Finishing third out of six nations in their qualifying group and just one point ahead of Oman, Australia’s qualification campaign could be deemed as unimpressive. With Saudi Arabia and Japan finishing in the group’s top two places to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, the Socceroos entered the playoffs. Facing the third-placed team from the other group in AFC qualification, Australia beat the United Arab Emirates 2-1. Ajdin Hrustic of UEFA Europa League winners Eintracht Frankfurt scored the vital 84th-minute winner to set up the all-important inter-confederation play-off.
Facing CONMEBOL nation Peru, the Socceroos have the opportunity to qualify for their fifth consecutive World Cup, an impressive feat considering their only other qualification came in 1974. Despite only winning four of their ten group stage games in qualifying, Australia will have belief in getting revenge against Peru after the South Americans beat them in the last group game of the 2018 World Cup. In this tactical analysis in the form of a team scout report, we will discuss Graham Arnold’s tactics that could defeat Peru and take Australia to the World Cup once again.
In possession
The Socceroos tend to play short in the build-up, initially looking to find the centre-backs or the full-backs from goalkeeper Mathew Ryan. Left-sided centre-back Kye Rowles is comfortable in possession, calm when pressed in the build-up phase and rarely forced into making a bad decision. His ball retention against the UAE helped sustain possession for Australia and suppressed periods of pressure. At left-back, Giresunspor’s Aziz Behich provides composure and a route of progression. Out of 83 Turkish Süper Lig full-backs to have played 700 minutes, Behich ranks 8th for through pass accuracy and 18th for passes into the final third, both crucial to his role for the Socceroos.
However, the right side of the Australian defence is not as strong in the build-up phase. At right-back, Nathaniel Atkinson passing accuracy of 74.33% is about average for the Scottish Premiership. Right-sided centre-back Bailey Wright, of Sunderland, looks to play longer passes, especially when under pressure. His 9.88 long passes per 90 rank him 11th out of 124 centre-backs to play over 700 minutes in League One last season, but this approach with minimal risk usually stops him from losing possession in the defensive third. Clearances are often aimed toward the striker.
Mathew Ryan’s average of less than 1 pass into the final third per 90 during qualifying shows how rarely Australia’s build-up is direct. Ranking well for forward passes per 90 and total passing accuracy, Ryan is a cool-headed goalkeeper that can be relied upon with his feet. The figure above shows his composure, as he is pressured by multiple Saudi Arabia players with short passing options cut out, he clips the ball into Behich to relieve pressure after drawing in four opponents.
From this image, we can also see the Australian midfielders dropping back to overload the first phase of build-up. This is a regular occurrence for the Socceroos when playing a 4-2-3-1, allowing the full-backs to advance. It is common for the central midfielders to start high and then drop back, but this can limit their ability to construct attacks when attempting to play direct toward the attackers.
