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Football Federation Australia have confirmed the Socceroos will host a friendly against Greece in Sydney in June, with a second game likely in Melbourne.
The 2004 European champions will visit ANZ Stadium on June 4, as part of a mooted two-game series to take place the week after the Socceroos’ slated one-off away friendly with England in late May.
The second match has been pencilled in for Melbourne on June 7.
Socceroos coach Ange Postecoglou, a Greek immigrant, was delighted and said the matches would be a welcome addition to Australia’s preparations for the second phase of their World Cup qualifiers, which they are expected to make.
“Since the Asian Cup we’ve had a real emphasis on building a team through pitching ourselves against the best Asian opposition, knowing Asia was on the rise and obviously with the World Cup qualifiers following that,” Postecoglou said.
“There was a window in this period where we could play opposition outside our region.
“It’s important for this group of players … and when Greece became an option, I thought it was an opportunity for us.”
FFA chief executive David Gallop hopes to be able to announce the second game shortly, with the governing body still understood to be negotiating with the Victorian Government.
“It’s obviously something that needs a few parties to come together and make sure it’s commercially the right deal,” Gallop said.
“I’ve always said we want to move the Socceroos around the country, and we’ve got a track record now of having done that.
“But unashamedly we’re looking for a deal that gives us a commercial return.
“It’s a watch this space at the moment.”
Postecoglou’s squad currently top their qualifying group with five wins and a loss, with only two first-phase home matches left in March – against Tajikistan and Jordan.
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