Re: Official Socceroos Thread

[BarcaKizz]

I ended the WC on Fifa just losing the semi to Brazil and then the 3rd place match to Spain. but also

In the end I had changed my team to:

Federici
Williams McGowan Spiro Wilkshire
Jedinak/Mooy Herd
Leckie Amini Troisi
Kruse

Ruka the impact sub with +90 pace.

Nice comments Sanchez. Very cool that you've seen some of Lowry. Can he be used before 2014 you think? I'd like some of these guys in the squad rather than the likes of North, Thwaite and Milligan.

McGowan and Williams can both play CB as well as RB and I'd love them in the squad. In fact, it's an abomination Williams keeps missing call up. He was superb last year for us. Can play 3 positions too...

At LB, I think it should be between Davidson, Zullo and anyone else we can find lol. Agree on Zullo... Hopefully Davidson can come good. Has a little bit more to him physically and defensively. I'd like to see him get a few more chances. Otherwise McKay hasn't been too bad there.

No 10 I would have Holman, because our other players aren't ready and he's easily our most influential. Thus he needs to be more central and see more ball. Then I'd like Ruka and Kruse flanking him.

Up front, well unless they look elsewhere the best we have now is Brosque and he has been scoring plenty in Saudi.

We need to groom Rogic for the 10 with bench appearances etc and we can't forget Amini. Oar needs to be there too as he proved his quality again against Korea.

[The Sanchez]

Lowry should be in this Australian squad and definately is ready for WC. As I said, Holger will play Niell in the centre of defense and nothing will happen for him to change his mind (except probably injury lol...) so Lowry is good to have a backup... McGowan is a good backup as well and will hopefully be in there... Both these players are better than any A-League player or any defender who play in the East Asian Qualifiers.
Williams NEEDS to be in the squad. As you said, he has performed superb especially playing in some many positions to fit into Holger's side. Not only that but when he hasn't been injured for Middlesborough he really is something to watch, similar to Milligan better equiped in those three positions. Wilshere as RB, Jedinak at DM, Niell + Spiranovic in the middle, its going to be hard to find a place on the pitch but he will offer alot as a sub if Holger chooses to. Why? Because of the number of positions he can play...
Kizz the only reason why he probably isnt being selected is because he gets injured frequently...
No North or Thwaite please... Both have shown struggles in the NT and even at club level...
Holman is a better option than Cahill imo. We play constant long balls to him, losing more possession and losing that passing rhythm that we use to play in the Asian Cup... Definately Brett is our most influential and best player ATM. Got to start and instead on the right, in the middle. As much as I like Rogic, he wouldnt develop enough as a player for the WC. He needs to play regular football in experienced leagues. Since he turned down Reading and probably QPR, we probably know at this stage that he won't be going...
Do you think Brosque has been doing better than McDonald in Championship?
Amini should be a possibility as well, a better and experienced version of Rogic.

[BarcaKizz]

Btw Troisi never played in A league. He was in the Newcastle united (Geordies) youth then moved to turkey and now Italy. I think he has some talent.

While McDonald has been doing well too, he has a few real problems. Mainly that he has the yips at Int level and it seems to have really gotten to him. He's a natural finisher and kinda like Chicharito he's a poacher. If he's not scoring, then he's really not that useful.

Brosque has a few things over him in that he plays in Asia, he's already in the Socceroos squad and arguably earnt his spot, and he's more tactically flexible.

It's clear that we don't really have an ace No 9. There is a reluctance to give Porta a go and there aren't any real 'pick me' standouts in the A-League. I think it would be great if Bulut developed to be our future striker, but he has big attitude problems. Was jailed.

We've looked best just playing fluid up front with players interchanging positions, like Brosque, Kruse, Thompson etc. I'd just keep it that way.

Against Romania hopefully we'll see a good squad.

[The Sanchez]

Yeah. Don't know what I have been watching but I remember a few games I watched him somewhere where he looked like he lacked pace and skill...

