It is simply preposterous to suggest the Socceroos would be better off without Ange Postecoglou, since he is still so clearly the right man to get Australia to Russia in 2018.
The calls for Postecoglou’s sacking are symptomatic of the modern-day mentality that we can’t go more than five seconds without receiving some form of gratification.
If at first you don’t succeed, why try again? It’s easier to walk away when something gets hard.
Never mind the planning, the preparations and the precautions that go into something like running a national team.
Why bother to think of the consequences of any actions when it’s just as easy to leave a glib online comment and move on to the next topic of rage?
Sack Postecoglou? Sure, why not! They should install Mal Meninga as his successor and then we can really start having some fun.
But for those who think that it might not be the smartest idea to dismiss a coach who steered the Socceroos to a continental title less than two years earlier because he failed to guarantee automatic World Cup qualification by a margin of two goals, perhaps the topic deserves some further analysis.
Do the Socceroos need a European coach to get us through to Russia? Maybe we should give Holger Osieck a call? Or how about Pim Verbeek? Weren’t these the sort of European coaches who were supposed to improve our fortunes?
Or, having once been lucky enough to tempt Guus Hiddink on the shortest of short-term contracts, is this another one of those hypotheticals where critics conjure up improbable names – just like how every time Brisbane Roar plays a home game we’re told they should ‘move to Ballymore,’ or how Fox Sports are informed ad nauseam that ‘every A-League game should be on free-to-air TV’.
Perhaps we should see if Jose Mourinho wants to swap Old Trafford for ANZ Stadium? Surely it couldn’t hurt to ask?
Or if we decide to pull our heads out of the clouds and realise it’s worth inhabiting the real world, maybe we’d be better off taking stock of where the Socceroos are currently at.
(AAP Image/Matt Roberts)
There’s been plenty of talk of late about the FFA’s coffers starting to run dry. So won’t a money-spinning playoff against Syria – with another one potentially to follow – help replenish the finances?
Weren’t we all complaining about the lack of drama in qualifying through Asia anyway? At least until Osieck’s strugglers needed an 83rd-minute winner from Josh Kennedy to seal a spot at Brazil in 2014.
There’ll be 48 teams qualifying for the FIFA World Cup from 2026 as it is, so perhaps we should be thankful for the competitive tension the final round of qualifying has offered this time around.
Postecoglou, meanwhile, has gone from the critically-lauded tactician who landed Australia an unprecedented Asian Cup title to just another expendable seat-warmer within the space of 18 months.
It’s not his fault the Socceroos hit the woodwork countless times against Thailand. It wasn’t Ange who failed to clear the lines in Jeddah.
But he makes for a convenient scapegoat in a society which nowadays prefers short-term results to the more laborious process of long-term cultural change.
There’s nothing wrong with critics chastising Ange. It’s great to see former players care so much. After all, the national team belongs to the whole nation – not just the man in charge.
But if the FFA cops its fair share of criticism, they should also be lauded for demonstrating some leadership and continuing to back Postecoglou as the man to lead the Socceroos to Russia.
He’s earned that right – not just by winning an Asian Cup, but by being the only coach in our recent history to understand our sporting culture.
Thus FFA should simply stay the course and ignore the commentary coming out of the peanut gallery.
Myself included.
hogdriller
Roar Rookie
Well he is after all, implementing the "back 3" at Brisbane just like Ange has with the NT.
Kenny
Guest
You miss my point my point is that the more teams you have for kids and parents to follow themore chance those kids will be interested in playing and the more talent we will discover which is why the NSL succeeded in discovering new talent .kids only become interested in the sport if they follow a team,if they have a team to follow .A ten team comp does not cut it.
pacman
Guest
Ken, we need to go to the bottom of the pyramid to address the talent production challenge. It is not for A- League (Premier League et al) clubs to produce talent. Their job is to manage the talent that comes from lower down the pyramid. If they are provided with sows ears, they can not produce silk purses! Sure, they may be able to fine tune talent, but they are not in a position to produce that product.
