Socceroos coach Graham Arnold will demand his men “improve with the ball” and be unrelenting in their quest to finish on top of their group after qualifying for the knockout stage of the Asian Cup.
Arnold walked away satisfied with Thursday’s 1-0 win over Syria as he lauded the goalscoring work put in by Jackson Irvine who was the only player to find the back of the net in Doha
But the Socceroos boss has been unwavering in his desire to build a killer-instinct in his team as they face ever-improving Asian rivals and that emphasis will continue ahead of next Tuesday’s final group clash against Uzbekistan.
They were 3-0 victors over India on Friday morning (AEDT) and despite knowing a draw will be enough for the Socceroos to win their group, Arnold won’t take anything less than another win.
“Our expectations and what our demands are, we want to top this group,” Arnold said.
“Yes, we’ve qualified for the second phase already but we want to top the group. That’s been a goal of ours since we got into camp before the Asian Cup was to do that.
“There’s no such thing as taking your foot off the pedal.”
The Socceroos struggled for scoring opportunities in the opening half of the clash with Syria and Arnold said his side had to get better breaking down defences.
“It’s been a trait of these types of teams for quite a long while and they’re hard to break down. And that’s the reality of it,” he said.
Irvine, whose his 11th goal for the Socceroos proved the difference, said it wasn’t easy against sides which went ultra-defensive and patience remained a key for more Asian Cup success.
“It was difficult,” Irvine said.
“For it’s about finding those solutions and breaking down different kinds of teams and a very different kind of opponent to the first game against India.
“And we’re gonna get asked different questions by different opponents as the tournament progresses.
“A lot of guys are playing in their first tournaments and maybe not used to these kinds of games.
“But the spirit and the culture around the group gives us the platform to perform and we back each other all the way.
“Today, you’ve got to find that little moment that can win you a game and fortunately it fell to me again today.”
Irvine also scored the crucial opening goal in the 2-0 triumph over India to kick off the Asian Cup for the Socceroos, further highlighting his importance to the national team.
“You’ve got to be in there to score,” he added
“We’ve got good quality in the final third, in the wide areas, and if you get yourself in there enough times sometimes they drop for you.”
The Socceroos, who won the 2015 Asian Cup, have booked their spot in the round-of-16 but will first have to take on Uzbekistan in their final group stage game in Al Wakrah next Tuesday to determine their first finals opponent.
