‘Arnie’ back in charge
GRAHAM Arnold has vowed not to get under the feet of Socceroos boss Bert van Marwijk as he was named as the Dutchman’s long-term successor yesterday, to take charge after the World Cup.
The Sydney FC coach was one of the main candidates to replace Ange Postecoglou, who quit in November after the Socceroos defeated Honduras in a playoff to qualify for Russia 2018.
But the former Socceroos caretaker boss wanted to see out his contract with the ALeague side and ruled himself out of contention.
Instead van Marwijk, who took the Netherlands to the 2010 World Cup final, was appointed in January on a five-month contract.
“It is a very great honour to coach your national team. It’s a job I have always been interested in doing and I believe the timing is perfect for me,” said Arnold, a former striker who played for Australia 56 times.
He said he would be making no further comment until after the World Cup “out of respect for Sydney FC and out of respect for Bert van Marwijk”.
“I said at the time that I thought he ( van Marwijk) was a great appointment to lead the Socceroos in Russia and everything he has done since has reinforced that view,” he said. “I won’t be getting under his feet but I will be cheering him and the team on from the stands.”
The Socceroos have been drawn in Group C with France, Denmark and Peru, with their first game against Les Bleus on June 16.
Football Federation Australia chairman Steven Lowy said Arnold had been hired on four-year deal.
“Arnie is clearly, in our opinion, the best person for the job, not just the best Australian but the best person for the job,” he said.
“His pedigree as a footballer and as a coach . . . his success more recently with both the Central Coast Mariners and Sydney FC has clearly given Arnie the right to be put forward for the job.”
Sydney-born Arnold, 54, has experience at international level, having worked as an assistant to former Socceroos coach Frank Farina between 2000-05 and then under Guus Hiddink and Pim Verbeek.
He managed the team at the 2007 Asian Cup in a caretaker role for 12 months, making the quarter-finals.
Arnold stayed on as Verbeek’s assistant, including at the 2010 World Cup, before being appointed coach of the Central Coast Mariners, where he spent three years and led them to the championship in 2013.
More recently he has been in charge at Sydney, guiding it to the title last season, with the 2019 Asian Cup in the UAE his first major tournament back in charge of Australia.