Midfielder Richard Garcia has been ruled out of the Socceroos’ Asian Cup squad due to injury with youngster Tommy Oar to take his place.
Garcia, who plays for English Championship club Hull City, suffered a recurrence of a knee injury during in his club’s 0-0 draw with Crystal Palace in early December.
He is expected to undergo surgery which will leave him out of action for up to a month.
The versatile midfielder joins strikers Josh Kennedy and Archie Thompson on the sidelines for the tournament, which kicks off in Qatar on January 7.
Head Coach Holger Osieck called on 19-year-old Oar, who has pulled on a Socceroos jersey only three times since his national debut last March.
The impressive Queenslander has been playing for Utrech in the Dutch league and recently came on as a substitute in a Europa League clash against Liverpool where his impact was widely recognised.
The Socceroos will play an international friendly against the UAE on Wednesday (0130 AEDT on Thursday) and will kick-off their Asian Cup campaign against India on Monday January 10 (1215am AEDT Tuesday January 11).
Ben of Phnom Penh
Guest
To be fair Garcia has had some decent games for us nothing spectacular but nothing horrid either. I'm not sure why he derives such disdain from so many supporters.
Nick
Guest
Dam right i still do not see what Garcia brings to the team, hes not particularly quick, can't finish and cant cross. I'd rather have Oar who will atleast bring some youth and exuberance to a team really needing it.
The Bear
Guest
Should have been so all along...