In the opening match of the World Qualifier 12, China will welcome the challenge of Australia. The Australian team suffered a lot of difficulties during the preparation for the match due to the impact of the local epidemic, but its head coach, Arnold, remained firm in his interview, saying that he will win all three points in the first match. He said, "We have to win against China. I'm looking forward to getting six points in the first two games."
Arnold led the Australian national Olympic team straight to Dubai, UAE after completing their Tokyo Olympics campaign. However, the Australian government's requirement that all arrivals must first be quarantined for at least 14 days has prevented the Australian team from scheduling their first home game on home soil, which has caused considerable disruption to the team's preparations.
The Australian team also faced unprecedented challenges in terms of player recruitment. However, this has not shaken Arnold's determination to lead the team. Arnold revealed, "There will be about 65 letters sent out to clubs and players with the aim of drafting them for the 12-team tournament starting in September. The time slots designated by FIFA for the opening of the International Competition Day cycle will not be changed due to the outbreak. We expect all drafted players to be available. Of course, there will be various conditions for the players to be in place due to the epidemic and the policies of each country or region on epidemic prevention and quarantine."
Arnold then explained the reason for the confidence, "We have about 30 players overseas who are doing well and wherever we play, those overseas players are able to concentrate and participate in the game. They want to come back to Australia, they want to play in Australia, but if we had to rely on players from within Australia and all of those local players, they might not come and play because they would have to be quarantined on their return."
Arnold then emphasized, "We are ready. There are five to six days of concentration before the tournament and then getting everyone ready." Arnold revealed that he worked on two main things during his time in Dubai, the first of which was studying the opponents. He said, "Our first opponent was China and I spent quite some time profiling the Chinese team and studying their strengths and weaknesses."
Another task is to keep an eye on the condition of those Australian players who are playing overseas. He said, "Overseas players have been doing well recently. The likes of Tommy Rogic reappeared at Celtic and scored. Mabiel also started scoring against Celtic in the Champions League two or three weeks ago; Martin Boyle has rediscovered his scoring touch with Herbots. There's a lot of good news on that front. So we have a lot of very good players and I am very optimistic about the future."
Arnold is even happier that with Hrstic shining in the 40s, Australia's playing style will be able to be further enriched as the Aussies will now have a wider choice of midfielders. In addition, both Tommy Rogic and Mooy will return to the squad during the 12-team tournament.
Arnold said, "We have such good midfielders like Mooi, Rogic, Hrstic and others. Tommy (Rogic) plays at No. 8 under Postecoglou, but I could play Rogic at a false No. 9, and then we have players like Jackson Irvine so that we have enough depth in the midfield."
Arnold said, "I can't wait for Australia's training camp to start right away and to see all these players back. I'm not even worried about not being able to play at home at all."
Arnold is not worried about his team's match against China being moved to a 3rd venue. He said, "We have played eight WC matches so far and we are one of the only two teams in the entire 40-team tournament to have won all eight matches, and out of those, seven of them have been away from home. That still gives me something to worry about. Right now, I'm positive about the next 2 games. I expect to get 6 points in the first two competitions."
