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Arnold to miss Socceroos' crunch qualifier after contracting COVID

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23rd January, 2022
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Socceroos coach Graham Arnold will sit out Wednesday’s crucial World Cup qualifier against Vietnam in Melbourne after testing positive for COVID-19.

The 58-year-old is isolating at the team’s hotel in a blow to Australia’s preparations for the clash at AAMI Park as his squad begin to assemble in Victoria.

Football Australia said in a statement on Sunday that Arnold is fully vaccinated, asymptomatic and received a booster shot 10 days ago.

With Arnold unable to be on the touchline for the clash with the last-placed Vietnamese, he’ll be replaced by assistant Rene Meulensteen for the game.

Meulensteen, a former assistant to Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United who has been Arnold’s No.2 since mid-2018, will work alongside former Socceroo Tony Vidmar until Arnold is cleared to return to the team.

“My staff and I have always planned that there could be a day that I might not be able to come to a match, so I believe with great planning and people in place, everything will run smoothly this week,” Arnold said.

Graham Arnold.

Will Australian fans ever warm to Graham Arnold? (Photo by Tom Dulat/Getty Images)

“I am feeling great and have no symptoms, and while I am disappointed that I won’t be with the players and staff physically this week, I believe that the standards, processes, and culture that we have instilled over the past three years of this journey will remain high and in place.”

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The match, as well as the subsequent game against Oman in Muscat on February 1, are basically must-win for the Socceroos after failing to win in their past three qualifiers.

Draws against Saudi Arabia and China and a defeat to rivals Japan have left Arnold’s team third in Group B of the third stage of Asian qualifying.

Only the top two teams in each group advance directly to Qatar 2022 with the third-placed teams to play each other in a playoff.

The winner of that match-up then takes on South America’s fifth-placed team in an intercontinental playoff for a spot at the World Cup finals.

The news comes just days after Arnold admitted he was crossing his fingers that there wouldn’t be any COVID-19 dramas as his squad travelled from all over the globe to Melbourne.

Arnold will be allowed to leave isolation on Thursday but his return to in-person national team duties will be subject to clearing additional medical protocols.

© AAP

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