Socceroos coach in a hurry
BERT van Marwijk will return to Europe today and may not be seen on Australian soil again as the Socceroos coach ponders the best use of limited time before the World Cup.
There are less than seven weeks until his first match in charge as Australia coach – a friendly against Norway in Oslo on March 24 – and about four months until the Socceroos kick off their tournament against France.
The Dutchman says there isn’t a moment to spare.
“I have to go back as soon as possible as I need all the time,” he said yesterday, ending his planning week in Sydney.
The 65-year-old has a preference for time on the training track rather than friendly matches, which could mean the Socceroos forgo their recent trend of playing a send-off match before a World Cup.
And it’s unlikely he sees the benefit of spending more time in Australian stands.
“I saw four games, one (youth league,three A-League) ... I saw one good game. I was positively surprised at the level of that game,” he said, referring to Newcastle’s 2-0 defeat of Melbourne Victory.
He will head up scouting efforts in England and the continent to assess the Australians.
Van Marwijk’s priorities reveal his key concern for Australia – scoring goals.
“We are making plans already to see where we are going to scout,” he said.