Ken
Guest
I agree ,This clealry shows me that the A league is a failure .its not producing the talent required for the national team.the A league needs to grow it needs more teams ,the sooner it becomes a 15 or 16 team comp inclusive of regional teams where the real talent is .we don't need more Sydney or Melbourne teams .you can't expect kids that live in regional cities to travel two or four hours three times a week to their nearest capital city where the A league teams are for training that's why the NSL was a true national competition and produced a lot of quality talent .
chris
Guest
Just my opinions volley. Nothing more nothing less
TheVolley
Guest
"I dont like a back 3 and much prefer a back 4 because you need exceptional defenders and wingbacks to make it work. There arent many teams in the world that can pull it off effectively." - agree with you on this statement. I disagree with "No I havent been sucked into anything." - you made enough commentary on the Thailand match to suggest otherwise.
saul
Guest
I think the issue is the FFA have been ignoring the so called peanut gallery for too long. Australia isn't producing the talent it should be nor is the domestic competition being run satisfactorily.
soc
Guest
As long as there are not HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of Aussie kids playing Football 20+ hours per week from the age of 7 outside in sun, rain and snow from Monday til Sunday (as this is the case in Europe + South America) then we won't ever see Aussie players with high technical skills.
soc
Guest
Well, Arsene Wenger is still a hundred times better than Ange. Arsene consistently is in the top 5 of the Premier League.
soc
Guest
Me too. I have never coached an international team, but I'm sure that I have a lot more Football knowledge than Gallop and Lowy combined. With these two guys in charge, how can we possibly get a decent coach??? My only hope is that FIFA sacks them in November.
Chopper
Guest
Interesting to note that both Slater and Bosnich have had their Fox salaries cut by 25%. Karma anyone?
Post_hoc
Guest
Thanks for that, I hadn't heard, it it is good to hear that
Nemesis
Guest
Wonderful quote about formations by Brian Clough. But, I guess, he only won 2 consecutive European Cups with unfashionable Nottingham Forest, so what did he know about coaching? "Players lose you games, not tactics. There's so much crap talked about tactics by people who barely know how to win at dominoes." If Mr Clough were alive today he'd probably say: "There's so much crap talked about tactics by people who spend too much time playing football video games."
chris
Guest
No I havent been sucked into anything. I know enough about football with years of experience and suitable coaching qualifications to make the comments I'm making. I dont like a back 3 and much prefer a back 4 because you need exceptional defenders and wingbacks to make it work. There arent many teams in the world that can pull it off effectively. However I still feel Ange is the best qualified for the job. He will get us to Russia and hopefully do something when we are there.
TheVolley
Guest
Come on Chris, Punter . The whole point is we have been poor since we switched to a 3 defender system (except for one match at the Confed cup). Go back to my first post. You have been sucked into focusing on Nemesis' Socceroos vs Thailand/Kyrgyzstan matches to justify his arguments.
chris
Guest
Shows how much you know pp. Come down and watch junior trials and see the numbers we coaches have to deal with. This was a record year for registrations from a very large base in the area I'm in and no doubt the same in other areas. All your doom and gloom about registrations falling is just nonsense.
Post_hoc
Guest
Foxsports don't have EPL, so he doesn't have to do anywhere near the amount of work (no all night epl match hosting)
chris
Guest
Come on Volley. Anyone watching that match could see it was a mis-match. Yes Thailand should have had a pen. So what? The score should have been 3 zip minimum even at that stage. Some people only ever see glass half full. I dont think I've ever seen a more one sided match than that one. Those who have played the game know that sometimes the ball just wont go in. Football can be a frustrating game. With a good keeper it can be really difficult to score regardless of how much you dominate. Its not like other codes where the area you can score points is huge (league try lines and AFL unprotected huge goals).
chris
Guest
Not sure why Bozza would have his salary cut? Whilst not always agreeing with him he is one of the highest profile commentators in the game.
punter
Guest
The sport is already no 1 in the world.