Kicking off the hectic month of June is a preview of Sunday’s (possible) game:
Desired Formation
Schwarzer
Emerton – Beauchamp – North – Wilkshire
Bresciano- Grella – Carle- Carney
McDonald – Djite
Likely Formation
Schwarzer
Emerton – Beauchamp – North – Carney
Bresciano – Grella – Culina – Kewell
McDonald – Djite
Verbeek will have a serious crack at claiming all three points and at the same time, put the Asian Cup Champions out of the running. Consequently, I think he will go with a more attacking approach than what we have seen in the last few games by playing a 4-4-2.
I have selected my desired formation based on form.
Defence
With Neill out, Beauchamp and North will start although Beauchamp still makes me nervous when he has the ball at his feet. Because of the abundance of central midfield talent, I think Verbeek will utilise the versatility of Wilkshire and play him in one of the full-back positions. I have selected him at left-back, even though he is naturally right footed, so the Carney can be released from his defensive duties. In recent games, the Twente player has yet to let Australia down and he has had a very good season in Holland with his team beating Ajax in the play-off for the Champions League place. Emerton is an automatic selection at right-back and he will provide valuable experience to an inexperience defensive line-up.
Midfield
I have selected Carney on the left because Troisi really didn’t stand up and grab his chance in the Ghana game while I have previously stated that I think that Kewell’s days on the wings are over. Carney is also a relatively traditional winger that hugs the touchline and has the capacity to run at players and stretch defences. I have selected Carle because I think his form for Bristol City warrants a starting place. He is a central midfielder but during his season with Bristol, he showed his versatility as he was played across all midfield positions, from playing as a winger to being a defensive and attacking midfielder. Hence, having him on the field will also allow Verbeek to be tactic flexible as the game progresses. As every one of his fans advocate, he provides something that no other player in the squad has, the X-Factor that open defences and Verbeek will need this against Iraq.
Although Bresciano probably prefers the centre of the back, I think playing Carle on the flank will take away more from his game relative to Bresciano . With Carney playing on the left and the overlapping runs of Emerton on the right, playing Bresciano on the right should not deprive Australia of width as Bresciano might tend to drift towards the centre.
In the centre of the park will be Grella. His presence was sorely missed in the game against Ghana as Australia failed to exert any kind of control of the midfield or the game. Grella will be the ball winner while Carle will have play-making responsibilities. Note: I prefer is actually yo start Valeri ahead of the much more experience Grella. As I have previously advocated, I think Valeri offers a bit more when it comes to bringing the ball out of defence because I think he has greater passing range. Grella is more of an enforcer. In any case, I really can’t see Grella not starting.
With all the midfield players being good passers, the aim is to dominate possession and control the game, even if we are outnumbered if Iraq plays five in midfield.
Forwards
With the form of McDonald, I really can’t see him not starting. It has been a long time since Australia has had a striker that has racked up so many goals in Europe. However, I also cannot see Verbeek asking a poacher like McDonald to lead the line alone (he will be very ineffective if he does in my opinion). For Celtic, McDonald has struck a very potent partnership with the big Dutchman, Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink. McDonald will need someone to play off. Looking at the squad, it looks like the contenders are Joel Griffiths and Bruce Djite. Djite was apparently going to start against China before he was injured so he might be Verbeek’s preference. In any case, I think that the power and pace of Djite is more suited to the role. Griffiths was starved of service against China so it would be harsh to judge him on that performance. As for Djite, he is coming back from injury which might hamper his selection prospects. However, coming on as a substitute against Changchun Yatai, Djite looked fit and ready and did trouble the Chinese defence.
Differences
Yes, I dropped Kewell. Against Ghana, he showed that he is yet to find match-fitness while his touch is not yet at the required level. While I expect Verbeek to start Kewell, not starting him would send out a clear message that reputations are irrelevant when it comes to selection. I don’t have Sterjovski starting either, mainly because I think it is about time that Carle is given a proper go and his form warrants it. I don’t think Carle is an impact player that you can bring off the bench. His influence over a game is really felt over when he is given the time to dictate the game on his own terms which really requires him to be there from the start.
In relation to Culina, he is just coming back from a hip injury but is apparently ready to go. There is no real reason not to play Culina as he has been a consistent performer for Australia. I just won’t have him starting in front of any of the midfielders I have selected in my preferred line-up. Another that might be very unlucky to miss out on a starting spot is Valeri who delivered a very assured performance against China.
In doing this preview, it has become apparent that Australia is extremely strong and has plenty of depth in central midfield (Cahill is still to come back) while we are lacking depth and experience up forward and in the centre of defence.
Prediction
After a rather shambolic performance against Ghana, I’m expecting Verbeek and the team to want to put the post-match criticisms, knee-jerk reactions and the Asian Cup Champions to bed. Australia to cruise to a 2-0 victory in front of a packed Suncorp with McDonald and Djite the scorers.
