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‘Que sera, sera. Best put some champagne to chill. ‘Cos we’re going to, Brazil. Que sera, sera!’ I sung this tune deafeningly loudly on Tuesday night, but will the fat lady swiftly sing a very different song to the Socceroos, come June 2014?
With the euphoria of Australia’s qualification slowly fading, attention is now turning to the squad’s chances come the World Cup Finals next year, and with it comes some negativity.
Many are predicting a very quick elimination from the tournament, with few raising positives.
I for one feel that while many arguments made have validity, a key aspect is being overlooked and Socceroo fans can look forward to the group games with a little optimism.
A great deal of criticism has targeted the Australian squad throughout the World Cup qualifying campaign, and understandably so.
From the lacklustre opening win against Thailand in Brisbane, performances have been uninspiring at best and seemingly apathetic at times.
Being so near to not automatically qualifying from a pool featuring the likes of Jordan and Oman, who while willing combatants would never be considered for a B-List invitation to the world’s biggest footballing party, certainly adds fuel to the negativity.
It has been a number of years since wins were achieved against quality competition including Ireland and Germany.
On-field, the ball is the quickest player in any team yet Socceroo transition from defence to attack has been slow, laboured and often directionless.
Deep-sitting defences have easily dealt with Australian attacks which have lacked speed, urgency and creativity – often resulting in hopeful, looping, shapeless crosses from in front of the box rather than even from the byline – with speedy counterattacks ensuing and dangerously exposing Australia’s slow, ageing defensive line.
It’s pretty negative and concerning stuff but in my opinion, now that we’ve qualified, is largely irrelevant to what Australia will experience in Brazil next year.
During qualification, Australia is a high profile, respected and feared nation in Asia.
Most opponents (outside of the likes of Japan, South Korea, Iran) with the utmost respect, are far smaller with far less pedigree.
They understandably and cleverly resort to tactics such as deep defensive lines allowing very tight space between that and their midfield, time-slowing and wasting tactics, with a sole focus upon counterattacking play.
Australian players largely currently lack the creative and technical abilities to counter these very effective tactics, resulting in the arduous and concerning qualification campaign.
This is not something Australia will face in Brazil – in fact, it will be very much the opposite, and will both play into Australia’s strengths and mitigate for their weaknesses.
On the world stage, it is very much a case of the ‘Soccerwhos’ rather than the Socceroos.
Australia is a very small player and sometimes rightly, although often wrongly, commands little attention and fear from competing nations, not just from Europe and South America but also from Africa and even North and Central America.
Consequently, opponents will not be sitting back. They will not be slowing the play. They will not be solely focussed on absorbing and counterattacking.
They will very much be focussed upon winning and earning the three points.
They will be pushing forward and attacking Australia, coming out at Australia and allowing a great deal of space in behind for Australia to expose and exploit.
At the World Cup, the Socceroos will get to employ tactics that were so effective in their recent away tie in Japan.
It will be able to itself sit deep, absorb pressure and then launch counter-attacking football into the spaces that their attacking opponents allow.
Due to the depth of the line, the slow and old legs of the Australian back-four will then be largely irrelevant, replaced by a very experienced, compressed and well organised defensive structure.
Holding midfielders Mile Jedinak and Carl Valeri, who will be playing regular first team football in two of the three strongest leagues in the world, could form a formidable barrier in front of them, further compressing the space allowed to attacking opponents – frustrating and luring them further forward, and creating more space behind their line for Australia to exploit on the counter.
Australia, in Robbie Kruse and Tommy Oar, now has the speed, width and talent to exploit this space out wide behind advanced wing-backs.
Tim Cahill has the ability to hold the ball up back-to-goal to act as a target man and additional source for feeding the quick movement of Kruse and Oar, and Brett Holman the work-rate and unexpected threat from distance to harass and worry teams.
Depth is of course a concern. Holding midfield looks Australia’s strength with Middlesborough captain Rhys Williams and Mark Milligan as support for Jedinak and Valeri.
Josh ‘Jesus Saves’ Kennedy can be thrown on up front in desperate situations. Young-guns Eli Babalj or Karem Bulut may be additional x-factor options.
Defence, centrally and wide, look considerable concerns as is back-up for essential talisman and creative fulcrum Mark Bresciano.
After a year in the A-League though, who knows, perhaps Harry Kewell may be a dangerous injection from the bench, along with Tom Rogic, to ask new questions of their opponents.
So don’t fret too much Australia and do have some optimism as June 2014 approaches.
Group draw allowing, thanks to the attitudes and tactics probably employed against them, the Socceroo’s may just get to surprise a few teams, fans and pundits alike, and progress from the Group stages.
As a final thought though, lets get a grip people. This is just the fourth World Cup Finals that Australia has qualified for in its history.
Just qualifying is an enormous achievement in itself, so naysayers should remember this and be thankful for the fact that we’ll get to enjoy what most Australian generations have never got to do – watch Australia compete with the very best, at the World Cup Finals.
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