Arnold backs Socceroos’ depth to deliver World Cup berth
THE COVID-19 crisis means a busy time ahead for the Socceroos but coach Graham Arnold is confident he has created squad depth to cope.
Australia faces a condensed schedule to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, with international football unlikely to resume for months due to the global pandemic.
World governing body
FIFA has even indicated international football may not return until 2021 to give club competitions a chance to complete their fixtures.
With the Olyroos also set to play in a rescheduled Olympics next year and a possible guest nation appearance at the postponed Copa America, Arnold’s men are looking at a bumper fixture list.
Arnold said growing depth in his national team options was his primary goal since taking over in 2018 as veterans Tim Cahill, Mile Jedinak and Mark Milligan reached the end of their international careers.
“I knew from what I saw that pretty much we as a country only had trust in 12 or 13 players,” Arnold said. “For me it was about creating depth and the depth would be needed by 2021 for the third phase of our World Cup qualifiers and moving into Qatar.”
From the first match of his reign against Kuwait in October 2018, Arnold handed debuts to 10 players, including Scottish-born duo Martin Boyle and Harry Souttar. Defender Brad Smith and striker Adam Taggart have made successful returns to the Socceroos setup while youngsters such as Ajdin Hrustic and Brandon Borrello are now regular call-ups.
Arnold has also introduced uncapped English-based midfielder Kenneth Dougall to his most recent squad while Daniel Arzani is waiting in the wings following his injury woes in the past 12 months.
“When I sat down the first week or so in the job ... I probably only had 25 that I could really look at and believe that would do a good job for us, buto nw I’ve probably got a list of 45,” Arnold said.
“I have the belief in those 45, that no matter who we play against they’ll do a great job.”
Arnold is eager for the game domestically to restart and provide more opportunity for young talent.
He believes the pandemic is a perfect opportunity for the A-League to reset, and says he’d like to see more games in Australia’s top flight to put the competition on a par with other major leagues.