Socceroos coach means business

FOR almost half an hour there was one thing Bert van Marwijk did not do — he did not smile. Finally with a question on how to pronounce his name came the flicker of a grin. But that was it.

The message was simple. Van Marwijk means business.

The new coach of the Socceroos has precious little time to prepare his side for the World Cup, and he knows it.

A gushing introduction from FFA chairman Steven Lowy brought the slightest nod of the head. His responses to questions were considered but neutral.

There would be no hostages to fortune, no grand statements. There was only one message he repeated several times — “I like to win”.

It was the creed that would govern all his decisions, he said. The target is to garner enough points in their World Cup group to progress beyond it, and he will work backwards from there. The hints were that his team would be compact and disciplined without the ball, and look to strike like lightning when they won it.

After more than 20 minutes of playing a straight bat, there was a sudden engagement as he pondered the tactics that have most chance of success.

“I like to have the ball but in modern football you must have influence on the game when you don’t have the ball,” van Marwijk said.

The game is now all about space and how you use it. Manchester City, he noted, scored more goals than anyone from transition.