FIFA WC 2022: China draw pushes Socceroos out of direct qualifying spot
After a one-all draw against the national team of China on Wednesday at Sharjah Stadium, the Socceroos are in a bit of trouble in their quest to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
After a strong start, the Australian national team has now lost one of its last five matches, finishing two in draws, so it is now in third place in its group, ahead of China and Vietnam but behind Saudi Arabia and Japan.
If things don’t change for the better, the Socceroos may be forced to play for their spot in the 2022 World Cup. And this is about as predictable as a slot machine at Grand Rush online casino: a high-stakes match that both teams will fight hard to win.
Two changes made
Ahead of the match against China, Australian coach Graham Arnold made two changes to the team’s lineup. With Harry Souttar out with a knee injury (but hopefully back to full form by the time the matches continue), Arnold replaced him with Milos Degenek, and also replaced Awer Mabil with Mitch Duke. The latter was clearly a decision that paid off – the Socceroos’ only goal in the match was scored by him. This was the third goal scored by Duke in the Asian qualifiers so far.
A much-needed win
The Chinese team’s goal – a controversial VAR-awarded penalty scored by Wu Lei – led to the surprise draw at the end of the match, which was played in the UAE. China has struggled through the qualifiers, winning just one of its matches, and only collecting five points – this only puts them ahead of Vietnam, the team that hasn’t won any of its matches so far.
The Australian national football team needed a win to ensure its position in the top two – which mean automatic qualification for the World Cup held in Qatar next year. The three points won here would’ve put them ahead of Japan, second only to Saudi Arabia. The other two teams won on the same day.
This doesn’t mean that the Socceroos don’t have a chance to qualify for the World Cup directly – it just becomes a harder task.
Four games to go
The Socceroos still have four games to play in the World Cup qualifiers. The first one seems the easiest so far: they will host Vietnam in January at a stadium that’s yet to be announced – their last home game, against Saudi Arabia, was played on home soil at CommBank Stadium in Sydney’s west.
It’s believed the next home game on January 27 could be played at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium, followed by an away game against Oman, a home game against Japan which potentially could be played in Melbourne, and finally another home game against Saudi Arabia (the latter two matches will be played in late March).
Things could hinge on the Socceroos’ home game against Japan, depending on how the other matches’ results pan out until then.