Who do you think should be in the squad to Spain against Romania?

[The Sanchez]

We lost 3-2 to Romania. We played absolute crap tbh and found it hard to keep possession at times and create opportunities. As usual Kruse was our most threatening player getting in behind the defense. Some of his link up play was . W didn't find any answers again with the centre of our defense. Cornflakes and Niell are not a satisfactory centre half partnership. Both are slow and are regularly out of positioned. Constantly I watched Romania run straight through these two. Try tried to play offside trap and Niell or Cornflakes kept on playing the forwards on side which was annoying because none of our defenders had the pace to track back. Zullo was constantly out of positioned and when he was called to defend, he let his man past him. With more game time, he will improve but the Romanian game was the chance to cement his spot in the team.
Don't know why Schwz played but he had a terrible game and didn't look at all comfortable with or without the ball. Didn't command his box like he usually does. Federci was more comfortable when he came on and don't particularly blame him for the two goals that he missed. Schwz made a massive mistake, palming instead of catching the ball giving Romania an open goal to shoot at.
Midfield was a mess. Had two DLP trying to hold our midfield which didn't work. Holland played some great through balls to Kruse and did some nice dirty work. Bresciano tried to control the midfield and keep possession but he simply doesn't have the stamina to play the DLP role. If Jedinak was not injured we would have turnover possession more often and win more balls. Would have someone back when Romania was on the counter. Holland or Bresc didn't stay back and win the ball back quickly enough for my liking.
Brusque had a shocker and I would have preferred if McDonald had a run even if he flops internationally because at least he is used to European conditions. Brusque didn't do anything much. No pace to get behind the defense, didn't hold the ball well at all. Leckie should have come on earlier as he proved to be a problem. Rhys Williams when he came on, didn't know the basics of defending. Couldn't mark his man properly, positioning was terrible. Was at fault for the second goal I think. If he focused on becoming a centre back then he would be great to have as he has pace which no centre back has. McGowan had a decent performance and I wish he played more minutes...

[Forza]

Couldn't agree more Sanchez. I have no idea how some of these scrubs are still getting a game with the NT. Neill and Cornflakes are the definition of scrub. Brosque, meh. He's good for Asia and the A-League, but there's no way he'd cut it in Europe.

Another thing, it's obvious to everyone except the Socceroos management that Langerak is the future at GK. Schwarzy isn't going to make 2014, and if he does, he'll be well past prime. He is not the GK he used to be. Same with Bresciano, as much as I like him.

[The Sanchez]

What got me annoyed the most was the fact that Holger originally stated that he wanted to focus on how the Australians doing in Europe can put to the table. Cronwhaite, Niell, Bresciano, Brosque, McKay all started that match alongside Schwz who we all have a clue what he puts to the table. These are all Asian players who some of them we already know what they can do and what they cant. Williams, McGowan (who has European experience), Ruka, Leckie (alongside Oar and Jedinak if they we fit) should have all started. See how McGowan can cope under pressure instead of just subbing him in for the last 10 or so minutes. How does that help his development or showcase what he can do? Ruka needs game time for his club and Romania would have been a great game to really encourage Mainz to play him more often. Leckie who is playing regular minutes in the B comp of Bundesliga with Frankfurt II can at least get 30 minutes given that Brosque was doing nothing.
Holger is giving Australians the shits. Probably thinks old and experience will help us get through to a decent spot in the WC which it won't.
I kind of wonder how we aren't near the quality when Hiddink picked us up in honesty. Hiddink comes and he has almost every player he picks playing regular football in Europe in which we hadn't at that point of time reached a WC since 1974 and now we have made 2 WC and possibly a third and yet we struggling to get our Aussies playing regular football in Europe. And with those who are playing in Europe, they aren't even getting selected to play games (Oar, Ruka, Leckie, Holland before now, Langervak, Lowry, McDonald). When Holger came in he really should of developed these young ones through minutes on the international stage just at least for clubs around Europe to at least take a glance at them. But he has sticked firmly with the old ones and gonna leave a lot of work for our next coach to fill in.
Scrubs like Cronwhaite, Niell, Brosque etc. will probably be playing more time which will be the biggest mistake heading into a WC.

