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A disappointing result, but cultural change is the real aim of Ange's game

25th June, 2017
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Socceroos coach Ange Postecoglou has seen the transformation of football in Australia. (AAP Image/Paul Miller)
Expert
25th June, 2017
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Defeat with honour has been the Socceroos’ stock in trade in recent years, so there are some mixed emotions around Australia’s commendable 1-1 draw with Chile overnight.

Has Ange Postecoglou been vindicated by an impressive performance from the Socceroos against the two-time reigning South American champions Chile in Moscow last night?

It was undoubtedly Australia’s finest performance of the Confederations Cup, even if it sadly wasn’t enough to keep the Socceroos in the tournament.

And as impressive as the performance was – and both teams wasted countless chances to win it – surely what was most noteworthy from an Australian point of view was the fact that Postecoglou’s formation finally benefited the Socceroos.

So rattled were the Chileans early in the second half that they simply resorted to knocking a series of long diagonal balls towards Alexis Sanchez in the hope of bypassing midfield.

That’s because Postecoglou’s 3-2-4-1 formation successfully neutralised one of the best counter-attacking teams in world football – more or less – and left Australia with a spare man in midfield throughout.

They used it to their advantage in the first half, when Australia’s high press forced Chile to turn the ball over cheaply from a poor Claudio Bravo clearance, allowing Robbie Kruse to scuff a cross to an unmarked James Troisi at the far post.

Troisi was one of Australia’s best, and his little dink over Chile skipper Bravo – who had an unhappy time of it in goal – was one of the finishes of the tournament.

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Not good enough for Brighton and Hove Albion, or even Melbourne Victory? It’s hard to imagine given Troisi’s enterprising display.

But the same could be said for a whole swathe of Australia’s starting eleven, who belatedly showed the sort of form that justified their inclusion in the first place.

Troisi, Massimo Luongo and the unsung Jackson Irvine were all immense, while Mark Milligan remains one of Australia’s most consistent performers, despite rarely receiving the plaudits.

Tomas Rogic congratulated by team

(AAP Image/Paul Miller)

Trent Sainsbury, meanwhile, possesses the sort of talent that should see him lock up a central defensive berth for years – although how he missed that volley before half-time only he will know.

And Sainsbury didn’t exactly cover himself in glory for Chile’s equaliser either, coming up with a poor defensive header before letting half-time substitute Martin Rodriguez get goal-side to poke home.

Ultimately it was those little ‘one percenters’ that made all the difference and left a rueful Postecoglou shattered by the result.

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“I was convinced we were going to win today,” Postecoglou told SBS reporter Lucy Zelic in the wash-up, pointing out that Chile is the sort of “world-class opponent” against which Australia should be measured.

There’s another such opponent waiting in Saitama, where the Socceroos will face Japan on August 31 in a World Cup qualifier of monumental significance.

The Socceroos will fancy their chances of taking something from that game with a place at Russia 2018 at stake, not least because the Samurai Blue are out of form and under pressure at home.

Having garnered some much-needed tournament experience, the 3-2-4-1 formation might be just the tactic to out-manoeuvre a skilful Japanese midfield.

It used to be that talisman Tim Cahill was our solitary scoring threat – and the veteran was superb in his 100th game for his country – but with Troisi, Tomi Juric and Tommy Rogic all putting their hand up and scoring possession-driven goals in recent games, that notion is slowly changing.

And that, surely, is Postecoglou’s greatest achievement to date.

He wants the culture around the national team to change – starting with the way we play the game.

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Clueless European journalists may still ask if the Socceroos will employ long ball tactics, but Troisi’s goal overnight showed what’s really in store.

And maybe – just maybe – Postecoglou can transform Australia from a bunch of luckless underdogs into a genuine international force.

Here’s hoping.

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