With the benefit of hindsight that eight days since the passing of Australia’s defeat by Japan can give, here are some thoughts on three key areas of the campaign in Qatar.
Personnel
Ultimately, there was no golden finish for our golden generation, but this was the most impressive sequence of games that Australia put together for some time.
The elephant in the room is just how long the older members of the current squad can keep playing without their performance deteriorating and their continued presence not hindering the development of the next generation. The average age of Australia’s squad was 28.1 years whilst Japan’s was 25.5.
The management of the transition in player personnel over the next few years will prove vital to how well Australia performs at the international level. For an example of what can go wrong when a golden generation retires, you just need to look at the difficulties experienced by the Australian cricket team.
Whilst the emergence of Jedinak, McKay and Kruse was great to see, the Asian Cup still felt like a final curtain call for the older players rather than the next generation announcing their arrival on the world stage.
For the moment Australia has found the right balance between the younger players being helped by the more experienced players on the field while making use of their energy and raw talent, but these younger players need to come forward and relegate the older players to appearances from the bench.
For example, our first choice strike force continues to be a mix of Kewell, Cahill, Kennedy and McDonald depending on injuries and availability.
While McKay and Kruse have received the lion’s share of the plaudits, the efforts of Kilkenny deserve some attention. In the Bahrain game, he added solidity to the team’s play in the centre of the field, helping to retain possession and close out the game at a time when Australia did not look capable of stringing more than two passes together.
Kilkenny is the type of player Australia needs if the Socceroos are to look to split defences with balls along the ground rather than crosses played from the wings.
Fans may now have more faith in the depth of talent available than under Verbeek’s time in charge, but the incentive of a third World Cup for the veterans in the team may be the biggest obstacle to overcome between now and Brazil in 2014.
Coaching
Holger Osieck has started his time in charge of the Socceroos very well. In a short space of time he has won over the players, the fans and the media.
Whilst he hasn’t sparked a revolution in Australian football, he has reignited the attacking elements to our play that were seemingly dormant in the past few years.
His task was undoubtedly assisted by Kewell having an uninterrupted few months of football, the great season McKay has been having in the A-League and Ognenovski coming off a fantastic twelve months in his club career.
All too often, success in football can be put down to what happens in the months before a tournament just as much as what happens after the opening ceremony.
Osieck’s time as chief of FIFA’s technical department has proven to be a very valuable asset for Australian thus far and it was evident how his knowledge was put into practice during the tournament.
Australia had an exceptional understanding of the opposition and looked to attack the weaknesses in every opponent. This was perhaps best demonstrated by Australia targeting Uzbekistan’s Akhmedov in the semi final where, up until that point, he had been one of the stars of the tournament.
Perhaps a failing was Osieck’s inability to respond to Zaccheroni’s tactical switch in shifting from a 4-2-3-1 to a 3-4-3 formation which allowed Nagatomo to maraud down Australia’s right hand side and ultimately deliver the cross from which Lee scored in the final.
That and an over-reliance on long balls when in attack instead of more build up play deeper in the opposition’s half were two areas where improvement will hopefully be seen in future tournaments.
Sometimes in football, there is a fine line between a long ball and a long pass.
Tactics
A typical trait of Asian teams in the past decade has been playing a high-tempo pressing and passing style of football. In 2011 this hasn’t changed, but what has is Australia’s ability to play against it.
It will be a number of years before Australia can perform at the technical level of teams like South Korea and Japan, but the Socceroos demonstrated that a team can do well by having competent attacking fullbacks supported by a strong central defensive partnership. The team was helped by width in general play, and having a couple of targets to aim for rather than a single forward being outmanned by two defenders.
This approach required opposition teams to focus more on their defensive duties rather than launching attacks. Australia still has a tendency to start games a little behind the eight ball as Asian teams often come out all guns blazing, but our play suggested we were better equipped to deal with this.
There were still times when Australia had to work hard to get back control of games and the Socceroos weren’t as clinical as they needed to be in front of goal, but the positives were that at least chances were being created and the team knew what had to be done in order to close out a game.