[The Sanchez]

Socceroos play Oman tonight at 7.30 but SBS is holding a half-an-hour delay for free-to-air users to watch.
As for the game, Niell is suspended and Spiranovic is injured meaning that Cronwhaite will start alongside either Rhys Williams, McGowan, Dubo, Milligan, North or Thwaite. Williams seems to be the most popular choice.
-----------------Schwz-------------------
Wilshere--Cornflakes--Williams--McKay
--------Jedinak-----------Bresciano-----
---Kruse-------Cahill---------Oar--------
----------------Brosque-------------------

Even though I hate it, Cahill will start and that will mean that Bresciano will be moved further deeper giving him more work to do and asking for him to be subbed off early in the second half. This will also mean will be be putting up long balls for Cahill hoping he holds it up well for the leading of a counter attack. It will mean less direction and more possession being lost. I would have hoped Bresc to be further up and place Holland further down meaning Australia will play better passing possession football as well as more chances being created.

[BarcaKizz]

Don't see Holman being rested... and I'd really like to see someone new in midfield, maybe Holland or Rogic.

I dunno how well McGowan plays CB but I rate him like Williams. They look better players than Cornflakes.

[The Sanchez]

Preferred lineup:

------------------Schwz-----------------
Wilshere--Williams--Cornflakes--McKay
-----Jedinak------------Holland---------
---Kruse-------Bresciano--------Oar----
-----------------Brosque-----------------

Cornflakes is a scrub no doubt about it but he has more experience in the centre than any of the other defenders selected in the squad

[BarcaKizz]

Not really, Milligan and North have more in my opinion. Only thing is I hate North, doesn't deserved to make the squad.

Milligan's been brilliant at DM, so he could be in with a shot.

Tbh I'd most prefer Holman or Rogic in the hole... Bresch is so damn old, if he makes it I'd prefer him continue to reinvent himself as a deep-lying playmaker.

I'd most prefer Cahill as an impact sub.

Like your wingers, but they seem reluctant to give Oar chances... I hope to see him at some point though.

[The Sanchez]

Hate the long balls to Cahill. We didn't deserve a draw but I'm glad we still have a better chance of qualifying through...

[Forza]

Stupid crosses from halfway down the pitch - what the hell is with that?

Al-Habsi saved Oman so many times.

I love Bresc, but he was out of touch tonight when he came on. Jedinak was clueless, not just talking about the OG either. Oar and Kruse look promising, but the rest of the team looks very, very slow.

Holman did one good thing all game and Cahill carried the only serious attacking threat.

[BarcaKizz]

Jesus christ... I'm so annoyed right now. Can't believe I paid for that?!...

Where do I start? Where was the fking hunger? Was the team complacent or what... they didn't play with any urgency until not one, but 2 goals were scored against them. Disgraceful.

Oman worked really hard in midfield and defence, but come on... We should be beating this team 3-0... It should be chips.

1st Half:
First half we were just wayyy too slow on the ball. Passing was far too lateral and there was zero penetration. Nobody in midfield seemed brave enough to move or pass vertically and the wingers weren't hitting the line.

Thwaite/ CB selection:
The first goal exposed a horrible defensive selection in Thwaite. Why pick 2 lumbering big oafs when you've got Milligan, Williams and McGowan (firstly all have more quality) who actually have pace? The reason was that these two partnered each other at that South East Asian Cup. Yeah, against teams like fking Cambodia... Jesus. Get it right, the guy just ran round Thwaite and poked it through, it was disgraceful.

He's a decent CB, sure, but its simple... you don't pair two guys like this.

