I’m mostly blaming Arnold’s selections for the poor first half more than the players. 

True we can blame the selections but still for me say Behich.
A long time proven international despite age and lacking form couldn’t do better against India who’s captain was 39 and an unknown to most watching.
Baccus’s experience no matter what position assigned should be a match and more who he faced.
I’ll put it down to first game blues and hope I’m proven right.

Shame you've played   the man and  not the ball.

 I've done a lot of   coaching courses, not just the C Licence (possibly learned more from the KNVB Advanced Youth Training Certificate) and had a lot of ongoing coach  education with the state  Football Aus Tech Dir, SAP coach,  NTC coaches, assistant  underage national team coaches and occasionally AL coaches.

Yes, I am invested in Aus's future development, perceiving myself as a small part of the process for about 6 years, concluding about 8 years ago.

One of the concerns with the new coach education , that was a huge fault IMO, was people had to pay a lot of money for the Football Aus  football methodology. I negotiated with the then state TD, who I worked with a lot, about distributing it for free.

Whereas I  was not authorised to post training ground methodology directly to the Performance section on 442 then, not  Inside Sport, I could send if for free via email to about 30 coaches on this forum. A number replied to say how useful it was. IMO the more sound training ground practice  disseminated - the better for the future of Aus football.

Our ability to punch above our weight is largely due to the changed coach education in Aus.

Probably isn't the right thread to respond, but I've posted stuff responding to these comments in the  Asian Cup thread.

We struggled to score but apart from their one good chance from the header they did not threaten us.Credit to them for committment in their defending but their game plan was all about limiting the score.

The first game in a tournament is always difficult as many better teams than us have found in WCs so getting the win is paramount.

Given  this is  wrong thread, good to see posters like you post the realistic and positive response to Aus's start against India, Booney.

Thankfully, there is now an emerging cohort of educated football  fans and stakeholders in Aus, who embrace the Asian football milieu - and all the benefits for Aus football.

You are right in the style of play.
Take Timmy Cahill for example, far more famous club career than either Thomas Broich Or Ninkovic, but he came nowhere near their technical skills,
These days to succeed you need the physical attributes as well as the technical ability. Even Dukes, highly skilled, but would he have the fitness play the pressing game that most coaches want these days.
We have always produced solid professionals, but we have always lacked in the technical proficiency, outside of Kewell & Dukes, most of the GG would struggle in the top leagues now because being a solid professional is not enough, you need to have the technical proficiency that we as a nation lack.
Going back to Timmy (what a great Socceroos hero) but I do wonder whether (if playing in his prime now) where he'd play in the top leagues now? Maybe, as an out and out striker, he doesn't have the skill to play midfield or the wings.
The Japan team today would kill both the Socceroos & Japan team of 2006, the skill level is incomparable.

If you saw the India game as a "positive start" to the competition Decentric then your precious FFA accreditation isnt worth the photocopy paper it was printed on.... 

The educated cohort milieu of embracing stakeholders can all hold hands and chant their jargony phrases till the mythical "11th in the world cup" result is repeated but that first half against India was probably the worst thing I have seen in 2 decades. 

Abso-freakin-lutely...... 

The main purpose of the coaching regime from 2007 onwards was to improve the poor technical skills of the players . So far it’s failed. 

Japan have always had technically superior players to us. They’ve lacked physicality and players willing to finish the moves. As their players have moved to Europe they’ve improved those parts of their game. 

We came from a very low ceiling. As you mentioned in your other posts, Japan has always had better technical players than us.
I was at the Sydney FC v Adelaide United game on the weekend & the standard of play & the technical ability was way above what I saw in the A-League in 2007.
The younger players coming thru are more technically proficient.
The players like Irakunda, Bovalina, Johnny Yull, Hollman, Kucharski & Popovic were all very confident on the ball.

The u23 olyroos side that are trying to qualify for Paris later in the year are probably the first generation to come from this new program as well and also coincidently they are more technically adept than most of the Socceroos side that featured against India on Saturday night.

Agree we have come from a very low ceiling where we are known for our physicality and mental strength and historically not being good technically outside of a few players which stood out but otherwise we were known to be physical hard but fair players that lacked the technical skills to compete with the very best football nations.

