A day before Australian football looked to its past, Tony Popovic sent out a side to face Venezuela focused on its future. Nineteen years and 364 days ago, the Golden Generation defender had been part of the side that defeated Uruguay in a shootout to end 32 years of heartbreak and send the Socceroos back to the promised land. Two decades on, here he was in the dugout of Shell Energy Stadium, tinkering and experimenting before a sixth-straight World Cup for Australia.
Popovic had named an XI with three debutants – the most in 12 years – and a player in Nestory Irankunda that hadn’t been born when John Alosi scored that famous penalty.
By the end of the 1-0 defeat by Venezuela, however, that one-goal margin perhaps flattering the Socceroos, much of the romance had been taken out of proceedings. In its place stood a reminder, a lesson, that there’s still plenty that needs to be addressed and hard decisions that need to be made before next year’s World Cup.
The South Americans were, quite simply, better. Sometimes it’s just that simple. They were more physical, better in possession, won their duels and second balls, and played with greater fluidity, purpose, and drive than Australia. Far from looking like a nation that has never qualified for a World Cup and was fielding a side filled with new blood under an interim coach, it was Fernando Aristeguieta’s unit that looked like they were tuning up for the tournament in North America.
Australia, meanwhile, appeared as if they were still figuring things out, and, to an extent, that’s exactly what they were doing given the number of debutants, old faces in new positions, and the evolution Popovic says he’s attempting to implement in his side’s attack.
But with the finals now just seven months away, an extended runway secured through June’s automatic qualification is rapidly diminishing. While defeats can often prove just as informative as wins, sometimes even more so by showing what’s not working, a defeat that feels like a regression from the previous month’s loss is hardly ideal.
Debutant Patrick Beach was Australia’s best player against Venezuela. Photograph: Tim Warner/Getty Images for Soccer Australia
“Each one of us can learn something from this game, and there’s probably more negatives to learn than the positives,” said Riley McGree. The forward added a spark off the bench in the second half after making his return from an injury that had sidelined him since June. “We probably didn’t create as many chances, and we weren’t as fluid as we wanted to be.”
It should be noted that the youngsters were not at fault against a Venezuelan squad with 25 players possessing 10 caps or fewer. The 22-year-old debutant Patrick Beach was probably Australia’s best player, the Melbourne City goalkeeper denying Jesús Ramírez a hat-trick. Kai Trewin and Paul Okon-Engstler, for their part, were not spectacular but did not disgrace themselves, while the substitute Al Hassan Touré forced José Contreras into a sharp save amid signs of a late revival by the Socceroos.
Popovic’s hand has been somewhat forced. Craig Goodwin, for instance, almost certainly doesn’t spend an ill-fated half at left wing-back, an idea likely to now be consigned to the scrapheap, if Jordy Bos or Aziz Behich is fit.
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The central defenders Harry Souttar and Alessandro Circati are probably among the best XI when present, and in the midfield, McGree and Jackson Irvine were never going to start their first games back after long-term absences. Nick D’Agostino, who was shaping as a potential starter, also went down with an injury in the final moments of training on Thursday, the striker’s absence disrupting plans.
Yet with just 270 minutes of football remaining until Popovic names his 26-player squad – starting on Tuesday against Colombia in New York before two further games, likely at home, next March – every minute on the pitch isn’t just precious in seeking solutions for the Socceroos’ longstanding foibles in possession, but for those players who want to be part of his plans next June.
The coach may want to leave the door open as long as possible, but he’ll likely be zeroing in on his preferred squad in the months ahead, so the clock is ticking. And as McGree and Irvine return, and Souttar and Bos continue their recoveries, it’s not just Popovic confronting a rapidly shrinking target.
With a World Cup dark horse awaiting the Socceroos in the Big Apple on Tuesday, it’s not going to get any easier.