Cahill at #9:
We played better once we got some urgency, but still... only player who really looked threatening in open play was Kruse (and he got subbed! lol). Its a shame that uneducated press will sing of how Cahill saved us, and yes... he is insanely good at what he does. However, should we be relying on Timmy trademark set-piece goals against teams like these? No! We should be winning these games in open play.

Don't think you'd hear this from many, but Cahill really gave very little in our actual play. At the game I noticed he permanently played with back to goal as a reference number 9. This is because he's not a natural striker. He offers no threat in behind and hardly ever moved to link up. We really needed someone to start making some penetrating runs off the ball. Just some runs off the shoulder of the CBs.. Archie, Brosque... someone, but instead they kept with Cahill and everyone playing off him.

If you aren't going to use Brosque, who can actually make decent runs, then just don't play him. We have better wingers and better mids.

Midfield:
Very ordinary. Now I'm spoilt as a Barca fan, but we're just crying out to see someone with a decent touch who can zip the ball around.

Jedinak is a destroyer and he's a super ball-winner, but thats where his qualities end... He's slow in possession, struggles to make fast, short link passes and seemed too scared to do anything but lateral and back-passes. Didn't offer a link with Holman or Cahill at all.

Holland tried to link play at times and I saw a few positives. Generally when he was on, the movement was really poor. If his defensive abilities are up to it, he should be playing the holding role instead of Jedinak. But all in all, pretty invisible.

The Bresch subsitution really did little. I think the improvement was more that the team started playing with more urgency. His link-up play with Holman etc was really off and he really didn't offer much of an improvement on Holland. He also is a defensive liability. Think his days are done tbh.

Who I would have brought on? Rogic... Was warming up in front of me all night and could have offered that drive out of midfield. Great touch and could have just opened up those pockets outside the box we so dearly needed.

Holger and youth:
Interesting and stupid comment by Holger after the game.

"I expected more from the young players."

Well, playing them would be a start... Who is he blaming as well? Kruse did offer you something you fool! Holland wasn't great, but no worse than the old farts who were on.

Seriously man, I'd love to see what we could do if we just threw on all our youngsters. After that performance its warranted as well.

If anything, I thought the youngsters showed promise and the ones left on the bench wasted. You need to play them more, not less. All this rhetoric about experience is just BS. We had enough experience on the field and still played horribly. No passion.

Blood the youngsters.

[BarcaKizz]

I would completely back this team next game:

Schwarzer
Williams Neill Spiranovic Zullo
Milligan Rogic
Kruse Holman Oar
Brosque/Cahill

Actually... just add to this.

Why isn't Williams fking playing!!! He's shown so much quality when he's gotten his chances. Instead we play these absolute hacks like Cornflakes, Dead-waite and Jedinak... Come on! Its not that hard to spot quality.

[Forza]

I've said it before, but Cassio would be a great addition to our current squad at LB too. Wilshere was really off today.

I pretty much agree with you on the analysis.

Schwarzer is past his best too. It's time to give Langerak the gloves.

[The Sanchez]

Agree Kizz with everything you said. You don't pair up two center backs who are both slow. Straight away when I saw the starting line up I knew we were in trouble given that reports were saying that Oman had some quick forwards... Cornflakes was constantly been dragged into the wrong position that the holding mids were covering... The first goal was because of Cornflakes being out of position and also Dead-whatie being on the wrong side of his marker/lack of pace...
The first half was slow. Ball movement was slow, and movement off the ball was non-existent. When Bresciano came on....he played far longer balls which had the effect of speeding up the game.
Jedinak and Holland sit too deep and don't provide anything creatively.
4-4-2 with two holding midfielders means that you lose the creativity and asking for a different sort of playing style, long ball/crosses up front pressuring Cahill to be a danger in front of goal. Massive space in midfield that Oman can use and create. 4-2-3-1 means with a DLP in either Rogic, Milligan or Bresciano with an AM to use the space that we left last night (Bresc or Rogic). This means we can create more, control possession better and create better opportunities. It also means that we don't play as many long balls/crosses to no one and allow wingers like Kruse and Oar to use their pace, get in behind the defense and cross the ball into the number 9 (who should be Cahill).
Even though Holman scored the lucky goal that gave us the draw I thought he was very poor. He lost the ball way too many times, first touch always poor and in the wrong position at the wrong time.
Oar, Rogic/Bresciano, Williams should have started. If Holger like he said in the press conference wanted to play attacking football then he should have started players who can provide alot in attack. Oar pace, creativity, runs in behind the defense and crosses could have been a real threat. Rogic/Bresc provide creativity. In a 4-4-2 play Bresc/Rogic in a more advanced attacking role creating chances for Oar/Kruse to latch onto... or a 4-2-3-1 with one player as a DLP and the other as a AM...

