Australia’s fairytale campaign comes to an end

The Asian Game’s coverage of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 is proudly sponsored by SMC.

Some fairytales are too good to be true.

Australia are out of the World Cup after being defeated 2-1 by Argentina, but not before almost delivering one of the World Cup’s truly special moments.

With just 10 seconds remaining in stoppage time as Australia pushed hard for an equaliser to force the game into extra time – something that would’ve seemed inconceivable when Argentina took a two-goal lead just 20 minutes earlier – the ball fell at the feet of 18-year-old A-League Men’s sensation Garang Kuol.

Sensing his moment, the Central Coast Mariners winger swiveled and fired a shot low-and-hard back across the box which was destined for the back of the net if not for the outstretched arm of Argentine goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez.

The small band of Australian fans inside the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium threw their head in their hands in despair. So close and yet so far. Seconds later the referee ended proceedings and Australian’s were left to wonder ‘what if?’ It’s a question that will linger for four years until Australia get the chance to do it all again.

Ajdin Hrustic, whose campaign was ravaged by injury that limited his ability to get onto the pitch, showed his frustration by kicking over a collection of training cones on the sidelines. It was how all Australians were feeling.

Despite being outclassed, however, Australia were far from disgraced against the South American champions. What was their undoing was a series of individual mistakes at the back that La Albiceleste took full advantage of.

Maty Ryan was wearing purple but he may as well have been dressed in a Santa outfit such was the enormous gift he hand-wrapped for the Argentineans just minutes into the second half.

Perhaps inspired by the man who put the ball past him in the first half, Ryan tried to dance his way through the Argentine press, only to turn the ball over and allow Julian Alvarez a simple finish into an unguarded net to double their lead and dampen any hopes of an Australian comeback

What little hope remained was given a boost with 15 minutes to play when Craig Goodwin’s shot was deflected into his own net by Enzo Fernandez, and the miracle almost came to life when a dazzling run from Aziz Behich almost resulted in one of the goals of the tournament but for a last ditched block from Lisandro Martinez.

In the end Australian can be proud of their campaign given their struggles to even qualify for the tournament over the past few years. The challenge is to build on this and grow the quality of the football ahead of an Asian Cup back here in Qatar in just over 12 months and ahead of the next World Cup cycle for 2026.

WHAT WE LEARNED

Mistakes will be punished: It’s a harsh reality, but at a lot of levels the mistakes by Aziz Behich and Maty Ryan would escape unpunished. Against one of the best teams in the world, it’s these little errors that make all the difference, especially when that team has a certain Lionel Messi in their ranks.

The Socceroos are Australia’s national team: Whether it was the thousands that traveled to Doha, or the tens of thousands that gathered around fan sites around Australia in the early hours of the morning, there can be no doubt that the Socceroos are the one national team that can truly unite the nation. Australia has had mixed feelings towards the national team over the last few years as results dipped, but this tournament has reignited that flame.

Spirit and DNA is not enough: The question Australia must grapple with after this World Cup is what it wants from its national team. There is no doubting the results have galvanized the nation and renewed support for the national team, but is relying solely on “spirit” and “Aussie DNA” enough anymore? While we have to acknowledge the limitations of this squad, whether it is Arnold or a new coach, there needs to be a discussion about who we want to be as a football nation.

WHAT THEY SAID

Graham Arnold – Australian coach

“I have to be very proud of the players. You know, we played against the number three in the world. And the first goal from Messi was a quality goal. The (Ryan) mistake cost us.

“I just hope that everyone back in Australia really respects what we’ve done and are proud of us as well. We took it to them.

“As I said to the boys before they started doing media and started beating themselves up, I just wanted to say to them how proud I was – and grateful of how many sacrifices and effort they’ve made through this whole campaign to do what they’ve done.

“Of course they’re extremely disappointed. But it’s not every day you get to play the third best nation in the world, and against those type of players. I felt we did very, very good tonight.

“Before we came here everyone said we were the worst Socceroo team ever to qualify for the World Cup and the worst Socceroo team ever. That’s gone now.”

Jackson Irvine – Australian midfielder

“We gave it everything. Just like we have every minute of this competition. So proud of all the players and the staff. Just not enough on the day.

“I think we did everything we could to give ourselves a chance in the game. When Argentina are celebrating like this, victory against Australia, I think it shows what kind of opposition we gave them today.

“It’s difficult to comprehend everything at the moment. It’s all quite raw. I hope we made everyone proud.”

WHAT COMES NEXT

Within hours some of the Socceroos will be on flights out of Doha bound for different parts of the world to link back up with their club teams. On the national team front, the future of Graham Arnold is still be to decided, while the Asian Cup, back in Doha, is just over 12 months away.

Photo: twitter/Socceroos

Listen to The Asian Game’s ‘Doha Daily‘ live from Qatar 2022