Former Socceroos coach Ange Postecoglou has given midfielder Aaron Mooy a vote of confidence ahead of the World Cup.
Postecoglou, who coached Mooy with Australia as well as current club side Celtic, allayed concerns the player has been short of game time since making the move to Glasgow in July.
Several senior Socceroos, including Martin Boyle, Mat Ryan, Awer Mabil and Harry Souttar, have arrived in Doha off the back of minimal game time or long-term injuries.
But Postecoglou expects Mooy to be ready to fire in Australia’s opening clash with world champions France (6am next Wednesday AEDT).
“He’s playing a lot,” the Celtic coach told reporters on Wednesday ahead of the Scottish club’s two-game Australian tour taking in fixtures against Sydney FC and Everton.
(Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)
“We had 13 games in 42 days, I think he played the majority of them. So no, he’s fit and he’s going well.”
As one of the team’s senior figures, the pressure is on 32-year-old Mooy to take a leading role for Australia in Qatar as he competes in his second World Cup.
Socceroos legend and Celtic first-team coach Harry Kewell said Mooy’s experience in the Scottish Premier League will stand him in good stead for the pressure of the World Cup.
“The amount of pressure that is on the Celtic players … for Aaron to step up and play, and to force his way into the team – it takes a lot because we don’t let anything slide (at Celtic),” Kewell told reporters.
“You have to be at your very best at training to even be in the manager’s mind.”
Socceroos legend Harry Kewell has urged Graham Arnold to unleash wonder kid Garang Kuol on the global stage, saying the “fearless” X-factor must not be a passenger at the World Cup.
Kewell, who represented Australia in the 2006 and 2010 World Cups, remains the youngest Socceroo ever blooded at 17 years and seven months against Chile in 1996.
But at 18 years and three months, Kuol will be the youngest Socceroo to feature at a World Cup if he plays in Qatar.
Socceroos ‘golden generation’ member Kewell dearly hopes he does, expecting big things from the prodigy.
“He’s fearless. He’s quick. And that’s one thing that the defenders are scared of,” Kewell told AAP on Wednesday.
“That’s something that we could bring on the pitch – whether it’s at the start or half-time or the last 10 minutes, it’s something Graham’s got at his disposal, and I just hope he uses it.
“If you’re in the squad, every single one of the players that are in the squad should be good enough to start.
“I hope we just don’t bring him to just be part of the squad and ‘experience’ it because no player wants to do that, especially not a young player.”
Kewell believes the Socceroos can’t afford not to utilise Kuol’s special talents and hopes the youngster will thrive on sport’s biggest stage.
“One thing when you have with a young player that’s got raw pace and power and is fearless – that’s the best key to unlock defences because they just don’t know what he’s capable of doing,” he said.
“I think if you start to go on a football field, feeling nervous and anxious and all that, it’s a shame because you shouldn’t be. You’re trained your whole life for moments like this.
“Speaking from my experience, I always walked out there with the vision that it’s my house. I was never going to let anyone dictate to me what I can and can’t do in my own house.
“So I walked out there and I was comfortable. Hopefully he feels the same.”
The Socceroos play their first “group of death” match on Wednesday morning AEDT against reigning champions France.
“It’s going to be a tough ask, but the one thing that I’ll be doing is supporting them,” Kewell said.
“Qualifying for the World Cup is not easy. I think we’ve taken it for granted for so many years but now it’s completely different. It’s competitive. It’s a lot tougher for us to qualify.
“I take my hat off to this team. I wish them a lot of success and I hope they go out there and enjoy it.”
Neymar has revealed how he and Paris St Germain teammate Lionel Messi have been joking about a potential World Cup final between Brazil and Argentina in Qatar.
Neymar and Messi, alongside Kylian Mbappe, form a fearsome front three for PSG, one that has fired them to a five-point lead at the top of Ligue 1 and reached the Champions League knockout stages.
But that alliance will be temporarily halted until PSG’s next game on December 28, as the three superstars bid to win the World Cup for their respective countries.
While he was highly complimentary of Messi and Mbappe, Neymar jokingly hinted that he fancies his Brazil side’s chances in a potential match-up with Messi’s Argentina.
“We don’t discuss it very much,” Neymar told Britain’s Telegraph. “But sometimes we joke about crossing paths with each other in the final.
Neymar with Brazilian teammate Casemiro. (Photo by Mustafa Yalcin/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
“I tell him [Messi] that I’ll be champion and win against him and we have a good laugh.
“Playing with him and Kylian is a huge pleasure. They’re two greats, with Messi long considered the best in the world.
“Kylian is a young player who’s been growing and showing his potential and still has a lot to grow. It’s always great to play alongside the greats, I’ve always preferred that because the chances of winning are higher.”
Neymar feels Brazil are one of the favourites, but also highlighted a number of other teams he believes are capable of making the final on December 18.
“The World Cup is full of surprises,” he explained. “You get teams that unexpectedly get very far in the competition even if many don’t believe in them.
“But I believe the favourites are Argentina, Germany, Spain and France. I think those four along with Brazil are fully capable of reaching the final.”
At the age of 30, the Qatar World Cup could be Neymar’s last attempt at glory with Brazil, having fallen short in his two previous experiences at international football’s premier tournament.
