Bruno Fornaroli’s stunning seven goals in six games to start the 2023/24 A-League season has wound back the clock and brought his name front and centre, with an Asian Cup on the horizon and his recent eligibility for his newly adopted homeland.
With two Socceroo caps under his belt in 2022 during World Cup qualification, the now 36-year-old has stormed into contention for national honours once again after a stunning start to the new campaign and a goal for the ages against Central Coast Mariners on Sunday afternoon.
It is an interesting decision around which Socceroo manager Graham Arnold may indeed have some headaches over the next month.
Some will argue selecting Fornaroli is simply an admission the younger attacking stocks in the Socceroos setup are not up to scratch and akin to looking back rather than forward.
Melbourne Victory’s Bruno Fornaroli celebrates a goal. (Photo by Jeremy Ng/Getty Images)
The serious injury to Brandon Borrello is worrying, considering Arnold does appear to have great faith in him.
Nick D’Agostino is simply not setting the world alight at Viking FK in Norway, and whilst Apostolos Stamatelopoulos and Noah Botic have great promise, they seem unlikely to be capable of leading the front line with great presence against the best teams in Asia by early January.
Jamie Maclaren and Mitchell Duke will of course be crucial for Arnold, with or without the presence of Fornaroli, yet even with the supporting cast of Awer Mabil, Martin Boyle, Garang Kuol and Craig Goodwin, the question of whether the two can convert as many opportunities up front against the cream of Asia as they do against some of the lesser lights is a fair one.
The midfield is looking solid and promising for the tournament which begins on January 12.
Massimo Luongo is spearheading Ipswich Town towards a return to the Premier League in England. Jackson Irvine seems to be getting better and better at St Pauli in Germany and his team mate Connor Metcalfe is almost certain to be part of the squad that Arnold eventually selects for a return to the familiar surroundings of Qatar.
The stuttering club career of Ajdin Hrustic at Verona is a concern, however with Riley McGree and Keanu Baccus also pressuring for starting positions, the depth looks good through the centre and the men up front will be hoping for service as good as ever seen by a Socceroos front line.
Socceroos forward Mitchell Duke. (Photo by Mike Hewitt – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)
The big question remains as to whether Fornaroli offers something that Maclaren and Duke do not, despite his years and if Arnold would indeed be a fool not to select him.
Perhaps the coach’s best course of action is to get on the blower and have a chat with Matildas mentor Tony Gustavsson. The Swede appears to have ticked off a majority of Australian supporters by leading some of his ‘lambs to the slaughter’ in Canada on Saturday, as his science experiment selections turned out to be nothing more than a threat to the lab in which he concocted them.
As soon as the Matildas starting eleven was announced, I commented on the live blog here at The Roar that the big question would be whether the Australian back four could communicate and hold firm under the weight of the pending Canadian attacks.
It was to prove exactly the case, as Charlize Rule and Courtney Nevin struggled, with the slowing Clare Polkinghorne and out of position Aivi Luik combining with them to form what looked a Swiss cheese-like defence.
All the while, Steph Catley, Alanna Kennedy, Clare Hunt and Ellie Carpenter sat on the pine, in a wholesale swap that did nothing but embarrass the players on the pitch.
The absurd injection of unproven youth and inexperience in the forms of Remy Siemsen, Amy Sayer and Sarah Hunter in the same starting eleven did nothing but prove to those players, potentially along with Alex Chidiac and Clare Wheeler, that they are well off international standard at this point in their careers.
Australia’s Courtney Nevin playing against Canada. (Photo by Jeff Vinnick/Getty Images for Football Australia)
If that was Gustavsson’s plan, he executed it perfectly. In fact, the disappointed players appeared to be the only humans to have taken anything from the entire experience.
As such, it is clear Gustavsson was wrong – however, could his recent rash and bold decisions make him the perfect man to guide Arnold through the challenge of tossing up the selection of an in-form Fornaroli versus a little investment in a younger striker, in spite of the former Uruguayan’s superior class?
Such are the big decisions made by coaches in modern professional football.
Based on form Fornaroli is a walk up start for the Asian Cup, yet as were a host of senior players for the Matildas in what was a valuable and important friendly against solid opposition, and one that was ultimately wasted.
Perhaps Arnold and Gustavsson should put their heads together and come up with the answer that gives the Socceroos a real shot at the title in Qatar?
Lionheart
Roar Rookie
better option than most names suggested
Sheffield WesDay
Roar Rookie
Henry Hore, Henry Hore, Henry Hore!!!
