What should Socceroos expect from World Cup Qualifiers?

 
Mike Tuckerman Columnist

By , 8 Jun 2012 Mike Tuckerman is a Roar Expert

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    Oman's Mohammed Abdullah Mubarak Al Balushi tackles Australian Socceroos player Josh Kennedy. AAP Image/Tracey Nearmy

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    Three, four or six? You can bet the Socceroos will not wish to proceed with nothing to show from their clashes with Oman and Japan, so what is an acceptable points tally from two difficult looking fixtures?

    Australia will first have to contend with the heat of Muscat when they take on an unpredictable Oman in their opening game of the final round of World Cup qualifying tonight.

    The Omanis, of course, memorably beat the Socceroos the last time they met, winning 1-0 in the third round of qualifying last November.

    Imad Al-Hosni scored the winner in that game and the Saudi-based marksman should once again prove the danger man up front, with Wigan goalkeeper Ali Al-Habsi proving an equally key man between the posts.

    They’ll go into tonight’s clash in a different frame of mind though, not least because Japan pummelled the Gulf side in Saitama just a few days ago.

    And as Fox Sports commentator Simon Hill has pointed out, Oman are missing several important players through injury and suspension, with coach Paul Le Guen no doubt feeling the pressure even at this early stage.

    Nevertheless, playing in the heat of the Arabian peninsula is no easy feat, particularly when home teams are prepared to sit back and hit on the counter.

    And with Australia’s central defensive pairing still far from certain – Matthew Spiranovic was dreadful in the friendly against Denmark last week – Oman could prove a significant early test.

    That may leave the Socceroos searching for maximum points in Brisbane and with the Samurai Blue in ominous early form, Osieck will be wary of the visit of Alberto Zaccheroni’s men.

    The Italian has two of world football’s emerging superstars to call upon, and while Shinji Kagawa could be forgiven for having his mind on matters elsewhere as he finalises a move to Manchester United, the creative talent has the potential to expose Australia’s lack of pace with his penetrating runs and passes into space.

    Keisuke Honda is an equally imposing presence in midfield or up front and where once the Japanese were renowned for their struggles in front of goal, both Kagawa and Honda know precisely how to find the back of the net.

    Yet Japan rarely display their best form away from home and they won’t relish playing in front of a parochial crowd in Brisbane, even if interest in this game has been strangely subdued.

    Four years ago a crowd of just under 75,000 turned out at the MCG – an early miscount saw it inadvertently reported as several thousand less – turned out to see two Tim Cahill goals fire Australia to a famous win over their regional foes.

    But it’s been a slow-burn kind of interest building up for the match in Queensland, suggesting plenty of supporters preferred the edge-of-the-seat intensity of play-off ties over the fairer but less dramatic qualifying route Australia enjoys now.

    Osieck won’t care about how his team gets to Brazil so long as it qualifies and he’s experienced enough to know there is plenty of time to recover from any early setbacks.

    But he won’t want to start on the back foot, which begs the question of what exactly we should expect from the Socceroos both points and performance wise as World Cup qualifying campaign cranks back into gear.

    Mike Tuckerman is a Sydney-born journalist and lifelong football fan. After lengthy stints watching the beautiful game in Germany and Japan, he has settled in Brisbane and has been a Roar columnist since December 2008. Follow Mike on twitter @Mike_Tuckerman

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