What pisses me off the most about the match was HOLDger's post match comments...
"I expected more from the young players."
Wtf? First of all you didn't even play any youngsters and second of all the youngsters that did play, were much better than the other 8 or so old ones. Kruse was one of our best attacking options and when we got rid of him for Thompson we lost a lot of attacking play. Oar changed the game in the 10 minutes he played with his pace and crosses... Holland didn't play well but it wasn't his fault that the coach didn't pick a better attacking option than have two holding mids...
Wilshere had a horror. Wrong side of his marker every single time and his crosses were very poor always high in the air directed straight into the keepers hands... McKay only play due to Zullo not playing regular time at Utretch and didn't look good at all and was at fault for the second goal for his poor marking on the winger...
Brosque was invisible! Yes the ball was bombed over his head far too often, but he rarely made any runs off the ball or link up play to get more involved. Also, he lacked any urgency to get the ball back once lost in the front third.

Even if we do qaulify through (though it will be very hard given that Jordan won against Japan...) we won't do any good in Brazil. We haven't got the creativity, organisation in the defense and also relying on one man to get us goals through the Aussie long ball...

[BarcaKizz]

Spot on Sanchez.

Agree on Holman and particularly with your last point. We gotta start getting the ball on the deck and playing some football or we may as well not be there. I want more ambition. Can't believe how negative we were.

[The Sanchez]

I have a feeling that if we get into the WC we will be playing negative long ball game with a lot of old and undeserved players playing like two night ago...
I'm afraid if Holger doesn't act quickly with the problems he is creating then Australian football fans should wait for the Asian Cup when we get a new coach...

[BarcaKizz]

Its a shame because he seemed quite promising, and this game would have been fine if he came out and acknowledged the real problems.

If he saw this as a wakeup call to start giving some guys like Rogic etc a go then I'd say it was a good thing, but somehow he's taken it the opposite way...

Scott Chipperfield came out today and slammed the team for having zero creativity. Says Oar and Rogic must be given starting roles. Spot on IMO.

[The Sanchez]

Next game is in Japan and I'm seriously worried as are a few others in Craig Foster and Les Murray...
We need a draw and after the last few games playing negative football I highly doubt we get a win...
Jordan beat Japan 2-1 at home which means we need a clean record till the very end as well as hoping Jordan as well as Oman lose or draw the last remaining games...

Hopefully injuries don't worry us as such and Holger won't sit deep, hoping for the draw.
I think this would be decent line up. We need creativity and this line up gives us Holman isn't getting any game time at Aston and personally he isn't creative enough to start. Rogic is a better fit even though Lennon is trying to play him more of a box-to-box creative midfielder. Kilkenny is someone that no one seems to be paying attention enough to and is getting regular time for Bristol... Oar and Kruse provide pace and skill to get behind the defense and put a cross for Cahill to head into goal. Cahill shouldn't be used as a constant target man.
Williams needs to be in the side. Not in the centre of defense given that he has rare time there and lacks positioning and marking. RB will be Wilshere. He has experience and is playing regular time in Russia. Williams is playing mostly as a DM and well its time to see whether he is more worthy to be side than the scrubs that are playing let alone in the squad.
As for Lowry, Zullo hasn't played let alone get 2 minutes on the pitch since last year apparently. Can't afford to play players like him in important games. Holger should have used him more in friendly games and catch Utretch attention to give him more time on the pitch. McKay is not a LB and is playing in 2 division in China. Davidson again isn't getting any time. Lowry on the other hand is perfect. Was a CB but has been playing for the last 6 months at LB and has started almost every game for Millwall who have progressed to the semis in the FA Cup. Has been our best defender so far and hasn't even been noticed. If not then Zullo for sure. Behich who is playing in Turkey is another option...

