The Socceroos are being urged to curb their frustration as new coach Tony Popovic plots to break through a great wall of China in a vital World Cup qualifier.
Popovic is preparing his players to confront a defence-minded Chinese outfit in Thursday night’s Cup qualifier in Adelaide at 8:10pm (AEDT).
Midfielder Riley McGree and his teammates forecast a dour Chinese approach in a fixture pivotal to Australia’s chances of direct qualification for the 2026 showpiece tournament.
“As a team like Australia, we come up against these teams that do sit off,” McGree said.
“Going forward … we’re going to have to find ways to break these teams down and avoid getting frustrated and find a way to win.
“We’re all attacking players with quality and we all know, and have shown, that we can break teams down and score and assist.
“It’s not up to any one individual. I think we’re all capable of it and it’s about on the day making that happen.”
Riley McGree says Australia is embracing the pressure as the Socceroos look to return to the men’s football World Cup.
(Getty Images: Justin Setterfield)
The Australians enter the fixture in fifth place in their group of six nations, banking just one point from their opening two games in the latest qualifying phase.
The Socceroos sit above only China, who have conceded nine goals in their two losses.
Breaking through defence-orientated opponents has proved difficult for the Socceroos in their first two games in the phase.
The Australians haven’t scored a goal — they were kept to a 0-0 away draw in Indonesia after a shock 0-1 loss to Bahrain on the Gold Coast last month.
Those results prompted Graham Arnold to quit as head coach on September 20, with Popovic announced as his replacement three days later.
The barren start to the phase has made Thursday night’s clash against world No.91 China a must-win for the Socceroos, ranked 25th, to remain in the hunt for direct qualification for the Cup.
The top two nations secure direct passage, and the third-placed country is tipped into another qualifying phase.
“Pressure is a privilege, pressure is great,” McGree said.
“And if you can relish the pressure and you can use it to your advantage, then it can only result in good results.
“Pressure for me, on a personal level, is something that happens — there’s harder things in life than being a footballer and winning games.”
McGree missed the past two Socceroos games because of injury while at his English Championship club Middlesborough.
And the 25-year-old hoped his renown as an attacking midfielder could help turn the tide for the Socceroos under Popovic.
“Having Tony come in now, a new direction going forward is very exciting,” McGree said.
“I have played against teams that he’s managed before, I have never played under him myself.
“But I think it’s an exciting brand of football and one that everyone who I’ve spoken to has bought into and has loved to play.”
After hosting China, the Australians travel to play unbeaten group leaders Japan on October 15.
ABC Sport will live blog all the action from Adelaide on Thursday night. Join Simon Smale at abc.net.au/sport.
AAP