Agree 100%!!!

I loved the GG team & was there in Germany & one of best 2 weeks of my life, Guus & team took us for a great ride.
Was in a Munich bar with Brazilians fans after game against Brazil in 2006 & proud as punch of our players & expecting their fans to praise our team, but no they said 'we don't play football', we play 'English Rugby, no skills, just Physical football'.
The football now played world wide demands high technical ability & hence we are behind the eight ball & as Barca4life says, our players are getting better & together with our DNA of Physical & mental strengths, we do well against the better teams that attack us, but difficulty in lesser teams that sit back.
However, individually we still struggling, hence not many players in the top leagues.
I watched Irakunda close up & this kid as a 17 year old is pretty special, it's now really up to mental side if he is to make it on the big scene. However, we are starting to produce higher quality technical players, more than ever before.

Sure players from the past would struggle playing the game of today but for those special ones.
midfielders especially.
A player like Dukes and Cahill would be played into todays game mind you, there are player's/strikers today up front who do f all defending and running compared to the rest of team for that’s not their game but in attack that’s where they position themselves for crosses or through balls behind the line.
Comparing today’s Roos at the AC I still see many of the GG could take their places if born on this gen.
Since Mooy Rogic even Luongo shows the gap of creativity in the midfield imo.
No doubt the Japan of today would do both for they have progressed leaps and bounds since 06 as proven by the leagues they play compared to us this is my point.
Vietnam gave them a run for their money but they came back nailed 4 goals whereas we no matter how good our defense functioned against India as D2 presents we couldn’t finish them off with conviction.
Anyway as mentioned let’s hope the 1st game was just that - a win is a win maybe I expected too much against India.

Agree that 1st half was horrific. Aaron Mooy is big loss of skill in midfield. But Arnold really needs to get over hacking players like Duke, Behich, Baccus, Jones etc. 2nd half saved by McGree and Boyle finally providing some service 

I have no doubt that many of GG would take the places of today's AC team, they were the GG.
However the point remains, they were still mainly a physical team with a technical deficiency & most would struggle to play in the top leagues today based on the needs today.
This is my point, people including yourself complain we don't have the players in the top leagues as we did previously, the reason is mainly because the top leagues now play with high technical skills & we in Australia generally struggle to produce those type of players & never have apart from a handful.
Japan has progressed leaps & bounds was because they came from a higher ceiling, the Japan 06 was technically a better team than the GG, but we were physically stronger.
Much easier to get physically stronger than to get technical skills. Plus Japan pumped a lot more money into coaching & training that we did in Australia & even many ex Socceroos were bemoaning when Ange was in charged that we weren't playing to our normal DNA of Physical football as opposed to Ange Ball, so resistance was still strong 5-10 years ago.  

How quickly people forget some of the performances in the Middle East & China under Pim & Holger especially after getting up early to watch.

Don't trigger me! 7 defensive players against minnows. Holland, Thwaite and Cornthwaite starting against Oman.

Reckon pim did well making us into a defensive unit

The ntc is designed to set us up for proactive play

So the days of nicking results against minmows are hopefully numbered

Having said that, we have 2 10s that are capable of playing cdm and have set up to be really difficult in defence. This style is hard to judge until the late stages of the tournament

It has changed - radically.

Bos is the first Socceroo from the new Berger/Baan conceived system. The players of his cohort are the first who've started with the Skills Acquisition Program about 10 years ago.  Bos is one player all have seen play who are reading this post. Do  a technical appraisal of Bos, Enzo, and anybody else reading this, who thinks Bos is rubbish as a technician?

Use the Football Aus check list ( based on France, Spain,  Netherlands and Germany) of - first touch, striking the ball, running with the ball, handling speed, both sides of the body use,  two footedness, plus 1v1 attacking and defensive skills - and appraise Bos. He is the first Socceroo of the new system.

Haven't had much access to the AL for a few years since Fox abandoned it.  But have just subscribed to Paramount. We have the most technically adept generation,  we've  ever had for age 21 and under in Aus.