[The Sanchez]

As for the future after WC and Holger
I plan for this sort of lineup:

---------------Schwarzer-----------------
Williams--DeVere--Spiranovic--Zullo
----------Herd-----------Mooy-----------
--Kruse----------Rogic-----------Oar---
------------------Leckie-------------------

[BarcaKizz]

Kruse going to BMG.

Oar, Zullo and Sarota to play in the Europa League next year.

Jedinak to be a captain of an EPL team.

Rogic in Celtic.

#Aussiedomination

[The Sanchez]

Socceroos squad is:

Mark BRESCIANO, Al Gharafa, QATAR - 66 caps (12 goals)
Alex BROSQUE, Al-Ain Club, UAE - 21 (5)
Tim CAHILL, New York Red Bulls, USA - 61 (27)
Robert CORNTHWAITE, Chunnam Dragons, KOREA REPUBLIC - 7 (3)
Ivan FRANJIC, Brisbane Roar FC, AUSTRALIA - 3 (0)
Eugene GALEKOVIC, Adelaide United FC, AUSTRALIA - 6 (0)
James HOLLAND, FK Austria Vienna, AUSTRIA - 10 (0)
Brett HOLMAN, Aston Villa FC, ENGLAND - 59 (9)
Mile JEDINAK, Crystal Palace FC, ENGLAND - 38 (3)
Josh KENNEDY, Nagoya Grampus, JAPAN - 30 (15)
Robbie KRUSE, Fortuna Dusseldorf, GERMANY - 23 (2)
Mitchell LANGERAK (gk), Borussia Dortmund, GERMANY
Ryan McGOWAN, Shandong Luneng, CHINA PR - 3 (0)
Matthew McKAY, Changchun Yatai FC, CHINA PR - 35 (1)
Mark MILLIGAN, Melbourne Victory FC, AUSTRALIA - 19 (2)
Lucas NEILL, uncontracted - 89 (0)
Jade NORTH, Brisbane Roar FC, AUSTRALIA - 39 (0)
Tommy OAR, FC Utrecht, NETHERLANDS - 7 (0)
Sasa OGNENOVSKI, Umm Salal SC, QATAR - 18 (1)
Tom ROGIC, Celtic FC, SCOTLAND - 4 (0)
Mark SCHWARZER (gk), Fulham FC, ENGLAND - 105 (0)
Archie THOMPSON, Melbourne Victory FC, AUSTRALIA - 47 (28)
Michael THWAITE, Perth Glory FC, AUSTRALIA - 11 (0)
Dario VIDOSIC, Adelaide United FC, AUSTRALIA - 14 (1)
Luke WILKSHIRE, FK Dinamo Moscow, RUSSIA - 75 (
Michael ZULLO, FC Utrecht, NETHERLANDS - 10 (0)

The Socceroos, six points, are third in Group B and trailing Japan, 13 points, and Jordan, seven points, in the AFC zone qualifying group and needing a top two finish to secure a place at Brazil 2014.

Socceroos match details in June

Japan v Socceroos
Saitama Stadium, Saitama, Japan
Tuesday 4 June 2013
Kick-Off 7.30pm (local time) (8.30pm AEST)

Socceroos v Jordan
Docklands, Melbourne, Victoria
Tuesday, 11 June 2013
Kick-Off 7.00pm (local time)

Socceroos v Iraq
Stadium Australia, Sydney
Tuesday 18 June, 2013
Kick off 7.30pm (local time)

What do you guys think?

