MIXED EMOTIONS FOR PROUD ANGE
FOR Ange Postecoglou there was regret to go with the pride. A sense of what might have been.
The Socceroos coach saw a “missed opportunity” in Russia after his young side put in a rousing performance against Chile in their final Confederations Cup group game but didn’t secure the win needed to reach the last four.
After defeat to Germany and a draw with Cameroon, Australia were behind the eight-ball, needing to win by two clear goals in Moscow to leapfrog the South American champions in the standings.
Few gave it a chance. But for long periods Australia looked like pulling it off.
“I thought we were the better side and deserved to get something out of it,” Postecoglou said.
“We needed to face up to them tonight. It’s what we want to be as a team. We’ve tried to be like that against every team we’ve played.
“We obviously wanted to win the game and win by two goals but more importantly we wanted to be the team dominating the game.”
Six changes from the Cameroon game and a couple of positional tweaks paid dividends.
Australia for large spells outfought and outplayed a Chile side renowned for their work ethic.
There were standout performances across the park. Defensive midfielders Massimo Luongo and Jackson Irvine set the tone from the off.
“It was going to be intense from the start,’’ Irvine said.
“We know how tenacious and aggressive Chile are and the way they like to play.
“First and foremost you have to match that. Right from the offset we made our intent very clear.”
Australia’s James Troisi was named man of the match and scored with an exquisite chip in the 42nd minute.
Many of Chile’s key men play in Europe’s top divisions.
“There are (Socceroos) guys out there that should be playing for top clubs,” Postecoglou said.
“Hopefully by us consistently measuring ourselves against the best, we get that opportunity because it needs to happen.
“There’s no doubt the final step for us is we need our players playing at the highest possible level.’’