The Socceroos will face Japan in November in their final hit-out before next year’s Asian Cup.
In what will be a rematch of the 2011 Asian Cup final, the November 18 friendly against the defending Asian champions in Osaka will provide the Socceroos with the ideal test as they finalise preparations for the 2015 edition on home soil.
Coach Ange Postecoglou said the match will give him a perfect gauge of where the side is at before launching their Asian Cup campaign in January.
“I’m delighted we have been able to secure a match against Japan,” Postecoglou said.
“Our aim is to become the best football nation in Asia and Japan is one of nations we will have to overcome to achieve that goal.
“Over the last 12 months we have tested ourselves against some of the world’s best national teams and this game will allow us to challenge ourselves against a quality side, while also taking on another Asian opponent.”
At world No.44, Japan are the top-ranked team in Asia sitting 35 places higher than Australia.
The match sets up the latest chapter in what has become a fierce rivalry, following their 2006 World Cup clash, the 2011 Asian Cup final and the epic 2014 World Cup Qualifiers in Saitama and Brisbane, which both ended in 1-1 draws.
In 22 matches stretching back to the 1956 Olympic Games, Japan has won eight matches, the Socceroos claimed seven victories and a further seven have ended in a draw.
The Socceroos next take on the United Arab Emirates in Abu Dabi on October 10 before facing Qatar in Doha four days later.
whiskeymac
Guest
Oh....
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
Matthew Leckie played the full 90' & scored last night for Ingolstadt to take them to the top of Bundesliga2.
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
No. Only 4 international dates between now & the Asian Cup. We have matches organised on 3 of those dates.
My mate James
Guest
A home friendly against NZ wouldn't hurt.
Leonardo
Roar Guru
We usually do well against Uzbek and have a v good record against them. They always look good but somehow fail to deliver in the end. Let's see. Starting to look forward to the Asian Cup, but gee, Ange's got a lot of work to do and these friendlies can only help. The more the better, maybe American Samoa to brush up on our goal scoring? :)
Tony
Guest
Sorry iPad double up
Tony
Guest
Uzbekistan is in the asian cup so we could end up playing them at some stage if they qualify through to the rounds after the group stage.
Ben of Phnom Penh
Roar Guru
We have two more West Asian opponents coming up, UAE and Qatar. What is important is their style. Iran, Jordan & Syria do not play the same type of game as Oman & Kuwait so taking them on is not as beneficial as facing Saudi, Qatar & UAE who have similar styles. We played Iraq in 2013. Last game of the WC qualifiers. We won't play South Korea as they are in our group for the Asian Cup. China do not offer the same test of quality as Japan. Uzbekistan, would love to see us play them however their style means that the value of doing this as preparation for the Asian Cup is diminished somewhat.
Mazzalenko
Guest
The article forgot to mention the 2 games we played against them H&A when qualifying for the 2010 WC when we were lucky to get a draw in Japan before we beat them 3-1 at the MCG in the last match of the qualifying series when both teams had already qualified. Tbh i'd prefer to play Japan in the big matches during a tournament and I'm sick of drawing them all the time in WC qualifying. I feel we need to play Iran and Iraq more often along with other arab countries to get our boys used to West Asian opponents. We have not played Iran since THAT game in 1997 and Iraq for a few years. Yes I know we have just played Saudi Arabia and got another West Asian opponent coming up but from East Asia we can also diversify and play Sth Korea or China not to mention Uzbekistan who are no pushovers either!
JohnL
Guest
Thanks Franko
Brick tamland of the pants party
Guest
The saga continues
Franko
Guest
Perth *jk* It's over there, Osaka I think.
JohnL
Guest
Any idea where this game will be played?
whiskeymac
Guest
4 more equating to 7? Thats more likeit. Am hoping there are some good hit outs as the work in progress has a finite time frame.
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
There are 4 more dates set aside on the Fifa calendar for international matches but, thus far, only 3 matches have been announced.
whiskeymac
Guest
How many friendlies until the comp, three?? Not many considering state of play of the last 3 games. Agree the Japan games are of special interest. Morale boosting win please....
Gurudoright
Guest
This is a great decision to play this game. With friendliest with West Asian opposition in the next few months, the socceroos needed not only an East Asian team but also a tough hit out before the Asian Cup. And to tell you the truth I love the rivalry with the Blue Samurai, it finally feels like we have that special opposition that we all get excited about playing when draws for WC Qualifying or Asian Cup get announced.