Garry
Roar Rookie
' He’ll pick Bruno over a Nestory.' I dont think so and I hope not. Duke will start (or MacLaren) and I see it as a good idea to give Irunkunda a few minutes. Then again I might play Yengi and Milesnic is looking worth a try. I see Fallandrolli as both a Backward step and bad for the team..hes a ball hogger
NickA
Roar Rookie
Milanovic has surprised me this year, he looks really good
Will
Roar Rookie
For me you play your best team at the Asian Cup, its the only trophy Australia can realistically win at international level so you put your best foot forward and worry about the future after that. There will be time to blood in the young generation next year with the expanded World Cup qualifiers spots and Olympic Games (providing we can qualify) next year to bring in new talent. I also dont think there isnt a young striker knocking down the door to take a spot from an older players, in terms of older players Bruno Fornaroli is making a strong case to be selected he’s not only scoring goals but looks sharp with he’s touch and fully fit and also provides the team with a different profile from other strikers we have got. I think we can make the semi finals and maybe win it providing if they bring the best team on the park, anything less than that it will be a let down after the incredible feat at the World Cup last year.
Lionheart
Roar Rookie
There have been plenty of calls in the media for those girls Gustavson played to get a turn (largely self-interest calls I might add). The US, Gustavson is the former US assistant coach, have routinely played two teams in friendlies, but they’ve had the player depth to do that, we don’t. But we do have enough players with the potential, m & f, if developed carefully. I would trust Arnie more than Gus to develop depth, but he’s not so foolish as to throw unproven players in the deep end. He’ll pick Bruno over a Nestory.
Lionheart
Roar Rookie
all good, but when the next game is a few days away, as in a Cup final series, you need depth to rotate players. Ange said it was a lesson he learned at the 2014 World Cup. Gustavson made no attempt to do it at this years WC.
Brainstrust
Roar Rookie
Fornarolis so called stunning performance has been anything but yes he has done more than McLaren. 2 good matches 2 hit and miss and 2 all miss. He had easy chances in 3 of the 4 draws. Milanovic has been very good both converting chances and other phases of play. Stametopoulos hasn;t offered a lot other than scoring goals. Borrello did nothing much before the injury, McLaren has done nothing outside of his tap ins, and he has been rubbish in every Socceroos match he has playerd. Milanovic should be the one picked. As far as picking old players its been a long time since this was an issue for the Socceroos. ONeill hung on for a bit too long but it didnt impact in the tournaments, Cahill went to the It was the 2010 world cup where Grella and Chipperfield a combination of being over the hill and recent injuries meant they should never have made the squad and it showed against Germany. As far as the Matildas as I pointed out three of the five goals were down to old players. Yallop ,Liuk, Polkinghorne need to be dumped. Van Egmond as well needs to go, she was the one change Gustavsson made at half time and was a non entity. The other point I would make once Sinclair came on the Canada press was certainly no longer going. While Fowler, Cooney Cross and Gorry were impressive coming on they had more latitude. Also notice how Canada when faced with a press hit the ball long, they weren't going to play out in those conditions. Sayer looks like an average midfielder in the A-league W there are about 50 players similiar why she is there playing an attacking position is completely beyond me. She has a lot of chances against weak opponents and showed little. Her fitness and workrate could be a lot better, there are a lot of A-league W players who would at least be capable of more pressing and movement. Sarah Hunter is a good player, she was just obeying Gustavsson orders turned in the penalty in a foolish manner and got blindsided as there was a Canadian right there when she turned. Why exactly did she get her debut in the worst of circumstances. She is an aggresive tackler, decent passer and has a good level of fitness. Rule I am not sold on her as fullback at international level, she isnt the fastest and at international level you have a lot of pace to deal with. She is quite big so could fit in nicely at centerback and she can pass well enough. The madness of playing out under pressure from the back has to stop. Gorry got caught out at the world cup many times doing it. The solution play out from the back if they aren't pressing if they are hit it long and then press them. If it comes to pressing the oppositon then players like Van Egmond are poor. Hunter would complement, Gorry, Chidiac,Raso .
Darkness1979
Roar Rookie
It seems like Gustavsson took the Eddie Jones approach, surely Arnold won’t do the same
AGO74
Roar Rookie
Yeah not sure on Bruno. He’d be third choice at best with limited options for the Asian Cup and I’m not really sure his style suits the way Socceroos play. Rather give that 3rd spot who realistically will have limited game time to a younger player with a view to the longer term World Cup qualifying path. As for TG and his selection on saturday, that was a poor decision. You can say “its only a friendly” and I think that statement is generally true for mens football as they are often snooze fests, but in my experience that is rarely the case with womens football. There isn’t in my view as big a difference in intensity between friendlies and competitive matches for womens internationals. Combine that with Canada wanting revenge after World Cup and this being the Christine Sinclair farewell tour then he really threw the inexperienced Matildas under the bus by sending them all out together in a lineup with such limited experience.