Another interesting aspect to Australia’s tactics was playing without a recognised striker. The media fawned over the ‘discovery’ of our new strike force of Kewell and Cahill, but our formation was more akin to 4-4-2-0 rather than 4-4-2. Kewell and Cahill played more like advanced midfielders rather than out and out strikers with each taking turns in the ‘Viduka’ role when play required them to hold up the ball.
It could be argued that Kewell and Cahill were asked to play as forwards rather than midfielders, but Osieck may have discovered a way for Australia to succeed on the international stage without a recognised front man playing up against the last defender.
The “no striker” formation was certainly the most interesting development in Australia’s tactics post World Cup and it will be interesting to see if it becomes Australia’s default formation.
Conclusion
Overall, the campaign has to be seen as a success and maybe the loss to Japan was required for the media and fans to really appreciate how hard winning the Asian Cup will be. And hopefully in 2015, it will be Australia who will be crowned champions on home soil.
Titus
Guest
Mr Lee, you are correct in that traditionally Australia has functioned as a European colony in terms of defence alliances and tradining partners, things are changing however and Australian football is the first sport to reflect these changes. If your criteria for not being part of Asia is that they don't like us, then Moonface is quite correct in claiming Japan wouldn't be Asian either. Japan in modern history has been an Isolated state that was viewed more as a Western Style industrial country than Asian, not to mention aggressive. Geographically we are part of the region, we share the same time zone, they are our closest neighbours, yes closer than NZ. Australia is home to many Asian Australians, such as yourself. In case you haven't noticed we don't have the numbers to support our own continental cup. Where is the money in Asia? Viewing figures for the Asian Cup are expected to surpass the record cummulative audience of 655 million, set at the previous Asian Cup, it was shown live in Europe and North America for the first time. http://theworldgame.sbs.com.au/news/1044109/Socceroos-reach-out-to-fans- Not only is Australia part of the Asia Pacific region, it is part of the World.
MyLeftFoot
Roar Guru
Is Australia a founding member country of the ASEAN confederation?
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
So you are part-Chinese and, therefore, you are the spokesperson for Asia ... gosh that would have to be one of the more ridiculous comments I've heard! Here's a scoop for you Mr LEE ... we are talking about football confederations - not cultural attachments or geographical proximity. The Football Federation of Australia has been a member of the Asian Football Confederation for the past 5.1 years and for 5.0 years we've been the highest FIFA-ranked team in Asia. Now, we are the 2nd-ranked team. Perhaps, other Asian countries don't like us ... who cares if they do or they don't. But, I tell you what ... every Asian country would know, respect and be s**t-scared when they have to play our National Football Team. PS: Israel is not geographically part of Europe but has been part of the UEFA Confederation since 1994.
banaba
Guest
hi keeper and others my surname is LEE and I am part Chinese, Australia is not part of ASIA and never will be (ask the foreign ambassadors of whatever asian country you know - they do not like us - unless they are gettng some sort of Aust govt kickback or funding) Titus - where is the money in Asia?- SydneyFC are broke and are about to play in some huge Asian league comp - they will still be broke - as well as an embarrassment to soccer in aust). The mighty Socceroos made the final in the Asian championship league and they and the FFA are broke as well !!) - Austraian soccer is broke and close to death (unless Sir Frank can dream up another pathetic world cup bid - and con the govt to support it) Moonface, to say Japan is not part of ASIA = Strange !!!! I had some sushi yesterday for lunch and it wasn't European or African or the American or Australian Sushi !!! Keeper, I follow the code I was brought up on, I also follow and SUPPORT Aust in whatever sport they are in, I have watched EVERY minute of the socceroos world cup matches, what newspapers I read is irrelevant, what do you read? - theroar is highbrow reading for sport? tell us what u read O' Wise One?