One of those was particularly painful, when Neymar suffered a back injury in a victorious quarter-final meeting with Colombia at Brazil’s home tournament in 2014.
Neymar was ruled out of the semi-final with Germany, a match Brazil went on to lose by a humiliating 7-1 scoreline.
But the former Barcelona forward says his career would not feel incomplete if he were to never win the World Cup, saying: “No, in my career I’ve achieved things beyond my imagination.
“So, if it ended today, I would still be the happiest person in the world.”
Lionel Messi has played the entire game in Argentina’s final World Cup warm-up and scored in a 5-0 rout of the United Arab Emirates.
The pre-tournament favourites stretched their unbeaten run to 36 games, with Messi looking good over the 90 minutes amid a host of warm-up matches before the Qatar tournament on Wednesday.
Messi scored his team’s fourth goal right before the break, having also set up Julian Alvarez to open the scoring in the 17th minute. Angel di Maria scored twice in between.
Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni made four changes at halftime but opted against resting his star player, leaving Messi on for the full 90 minutes.
Inter Milan forward Joaquín Correa scored the visitors’ fifth goal on the hour mark.
Argentina start their World Cup against Saudi Arabia on November 22 before also facing Mexico and Poland in group C.
“We’re confident,” midfielder Rodrigo De Paul said.
“But for many it will their first World Cup so the first game will be very important.”
In Muscat, Niclas Fullkrug scored on his Germany debut as the four-time World Cup champions earned a 1-0 win over Oman.
It was far from a convincing performance from Germany, who looked susceptible in defence and prone to mistakes.
But Fullkrug’s introduction for the second half brought a new dimension to an attack that had failed to spark before the break.
Youssoufa Moukoko struck the post on his Germany debut right before the break, which as close as the visitors got in the first half.
The 17-year-old Moukoko was Germany’s youngest debutant since Uwe Seeler, who was younger by 16 days in 1954.
Moukoko then made way at the break for Fullkrug, with the 29-year-old forward almost scoring early in the second half only to be denied by a good save from the impressive Ibrahim Al-Mukhaini.
Germany remained vulnerable at the back but Oman sub Muhsen Al-Ghassani somehow missed with the goal at his mercy in the 72nd.
The hosts were to rue the miss when Kai Havertz set up Fullkrug to score the winner in the 80th.
In Warsaw, Robert Lewandowski watched from the bench as Poland edged Chile 1-0 in a bruising encounter thanks to a late goal from Krzysztof Piatek.
Lewandowski didn’t play but will likely start Poland’s tournament-opening game against Mexico on November 22.
Earlier, Andrej Kramaric’s late goal was enough for 2018 finalists Croatia to beat Saudi Arabia 1-0 in Riyadh.
Croatia star Luka Modric played only the last 25 minutes, enough to set up Kramaric for the winner in the 82nd.
Kramaric still had to elude five Saudi defenders before scoring his 20th international goal inside the far post.
Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic began with an unfamiliar line-up and gradually brought on his established players.
Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovacic, Hoffenheim forward Kramaric, Tottenham midfielder Ivan Perisic and Real Madrid’s Modric all came on in the second half.
Diego Maradona’s ‘Hand of God’ ball has attracted a top bid of Stg 2 million ($A3.5 million) at auction, but failed to reach a reserve as negotiations with interested parties and the seller over its sale continue.
Argentina captain Maradona scored two unforgettable goals in the quarter-final of the 1986 World Cup to beat England at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.
Maradona controversially punched the opener beyond England goalkeeper Peter Shilton – which the referee allowed to stand – before scoring a superb individual effort, later voted ‘Goal of the Century’.
The Argentina playmaker, who died aged 60 in November 2020, claimed his contentious opening goal was scored “a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God”.
England were knocked out of the tournament after losing 2-1, with Argentina going on to become world champions following victory over West Germany in the final.
Diego Maradona. (Photo by Etsuo Hara/Getty Images)
Tunisian referee Ali Bin Nasser, who took charge of the tie, owned the ball, which was included as one of more than 300 lots put up for sale by Graham Budd Auctions on Wednesday, with the initial estimate having been between Stg 2.5m ($A4.4 m) and Stg 3m ($A5.3 m).
The bidding started at Stg 1.4m ($A2.5 m) and eventually reached Stg 2m ($A3.5 m) when the hammer went down.
However, it is understood a reserve was not met, so negotiations are continuing between the seller and interested parties, with an agreement fully expected to be reached.
Maradona’s shirt from the match, which belonged to England midfielder Steve Hodge, fetched a record-breaking Stg 7.1m ($A12.5 m) at auction in May, having only been expected to achieve around Stg 4m ($A7.1 m).
Ahead of the auction, Bin Nasser said he felt it was the right time to share the item with the world and expressed hope the buyer would put it on public display.
Speaking of the handball goal, the Tunisian match official said: “I couldn’t see the incident clearly. The two players, Shilton and Maradona, were facing me from behind.
“As per FIFA’s instructions issued before the tournament I looked to my linesman for confirmation of the validity of the goal – he made his way back to the halfway line indicating he was satisfied that the goal should stand.
“At the end of the match the England head coach Bobby Robson said to me, ‘You did a good job, but the linesman was irresponsible’.”
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