The Socceroos may have won plenty of respect in their opening two matches of the World Cup, but Australia coach Ange Postecoglou wants his team to take the next step and start winning games.
Tipped to be the whipping boys of Group B, the Socceroos impressed in their losses to Chile (3-1) and the Netherlands (3-2) and are desperate to earn a point in their final match against Spain early Tuesday morning. The reigning World Cup champion has been one of the tournament’s biggest disappointments and sits below Australia in the group after also losing its first two games.
While Spain will start heavy favourite against the Socceroos, there’s a growing feeling that Postecoglou’s men could shock the football powerhouse. For his part, Postecoglou expects Spain to come out firing. “Spain have had moments in their games where they looked like they could have run away with it,” he said. “Their players are champions at club and international level. We expect to meet a very motivated Spanish team.”
But the Socceroos will be just as enthusiastic – even though they will be missing striker Tim Cahill through suspension. Veteran midfielder Mark Bresciano is also in doubt, but Postecoglou said it was up to the next generation of Australian players to step up. “We need to win games at this level if we want to improve and become the nation that we want to become,” he said. “We have to win these sorts of games, so it’s far from a dead-rubber for us.”
In World Cup results this morning, Belgium beat Russia 1-0, Algeria overcame Korea Republic 4-2, while a late goal saw Portugal escape with a 2-2 draw against USA.
