DOHA: Fans left frustrated by Australia’s lack of go-forward in the final hour of their defeat against France will hopefully be heartened by coach Graham Arnold’s pre-match pledge towards aggression and endeavour against Tunisia.
“The way we played the first 30 against France was intended for 90, but when you turn the ball over cheaply – it’s a technical issue – we got pushed further and further back.
“Tomorrow is a different kettle of fish. We’ll be in their faces, up high, chasing and pressing like they do and as other teams do and being on the front foot.”
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Arnold was again asked about the performances of other smaller nations and whether this tournament felt different to past ones – and again spoke about the need for more funding for the sport back home.
“It’s not so much the shock results, it’s the quality of Asian nations,” he said.
“In Australia we don’t respect Asia and what their qualities are – we don’t respect Japan and Saudi Arabia – when we played against them in the qualifiers, everyone thought they were a pushover.”
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“The amount of money you see the Asian nations putting into the development of the game, and what the game needs, compared to Australia, is ridiculous.”
Arnold confirmed that defender Nathaniel Atkinson, who endured a torrid time against Kylian Mbappe earlier in the week, would not play after picking up an injury – and that Fran Karacic would come in to replace him.
“It’s one step at a time for Nathaniel, that’s why he came off the other night,” Arnold said.
“He got a bit of a knock on the ankle again – I can be honestly open, Fran Karacic will come in. We’ve got him ready for the game tonight in training.”
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