Socceroos coach Graham Arnold has confirmed a key change for Australia’s crunch World Cup clash with Tunisia as Fran Karacic replaces the injured Nathaniel Atkinson.
However, star midfielder Ajdin Hrustic remains on the bench as Arnold opted for an almost unchanged squad that suffered a heavy defeat to France.
Australia need at least a draw in tonight’s game (kick-off 9pm AEDT) to keep alive their hopes of reaching the knockout stage for only the second time.
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“The boys have been shooting fantastically well… so I don’t think there will be too many changes. We have to get our line stronger,” Arnold said.
One of the headaches for Arnold’s squad is whether to stick with Mitch Duke up front, or consider starting in-form Jamie Maclaren with Australia in need of goals.
“I don’t want to give away the starting lineup,” Arnold said. “Jamie is a great scorer, “Mitchell Duke works hard. We have some choices to make. At the end of the day I think you’re going to see both of them on the field at some point.”
“WE DON’T RESPECT ASIA”: ARNOLD CLAIMED FUNDING REALITY “RIDICULOUS”
Meanwhile, Arnold says some of the big results from Asian nations at the World Cup highlight the strength of football in the region, and the lack of understanding and funding in Australia.
Saudi Arabia and Japan produced the shocks of the tournament so far by beating Argentina and Germany respectively.
Asked about some of the surprise results at Friday’s press conference, Arnold used it as an opportunity to show his frustration at what he believes is a lack of understanding in Australia about the challenges of qualifying through the Asian confederation.
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“I think the World Cup is growing in people and now it’s more about football and the stadiums are getting more and more packed and we just saw Qatar against Senegal and like I said it’s really growing,” Arnold said.
“I think it’s not so much the shock results but the quality of the Asian nations. Asia.. in Australia we don’t respect Asia and what their qualities are. We don’t respect Japan and Saudi Arabia when we played them in the playoffs, everyone thought they were pushovers.
“But the amount of money you see Asian nations putting into the development of the game and what the game needs, compared to Australia, is ridiculous.”
ESTRELLA DE ROOS PREPARES FOR HOSTILE ATMOSPHERE
The Socceroos are bracing for a hostile atmosphere at Al Janoub Stadium, with Tunisia among Qatar’s best-supported teams and up to 30,000 fans expected to attend.
Australian defender Aziz Behich, however, says the team will thrive in the atmosphere rather than get discouraged.
“Obviously you want to play in front of the fans,” Behich said. “We have been in places where I think many teams would have struggled. We went to Honduras in a packed stadium, we played against Peru in the playoffs where it was just Peru.
“… personally it’s exciting for me. I’ve been lucky in club football to play in the hostile environments of Turkey and look, I’m really excited. We’ve seen pictures of his fans and this is what you want. That’s what football is all about.”
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Behich said the Socceroos players had watched the footage from home of the wild celebrations when Craig Goodwin scored a surprise opener against France, and he wants to create more magical moments tonight.
“It gives you goosebumps to do it in the home nation,” Behich said. “We’re going to go all guns blazing and want, when the final whistle blows, to see more footage of everyone in Fed Square going crazy. That’s our main goal.”
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