World Cup qualifiers for the Socceroos are typically nerve-wracking, stomach-churning affairs. Long nights and/or early mornings filled with dread and despair. But not this time. Not Tuesday night. It was almost perfect.
Almost, because Japan didn’t hold up their end of the bargain; more on that in a moment. But as far as the job on their hands – the things they could control – it was just about flawless from Tony Popovic’s side, who now stand on the brink of a sixth consecutive World Cup appearance after an excellent 2-0 win over China.
Jackson Irvine scores Australia’s first goal during their match against China in Hangzhou.Credit: Getty Images
The biggest crowd to have ever watched the Chinese national team was waiting for them in Hangzhou. It was one of the biggest the Socceroos have ever played in front of, too, in the team’s storied 102-year history. Among the sea of nearly 80,000 red shirts was the tiniest splattering of green and gold.
Team Dragon had to produce. The atmosphere crackled with tension and expectation and threatened to swallow the visitors up, had they approached it with imperfect courage.
And then… just nothing.
China might be a nation in a hurry, a superpower-in-waiting when it comes to geopolitics, but not yet in football. Not by a long shot.
From the opening whistle, the Australian performance was one of maturity, confidence, professionalism and supreme control. Yes, a couple more goals would have been nice. And yes, the opposition was horrendously short on quality, but you can only beat what’s in front of you – even if it probably would’ve beaten itself in an unopposed training session.
That’s probably unfair. To some degree, the Socceroos made them bad by imposing their will on the contest. But the two goals spoke volumes.
Jackson Irvine’s 16th-minute curling finish was lovely, but he was able to retrieve his initial blocked shot from the feet of two Chinese defenders with consummate ease. Good teams don’t let you do that.
And as for Nishan Velupillay’s 29th-minute goal – his third in international football – he did well to get it on target. The rest of the credit is owed to goalkeeper Wang Dalei, who may as well have chucked the ball into his own net, so poor was his handling error to allow him to score.
Nishan Velupillay controls the ball against China’s Wang Haijian.Credit: Getty Images
There was no coming back from those demoralising downers for Team Dragon, though the inevitable attempts came in the second half; the Socceroos responded as if they were leisurely swatting flies on their back patio, and the job was done. The first clean sheet of the Popovic era in the bag. Mission complete. Six points from six from the March window, and the retention of control over their own destiny in World Cup qualifying.
With a three-point gap on their nearest rivals in Group C, Saudi Arabia, plus a goal difference margin of nine, the equation is simple now: win and they’re in.
Beat Japan in their next match, on June 5 at Perth’s Optus Stadium, and Australia’s place at the 2026 World Cup will be sealed.
Fall short, and there’s a safety net: don’t lose to Saudi Arabia in Riyadh on June 10, and they’re probably still in, thanks to that goal difference buffer. And that’s assuming the Saudis beat Bahrain first, which is no guarantee.
Australia’s head coach Tony Popovic has done a marvellous job in difficult circumstances.Credit: AP
Even if the Socceroos can’t do that, there’s yet another safety net through the play-offs, thanks to the World Cup’s expansion to 48 teams.
It would have been nice if the Samurai Blue, who became the first non-host nation to qualify for the World Cup last week, had knocked off the Saudis in the other game on Tuesday night, which began 25 minutes earlier. That would have made it a four-point gap, a little more breathing room and a truly perfect night.
Instead, their clash in Saitama finished in a 0-0 draw, but even that bodes potentially well for the Socceroos. It could be that, with their mission also complete, they bring a second- or third-string team out to Australia, and as good as they’d still be, they might lack that certain something in a game of zero consequence.
Yes, the Socceroos have only beaten Japan once in 13 attempts since the 2006 World Cup. But they drew with them in Japan late last year, and maybe deserved more from that game. It is far from an insurmountable task, especially considering the other possibility: the Socceroos could get even better, as they progressively have under Popovic.
He has done a marvellous job in difficult circumstances, not only rescuing Australia’s qualifying campaign but rejuvenating this team on the run in all facets, personnel, tactics and mentality. They are yet to taste defeat in his short reign.
If it comes down to a winner-takes-all showdown in Riyadh, they’ve at least proved they won’t be overawed.
“They can certainly play under pressure. They can handle the expectation, and they improved,” Popovic said post-match, when asked what he had learned about his team from their clashes with Indonesia and China.
“Now the challenge is a great one. Can we improve once more in June, against the best team in Asia?”
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