Socceroos able to revert to slick passing game on improved Sydney pitch

The must-win World Cup qualifier will not be straightforward but a superior surface to that encountered in Honduras will help

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Ante Jukic

Monday 13 November 2017 17.00 GMTLast modified on Monday 13 November 2017 17.05 GMT

For a national team that has undergone drastic generational and stylistic change under Ange Postecoglou, and given the unfavourable conditions and key injuries in attack, Australia’s goalless draw with Honduras was as good a performance as could have been expected. It may also come to define the coach’s tenure.

The tie is now set up for Australia to attack when the two teams meet again on Wednesday night in Sydney. Both Postecoglou and his players have 90 minutes – or 120 – to be brave, assertive and decisive.

Tim Cahill declares himself fit to start for Socceroos in Honduras showdown

From making the right tactical adjustments to carrying out the plan in light of everything the Socceroos have endured, though, the must-win game at ANZ Stadium will not be straight-forward and to think Australian progression is a formality based on the first leg would be highly illogical.

Although commenting on the state of a playing surface can be deemed an ignorant grievance from football’s first world, it is a key representation of the need to adjust to the fluctuating environments of the international game.

In context, the pitch at the Estadio Olímpico Metropolitano played a primary role in the weekend’s deadlock, with a consequential effect on the performances of both teams – just as a vastly improved surface in Sydney will have an effect on Wednesday’s game.

The heavier pitch in San Pedro Sula was a visual throwback to decades ago with stretched lines and an overall slower circulation of the ball. Tellingly, the Socceroos completed their lowest number of passes over 90 minutes since the start of the AFC’s third phase of qualification at 344, along with the lowest passing accuracy (73.8%).

It was only the third time pass completion went below 80% over the same period. The common denominator for the away legs in Syria (81%), Thailand (80.5%) and Iraq (75.6%) was a heavier surface, which made Postecoglou’s high-volume passing style difficult to implement effectively.

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Fundamentally, a heavier surface means passes are more difficult to weight and as such, Australia’s passing accuracy in the attacking half dramatically dropped to 64.6%. It also exposes those who are less measured with their distribution in attacking areas, and it was no surprise that Jackson Irvine (51%) and Josh Risdon (68%) finished with the lowest individual completion rates.

Initially, however, it was counteracted by those stretched defensive lines. Deployed as advanced midfielders, otherwise conservative movers in Irvine and Aaron Mooy were able to receive passes in positions where they could go forward.

Chances for Irvine and Tomi Juric in the first half were borne of this expanded space on the pitch. Although Irvine’s opening came in transition after a Massimo Luongo interception, Juric’s was particularly telling. Following Aziz Behich’s throw-in, captain Mile Jedinak was immediately able to play through the Honduran lines and if not for Juric’s profligacy – and possibly an unhelpful bobble – Australia would have had a deserved 1-0 lead.

The space Australia had to play in explains why, with much less possession and passes, they took more shots (seven) in Honduras than against Japan in August (five). Still, Australia struggled to create openings in the absence of Matthew Leckie and Robbie Kruse, and 12 total shots reflected the match. With the heavier pitch leading to chaotic positioning, play rapidly grew sloppier as collective energy from both sides dropped.

Diamond works for Luongo and Socceroos as Honduras decider looms

Although a collective shortage of penetration with the ball at their feet hurt the Socceroos, the hosts’ reactive game plan was also stifled. Apart from quick balls to Anthony Lozano and Alexander López in early phases of possession, Honduras offered very little in attack when that pair were on the pitch. Even after Carlo Costly and Mario Martínez came on, the state of the surface nullified the ability of Jorge Luis Pinto’s side to transition quickly and in numbers. On a better surface at ANZ, and with the suspended Alberth Elis back in the side, that is unlikely to be the case again in the return leg.

It might be a football cliche, and Australia seem to take this to the extreme, but qualification for a World Cup is never a simple task. Yet the process of qualification itself exemplifies why international football is the game’s pinnacle. On a purely tactical basis, coaches must maximise the qualities and balance of a select group of players, who in turn have to adjust to highly variable conditions.

Added to that, given the qualification phase is far more finite than a league season, the margin for error for both players and coaches is, at best, minimal. On Wednesday however, there is no room for mistakes. By attacking Honduras and “putting the pedal down” as Postecoglou put it post-match, Australia will ultimately show if they deserve to be at next year’s World Cup. Or not.

Socceroos able to revert to slick passing game on improved Sydney pitch | Ante Jukic | Football | The Guardian