[The Sanchez]

Game starts live at 8.30 pm though SBS are broadcasting the game an hour later...

Predicted Lineup:

--------------------Schwarzer-------------------------
Wilshere----Ognenovski-------Niell-------Thwaite---
------------Milligan-----------Bresciano--------------
-----Kruse----------Holman---------------Oar--------
-----------------------Cahill----------------------------

Apparently McKay probably will not play at left back and due to Zullo not getting many minutes with Utretch, Holger will probably decide to play Thwaite at left back. Jedinak will be unlikely to start due to an inury he has been trying to fight off meaning Milligan to slot in midfield. If Oar doesn't *bleep* play than I will flip. Brosque has no place in this starting side let alone the squad...
Would have liked to see Rogic instead of Holman due to the logic of Holger not picking Zullo at LB. Holman has not got any minutes since the last qualifier and Rogic has performed well in the 7 appearances he has made for Celtic since last qualifier. Kruse and Cahill are the obvious two choices in the side. Kennedy could slot in at CF with Cahill behind him though Holger is looking to make Rogic, Vidosic/Thompson, Kennedy as impact subs just in case it gets ugly...

Why have we not had a decent friendly before this match. Surely one 5 or so days ago was possible. Anyway on to tonight.

If this is the team to play, the diamond of Bresciano, Cahill, Oar and Kruse are the key to unlock Japan. Holman, although not match fit, has been working his butt off at AV so should have decent fitness and touch. His work box to box is vital. Milligan reads busy midfield play well, better than Jedinak, and can also pick up the odd goal so his presence could be crucial. Wilkshire must be told to keep it simple as he tends to get lost in the attacking half. He should also leave his crosses in his kit bag. Sasa and Neill are our only sensible option for CB. If you have two very experienced although aging players, here is where we need them. McKay must be patient and like Wilkshire not leave his position on a whim. Picking his moments to wall pass with midfield and move into attacking areas could bare fruit if selective. As with all Australian teams technique suffers when pressured so passing and decision making needs to be exact under stressfull conditions.

If we dont play the perfect game, Japan will eat us up. Simple as that.

Hope we win especially with Honda likely to be out. Hope we don't play long ball all game and that Zullo starts at leftback...

[BarcaKizz]

Great performance... Really well done.

We were lucky at times, and there were plenty of fantastic last-ditch tackles and saves, but you need that to get a result in Japan.

Japan were superb and when they got Honda and Kagawa interchanging in that 2nd half they dominated. But we created enough of our own chances and had great moments too.

Shame we didn't win because after going ahead and with how well our defence was playing it was a bit heartbreaking. But the draw was a fair result really.

Glad to see Holger finally picked Tommy and it paid dividends. Didn't have a blinder, but that run was superb... and thats why he's there. He'll grow from this too, you need to give youngsters confidence and belief with your support. I don't feel its really been there from Holger, but hopefully this earns him a spot in the next 2 games and things should run from there. He's too good not to hold down that spot.

Kruse also got in behind superbly which is excellent since Cahill doesn't offer that.

Holman was immense. An engine, working really hard and those 2 through balls.... WORLD CLASS.

Midfield was OK, but I thought it could have been changed. Neither player is very good defensively and as they tired Honda was walking round them. Milligan has always been a horrid 1v1 defender... and he was really lazy at times too. As much as Jedinak is an absolute hack, its obvious why he's there. Could have done with some dirty work in the mids today as the game went on. Rogic could also have offered some drive as both Bresch and Milligan didn't really move off the line, either to come deep and receive or push on.

Schwarzer proving he is God again and our back 4 was wonderful. Ognenovski really is a good player. Shame he is getting on, because looking at him you'd be sure that he'd had a career in England and not Australia and Asia.

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