9 Comments
May 29, 2008 at 3:36 pm
I love previews
Ok, I can’t see us playing two up front (not from the start anyway). I think a 4-4-3 or 4-2-3-1 more likely. (Note I am used to having the left and right sides around the other way to the way you have depicted it)
Schwarzer
Emerton – North – Beauchamp – Carney
Grella – Valeri
Sterjovski—-Carle —–Bresciano
McDonald
Back four pick themselves, I am not connvinced that he will start Culina and will instead opt for Valeri. Carle should start though he may opt to play Bresciano in the middle and play Kewell on the left.
May 29, 2008 at 6:47 pm
Playing as the sole striker can be a pretty thankless task as Griffiths showed the other night. Chances are, you will receive the ball with your back to the goal while you are also likely to find yourself a fair way from the position goal as you drop deep to help with the buildup play.
All these aspects of the sole striker role really takes away from the game of McDonald who pretty much just wants to be in the box or hanging off the shoulder of the last defender.
Although there is a real possibility that Verbeek will go with five in midfield given the immense talent we have in the centre of the park, I just can’t see him using McDonald as the sole striker.
May 30, 2008 at 5:27 pm
great preview. i love this blog. im not an expert on soccer (i’m an american haha), but i played it for a long time and love watching it. australia is my favorite team, so i have been following them since the 2006 world cup (3 goals in 8 minutes required me to take an interest). in any case, here is an amateur’s opinion:
i would also like to see wilkshire play, as i have been impressed with him in the past. bresciano seems to do better in the middle, and is very good at making space and encouraging a more tactical approach to the game.
kewell i still like to see play. although his performance in the ghana match was not super strong (apparently, i didnt see the match, just highlights), i think he has the potential to do some real damage and should not be counted out. he is healthy for the first time in a while, and i think this game might be the turning point he needs. that is, if he is played on the wing. he will have better support as well, with emerton, bresciano and other primary players.
keep in mind i know relatively nothing about this game, so take what i say with a grain of salt. i just want to see a good game. if im staying up til 4 AM, it better be a good game haha.
May 30, 2008 at 7:23 pm
i hope he play djite hes bloody awesome and has an amazing presence that nobody in that squad has
May 31, 2008 at 12:02 am
Great to see you guys enjoying the read cause I love writing about football.
xfirestormx, I think are discounting your own knowledge of the game. I too have become a fan of Wilkshire due to the consistency of his performances and I agree that Bresciano prefers the freedom of the middle of the park. It’s football but unfortunately, it’s still known as soccer in Australia and the US.
“hes bloody awesome and has an amazing presence that nobody in that squad has”. Absolutely agree, he does have a presence about him that troubles defenders, despite his youth. It’s a quality that I think a player is born with, much like a poachers instinct.
May 31, 2008 at 5:07 am
one of the reasons i was saying that i dont know much about the game is i have yet to really see the A-league players in action. i hear djite is fantastic, but i have yet to see him play. well i may have seen him play, but i would never know it because i watch the games on chinese tv (only channel that plays the games on tvuplayer), so i have no idea who has the ball most of the time (the players are so blurry, they are hard to see. that is unless i recognize bresciano with his bald head). but yeah its hard to pick out the names because i dont understand the language. i got sky sports from england playing the game this time around though, so hopefully they will play it. better picture quality and understandable commentary — definitely a plus.
anyway, returning from that tangent, what do you guys think of holman? possible to see him on one of the wings in the midfield? he and bresciano seemed to connect a bit in the china qualifier, but other than that i havent seen much of him.
June 1, 2008 at 1:01 pm
In relation to Holman, I think we’ll have to wait to see what he can deliver for the Socceroos. He as very good and workman like against China. The real test will be when we play attacking football and how much of a threat he can provide in the final third
June 1, 2008 at 6:00 pm
oh my god. its halftime now, and iraq has just about given me a heart attack. seems to me that the team has worked on their individual skill a whole lot. harry kewell has impressed me quite a few times. that bresciano shot was beautiful, but we need to find the net. the second half is just about to start. GO AUSTRALIA!
June 1, 2008 at 7:06 pm
AND THEY WIN! terrifying ****ing game haha. i was seriously dreading the iraqis any time they had the ball. i have to say i was impressed with the iraqis, but their lack of striking power was their demise. (also you should know that i am a very worrisome person, so that may be why i was so nervous).
and what a goal by harry kewell! his footwork, passing, etc etc was spectacular. what a game for that guy.
overall, great game, very exciting, but australia has to work on their defense quite a bit. too many players with too much space. schwarzer was the hero quite a few times, and, although i love seeing him save like he did, i’d rather he sit back and not have to do anything the entire match.
passing was good for the most part, in my opinion. control of the midfield and pace was fantastic in my opinion. but i wasnt really analyzing the game as i was too busy biting my fingernails and dreading iraqi attacks.
good game though. im glad i watched it. djite played well, but he was kind of being a d**k at the end there. but i thought it was pretty hilarious, so whatever. thats life, iraqis. dont dance around like kangaroos next time.