Moonface
Roar Guru
Australia has long beeen considered part of Asia and is always referrred to as part of the Asia Pacific rim. It is also a founding member country of the ASEAN confederation. Japan is an Island nation just like Australia and is not part of a continent. You would have been embarassed if Australia had won an international tournament and hope they never win anything? Huh?
keeper11
Guest
onya banaba...maaate i guess the socceroos can play your preferred code? just play new zealand or ireland twice a year ..every year .. then run around calling yourself..ahem.. 'Worrrrld Champion' but ..i as you are probably a Hun /Tele reader... the front / back 6 page coverage easily convinces the likes of you to actually beleive it !!
Titus
Guest
meh.... Asia's where the money is, sorry you other codes can't get in on the action.
CleanMatch
Guest
Have to agree with you there.
jamesb
Guest
I never really thought of those players (schwarzer, cahill, kewell, neill) as the "golden generation". If anything its a generation thats putting in the foundations in place for future socceroo teams to succeed. I mean, the next generation doesn't have to worry about breaking a 32 year drought to qualify for a world cup. This generation (schwarzer, neill,kewell,cahill) is also aware that the socceroos need to keep qualifying for world cups, just to keep the game moving back in Australia, because, deep down, those players know soccer still has a long way to go in Australia. Thats why their not retiring yet Do you want to know what a real golden generation looks like. Try this for size Iker Casillas Sergio Ramos Carles Puyol Andrés Iniesta David Villa Fernando Torres Xavi Xabi Alonso Cesc Fàbregas ................................no bull!
banaba
Guest
thank god an asian country won the ASIAN CUP, would have been embarassing if Aus would have won being from a different continent, funny how we in Aus have all these superstars (golden socceroos) that have won nothing and never will
DavidF
Guest
I had no idea! There are 14 players in premier league squads who are 21 yrs old or under. Fingers crossed for one of them eh!!!
MyLeftFoot
Roar Guru
I would have viewed the starting formation against Germany as a 4-6-0.
Twatter
Guest
What this Asian cup has illustrated to me that the form out of the World Cup is solid in Asian Football apart from North Korea who im still trying to figure out for that matter their supporters looked a bit dodgy to STAGED. I watch and gamble on football as somebody suggest's here their aren't 10 top leagues in Europe not to my eye or more importantly wallet 4-5 is more accurate. I wathced the Aus U/19s get defeated in the Asian cup final ironically by North Korea ( i couldn't see their doddgy supporters thier though). The production line is there it's just not exposed to the general sports public thats when the mainstreem sports media get concerned because they have very little interest in football but quickly turn up in Sth Africa riding elephants and patting lion cubs. The fine line now is basing age against position on the pitch watching Schwazer play against the Uzbeks he may as well have sat in a chair next to the posts. Im sure most supporters would expect that we would qualify for the next World Cup though not an easy road to hoe granted. But im sure that Osieck want go to Brasil with a squad age average of 34-35 it wont be allowed. Are we going to win the World Cup in 50 yrs time no, are we likely to play like Spain no, but also their's no need for major concerns with our youth coming through remeber the Kewell's ,Viduka's and Cahill's where nobody's at some point in time .
kinkladze
Guest
In my opinion bad punditry is clearly correlated to bad football. Harper, Bozza and Slater epitomise this, with their "blokes havin a laugh" mentality. You know who's not having a laugh? Me, when fox sports foists their inane ramblings on me. They offer next to no insight or creditable analysis, resorting to tired clichés. Talking about 'having a go' and the Aussie spirit as the key to win games. Hyperbole and jingoism in the extreme. Pathetic. Craig Foster is not much better in my view. He is as one eyed and myopic as the rest, yet suffers further ignominy by his elitist ivory tower perched intellectualism, casting scorn on all those that differ from his view. Doubly pathetic, and the fact the he retains any modicum of relevance is in my opinion quite sad.
