantly experimented and pushed his chargers in every fixture, the era of experimentation is over, as Postecoglou puts forward his strongest possible squad to qualify for Russia 2018.
And yet despite the experimentation and the evolution, performances such as against Iraq (combined with at times disappointing showings against Greece and England) demonstrate how much further this young squad has to come. Fifteen of the 23 players selected have fewer than 20 caps. This is a new generation, but one ingrained not with the results-first mentality of the Pim Verbeek or Holger Osieck era, but with Ange’s exhortation to play a demanding high-tempo, possession-based, attacking style of football.
Having seen the results elsewhere in the group – a shock 2-1 win by United Arab Emirates over Japan in Saitama, and a narrow late 1-0 win by Saudi Arabia over unfancied Thailand – the Socceroos know that their game will have to improve significantly for some of the more onerous challenges ahead.
Chief among those a trip to UAE on Tuesday night (Wednesday, 1.30 am AEST) and the residual heat of 40-plus degree days. It will take greater composure, patience and clinical execution in finding space and playing through tight defences if Australia is to build upon this solid start.
Iraq were a tricky obstacle overcome, but the monster Scylla and the deadly whirlpool Charybdis still await Postecoglou’s plucky crew.
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