I have to hand it to the FFA, they didn’t mess about announcing Bert van Marwijk’s successor as Socceroos coach after the World Cup in Graham Arnold.
I share the same opinion of most of the football community in wanting an Australian coach for the 2022 cycle.
I’m not here sing Arnold’s praises nor am I here to slander his appointment. Instead I want to bring to attention what I’d say is the despicable and unnecessary jibes that have been aimed at Arnold and, unbeknownst to them, at the national team itself.
However, I have nothing but faith in Arnold putting the national team’s best interests first. It’s a results-based business, and when push comes to shove there is no time for loyalty to philosophy and certainly no time for quarrels with reporters.
Like every other football fan, I do not have a time machine. I cannot go into the future and see that Arnold is going to be a shocking appointment. My criticisms of Arnie have been summed up perfectly by Simon Hill last week, who highlighted his vulnerability in front of the media when results aren’t going his way.
(AAP Image/Joe Castro)
“When results are ticking along nicely, there is rarely a problem,” Hill said. “But when they turn (and invariably, at the rarefied atmosphere of international football, they do), he doesn’t cope overly well.
“He can tend to play the ‘blame’ game a little too often, refusing to accept responsibility for his own failures.
“Remember the 2015-16 season, when Sydney FC failed to qualify for the finals? Arnold spent most of that campaign at war with a media he felt (wrongly) were being unfair in their judgment of his rather ordinary side.”
Hill makes a good point. No matter his success domestically – as we saw with Ange Postecoglou – the level of scrutiny rises tremendously at the national level. Arnold over the years has displayed a cocky confidence riding high on his success. At times it is cringeworthy, even if it is justified.
Nevertheless the boo boys have wasted no time in jumping to hyperbole with repugnant comments about the arrangement, with some claiming they won’t watch the Socceroos until he get’s sacked or that they refuse to support their country as long as they play ‘Arnie Ball’.
Those making these doltish comments fail to see the full picture. I guarantee they have kits and posters supporting Manchester United and Barcelona. They make these comments because they believe they have a claim of ownership over the national team, seeing it as if it’s another club.
(AAP Image/David Moir)
Despite that, Arnold at least deserves our time of day. He is on track to be the most successful manager in A-League history; he should be congratulated and allowed the time to show us if he truly has what it takes. The Socceroos job is a platform for Aussie coaches to climb higher. Why deny him that?
There is no other objective to our national team at the moment than to challenge for the Asian Cup and qualify for the World Cup, and for those who want to heap more criticism on the FFA, just know that it was you who wanted an Australian coach. If Arnie isn’t your solution, then I implore you to provide another.
If you insist on throwing Arnie’s name in the dirt before he even takes over, then know that if he provides success, if he wins the Asian Cup, if he qualifies for the World Cup, you can’t celebrate. If you wished ill upon the national team, you don’t deserve its triumphs while he’s in charge.
The national team is the most important part of professional football in Australia. Every level revolves around making our Socceroos the best they can be. We want the best man for the job, and if he happens to be Australian, then you beauty, it’s cherry on top.
But wishing ill upon the Socceroos all because of one man is a sure fire way for you to isolate and cast yourself away from the football community.
Whatever happened to innocent until proven guilty? I’d say these people are guilty of blindly spitting on Arnold without knowing it’s hitting our sacred jersey.
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