Buddy
Roar Rookie
The great dilemma; are we looking for a win or are we looking to experiment and develop players? It does appear there is always a need to win and please the paying public when at home but it really should vary according to the fixture type. what you don’t want to see in a friendly game is young players’ confidence shattered due to a result such as the Canadian one a few days ago. I would contend that the fixture was a friendly on paper; “anything but” in the minds of the whole Canadian set up who will have wanted to exact some kind of revenge, or put the record straight after their awful performance in the WC earlier in the year. My preference is to blood new talent in friendlies but to have experienced and wise players in close attendance to help them develop in their new role. Playing half a game or similar can be helpful but tipping a whole jug full of players through the sieve just to see what comes out is a chaotic recipe and helps nobody in my opinion. If it is a competition, pick players that are showing good form. Player loyalty shouldn’t really come into it except for the fact that if you suddenly found you had 11 players in great form and they were all uncapped - you might want to consider how to blend them in but when looking for goals, I would always look to players who regularly find the back of the net. We collectively get so frustrated in the final third of the field at so many levels that the holy grail has to be finding someone who has a higher rate of conversions.
Garry
Roar Rookie
Yengi
NickA
Roar Rookie
Not sure about this take. The Matildas experimenting in a friendly is completely different to the Socceroos playing in the Asian Cup. Yes it was tough to watch, and we all know there is a clear gulf in class between the first 11 and the rest, but players need to be tried and challenged to improve. Hardly a waste and that’s a little insulting to the players who played. GA won’t be experimenting during the Asian Cup – Why would he? At most you’ll see a bolter like Irankunda make the squad. This is a major tournament. In saying that re Tillies – Luik and Polks are too slow, error prone and need to be moved on now. I would have had different senior players in that team to support the younger girls. Polks and Luik do not rescue situations as well as they used to. But I digress. I think we need to relax about the Socceroos striking situation – when was the last time Australia actually had a striker who scored a bunch of goals for the NT? Apart from Cahill, has there been any standouts in the past 25 years? Our goals have always come from wingers, midfielders, set pieces – and there is nothing wrong with that. Yes we need to further develop strikers (and having half the AL strikers as foreign players does not help – it’s certainly better than what it was 5 years ago however) but Duke is super capable of leading the line and bringing others into play to score – he is easily my favourite of the options, despite not being a prolific goalscorer. McLaren can also play a role but Duke has proven to be more effective against bigger teams. McLaren offers almost nothing in that sense. Leckie can play as a 9 if needed – underrate in the air and can press from the front. But yes, there probably needs to be a spot for one of Fornaroli/Daggers/Yengi. As long as there is midfield/winger support for whoever plays that 9 role, I think we will be OK. Whether we’ll win the thing will have everything to do with how good Japan and SK currently are and very little to do with us. We are a long way behind those two nations.
Midfielder
Roar Guru
No one is talking about Sammy S..... gotta at least have a chance
Tigerinthetank
Roar Rookie
OR...Arnold look at a different set up with maybe two strikers up-front. Duke and Maclaren or Fornaroli or Botic say. It's not like the wingers are especially on fire apart from Goodwin. Boyle is breaking down half the time, Lecks just come back from injury, Mabil not playing regularly and Kuol has'nt done anything yet internationally. Why not go 4-1-3-2? That way you can use more of the midfielders who as you say are playing regularly and playing well. Say Goodwin, Irvine, Metcalf, and Luongo as DM with McGree and Baccus off the bench. I mean apart from Duke none of our strikers are especially tall whilst Irvine and Metcalf can provide support in the air, but crosses are'nt especially the way to go, so it's probably a better way to play through the middle of the park...I mean can't hurt to experiment.
chris1
Roar Rookie
Lots of tongue in cheek there. You'll be screeching for TG's head again soon :) I know the WC didn't turn out well for you because it would have meant TG getting the boot.
Ad Tastic
Roar Rookie
Silly question. Play your best side. Football is not Rugby or Cricket where blooding youth like you might do for a club team has some merit. International tournaments are few and far between in football. You really dont know where a player is going to be at in a year or two so just pick a side to win the next game.
Stevo
Roar Rookie
El Tuna up front??????????? Gustavsson would see that as a master stroke straight out of his football coaching manual I did it my way: Three easy recipes on how to smash a teams confidence Bruno is not at international level. You can bang them in for your ALM side but pickings for him will be very very slim against an able international team. Stick with Mitch Duke, he's providing plenty of action up front.