jmac
Guest
interesting points about our "2 striker" set-up. a genuine 2 striker set up (which, as you say, ours was not) can lead at times to a massive gap between the forwards and the midfield. at times, our wide midfielders moved inside to fill any such gap and create the link - making more like a 4-2-2-2. this helped us to get the ball forward so quickly at times. at other times, one wide player might go beyond the strikers who as you say were often dropping in deep. with either of the central mids coming forward also, it made for a very fluent front 5 or 6 - which is what you need in order to create chances in modern football. the days of the out and out striker are just about gone and I think holger is just getting us up to speed with where it's all been heading for a while. it was great to watch and should hopefully bring us a few more goals than we have become used to. I know we at times tended to lump diagonal crosses into the box, but hopefully this was in response to a perceived weakness in the opponent rather than being a statement of tactical vision.
hittingthevalve
Roar Guru
Good to hear from a fellow leftie MyLeftFoot, In the Serbia game I'm pretty sure we started with Kennedy as the 'front man' of our attack and in the Ghana game Harry was asked to play a lone striker role supported by Emerton, Holman and Bresc if memory serves me correctly. In the Germany game Garcia and Cahill started as a front two but obviously that plan had to change once Cahill got sent off so i guess that is why i considerd the 'no striker' formation a post World Cup development rather than a continuation of what happened at the World Cup (although I did stop short of calling it a 4-6-0 formation as I'm pretty sure Spain would be about the only ones to be able to pull that one off). I agree with you that this formation has some legs yet. I think Oseick is onto something with this formation, so it will be interesting to see if it is used in the Germany game that is coming up.
hittingthevalve
Roar Guru
Hey whiskeymac, I'm hoping the younger boys start putting pressure on the older more established players and McDonald seems to be running out of chances, but as long as Kewell, Cahill and Kennedy are fit and playing they will be the first three picked in my opinion. On another note, glad to see the reference to the young players at Villa. I'm hoping Shane Lowry gets his chance in the green and gold in the years to come.
hittingthevalve
Roar Guru
Thanks for the comments Fussball. Agree with you on your point about the Japanese keeper getting the MOTM award. A pity we weren't able to put one past him in the final. I thought the reference to the tactical switch by Japan in the final rated a mention as, in my opinion, Australia has not had a coach that can change a game though substitutions since Hiddink (although that might be because he was often chasing results in games rather than preserving a lead). To be honest, Osieck's introduction of Kilkenny in the Bahrain game was a shrewd move and he strikes me as a coach who can manage a squad through a tournament by giving key payers a break, but I still remember the last few years when we seemed only to make substitutions after the 70th minute and they weren't aimed at changing the dynamics of a game. Maybe the tactics in the final is me making a mountain out of a mole hill, but I regard the ability to respond to changes in a game sitation as an essential element in any coach/manager's armoury. Here's hoping Osieck continues the good work.
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
All good points kinkladze and, as you know, I appreciate your using facts to add weight to your opinion. :-) There has certainly been a hiatus in the development of Australian footballers between 1998-05 - when football in Australia really lost its way - and I reckon we've missed out on 5-7 years of identifying and developing the best Australian junior talent, which is why we are so thin on quality 25-30 year old footballers. We have a gap between "the golden generation" (30+ years old Kewell, Emerton, Cahill, Neill etc.) and "the next good things" (21-25 years old Spiranovic, Kilkenny, Rhys Williams, etc.) But we are on the way back and, I reckon, the new technical curriculum formulated by Hans Berger is already impacting with the identification and development of elite footballers. Technical development of a footballer is b/w the age of 6-13, so, provided the new technical programmes are being implemented, we should now see a non-stop production line of technically-gifted footballers emerge.
kinkladze
Guest
I'm going to sound a bit like Rafa. Fact - Of the 38 players in the u20 squad. Only 6 play outside Australia. I still stand by my earlier point that local development in Australia will not develop the type of players we will need to compete internationally. Kewell and Cahill were 18 when they were in England, V Bomber 20 in Croatia, Bresc 19 in Italy, Grella 19 in Italy, Fact - 2009 u20 WC - Won 0, Drew 0, Lost 3 Fact - 2007 u20 WC - DNQ Fact - 2005 u20 WC - Won 0, Drew 2, Lost 1 I would like to be optimistic about potential, however if history is any trend it does not look good.