Arnie enunciated he had never seen Aussie players do the things Bos and his cohorts were doing in an Aus Under 16, Under 17 national team a few years back. Arnie is disappointed a few of Bos's cohort have left football.

From what I've seen of Bos, Hollman, Farrell, Circati, Kuol, Irankunda, possibly Talbot, Milanovic, and Robertson ( haven't seen enough of them yet) - using Football Aus's technical skills check list, and adding a few more refinements, these guys are the best technicians Aus has ever had. There are a lot I haven't seen yet. Arnie is on  the record, and reiterates, this view of a whizz kid technical generation emerging - with the oldest being 21 years old. 

Its been a joy to watch this season. The expansion to 16 teams and a nst cant come soon enough. Not enough football for our young talent, even if a player plays every minute in a season. We currently let players get rusty for a five month off season

I think Baccus and O'Neill are playing the Mooy role quite well.

It is more of a question of muscular, power midfielders like Irvine and Metcalfe, being exposed  trying to play through a compact block - when we had the ball.  Also, Goodwin needs to play at his best. Boyle often tries to beat players by outpacing them, which rarely works and he gets knocked off his feet a lot.

With the 21 and under whizz generation coming through, the likes of Irvine will never be selected for Aus in the future. He just  hasn't acquired  the first touch to play Big Five.

The best he can do in rapidfire ball circulation, is the one touch pass. If there is enough time he has good body position for the one foot pass to teammates in confined space. Where Irvine breaks down, is the two touch receive and pass.

The first touch is often to take the ball away  from one's marker. The second touch is passing the ball. His handling speed he is too slow, and his footwork is inadequate. It was very frustrating watching him against India, despite his other qualities. O'Neill is our best at two touch and one touch passing, like Mooy prior.

The entire Japanese team is brilliant at this. They have 8 Big Five players, possibly heaps of footballers in the 30 odd big clubs in modest UEFA leagues, and the J league must be really good too. Japan's ball circulation is so much  quicker than other Asian Cup teams.

 

Not forgotten mate but playing dour defensive football under boring coaches was, for lack of a better word, at least a "style". Do you NOT think Arnie got both setup and selection wrong in the first half against India? Second half was better, only slightly, and it took an uncharacteristic goalie fumble to break the deadlock... 

Which leads to the OBVIOUS question how are they doing so if they dont have the technical panacea of the KNVB and Clairfontaine like our whizz bang technicians do?

They have a ntc qnd multiple professional divisions. We have a nst from next year but not pro and no p and r so we are a long way behind

They went Brazillian decades ago.  There is also the cultural difference in terms of what type of player is seen as fitting their football culture that will also be the type that gets picked by youth coaches to progress up the junior ranks.

I'm convinced our failures to produce technical players at the senior is more due to the coaches who choose physicality over footballing ability-that's our "culture".

Bos could simply be the exceptional talent rather than the rule. Until I see a squad  of players with technical ability like Bos, I'll hold the champagne.

As  others have stated, they have gone completely Brazilian in their methodology and NC. They and are about 15- 20 years down the pathway of their 50 year plan. They have invested big bucks in  their system too.  About 5 years ago Arsene Wenger anointed Japan  as having a world class development system .

In Aus there is no money for football development, and football development runs on an  oily rag.

I'm not sure who you are watching ATM? The younger Aussie players, 21 and under, coming through are very good technically. They are products of the new Aus development system, having been inculcated it  for 10 years or so.

I'd also anoint the entire Japanese football system overall, only outside the Big Seven leagues in world football.  Netherlands, Belgium, Portugal may possibly be marginally in front of Japan too.  Japan could even be in front of Switzerland, Croatia and Mexico.

so the other teams ranked 20-30 in fifa are senegal, iran, ukraine, south korea, austria, sweden, hungary, tunisia and wales

I'm curious how many professional clubs they have in each of those countries? We have 9 until recently where we expanded to 11. We are about to get at least 10 semi-pro clubs in the nst with perhaps 3 more aussie clubs in the a league in a year or 2.

I suspect that there is a good correlation between the number of professional clubs and fifa ranking/elo but not sure how to get good data as to which clubs are professional and which are semi-pro as you go down the leagues in these 2nd tier countries