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Socceroos vs Venezuela/ Colombia Nov 25

How should Australia do November?

  • European based camp

    Votes: 23 71.9%

  • Australian based camp

    Votes: 6 18.8%

  • Middle East based camp

    Votes: 2 6.3%

  • Nothing

    Votes: 1 3.1%
  • Total voters
    32
patjennings said:
Here's some stats. Arnold from 2018-2024 has a better win percentage, a better points per game. More goals per game and less conceded than Popovic. Arnold may not have been everyone's cup of tea and there are plenty of better NT managers but he is a better tactical manager, a better man manager and has better results.

All the talk about Aussie DNA was just fodder for the press. He is a very good manager for the level of player we have. He also was meticulous as was Rene scouting the world and the ALM. Something that seems to be missing with the current management.

It is not about picking more players. It is about picking the right players that will add to the group.
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he was pretty villianized despite doing well with a very modest squad.
 
LFC said:
well - can't wait for the stats fellas dress up this performance in 5sec intervals haha
Oh Toure got a good ball within first 5 or so and I was glad he made their GK make the save, wouldn't have happenned with Boyle/Duke/Borello etc so kudos to him, shame he's played like a poor lone soldier for this kid has so much promise I like what I see but yer, he's not supported period and we see why.
Poor Irakunda runs around like a headless in desperation, you can see it he's trying his arse to make something but he's chasing shadows.

We are getting very good at small sided games camped in our own half ! JS96.

Prior to the late 2 goals I was gonna say bit earlier, don't think Columbia got out of 2nd gear really, did we plant a shot on goal in the 2nd half ? hence they cruised that 2nd half for they know how to keep ball, they have players who can do it.
How many times did we make it deep into their own half ?
The other point is considering we let them have so much ball we made them look good, lucky they lacked alot of decent final ball for if they did find their last man it would have been 5 before the late goals.
Some pages back someone mentioned Mooy - as we know every solid decent team has a general or 2 let alone players who can see its about moving the ball forward and have support - am I missing something ? for lets face it Ven/Columbia are not world beaters but they have players who one touch, war pass, trap or angle balls one touch, runners off the ball player, importantly they look forward even when they do pass back but it sticks.

Goodness gracious me - I don't expect brilliance, I have to remind myself its 7mths out before WC opener - we got this :)
arnieball poppaball - seriously I'd luv to see IF were better than this its 2025/26 - we always got bagged out by so many not making the Cup pre GG, its not pretty I can only HOPE the planets align June 26, what others may not think ahead - what IF Bos or Circati for eg get injured pre CUP, think about it.
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Breaking those moments down can identify what needs improving. Toure was swarmed but with quicker lay offs we can get the ball moving. We went back too many times but that was guaranteed with the wingbacks we played.

Popovic has taken any shooting intent out of the team.
 
patjennings said:
Here's some stats. Arnold from 2018-2024 has a better win percentage, a better points per game. More goals per game and less conceded than Popovic. Arnold may not have been everyone's cup of tea and there are plenty of better NT managers but he is a better tactical manager, a better man manager and has better results.

All the talk about Aussie DNA was just fodder for the press. He is a very good manager for the level of player we have. He also was meticulous as was Rene scouting the world and the ALM. Something that seems to be missing with the current management.

It is not about picking more players. It is about picking the right players that will add to the group.
Click to expand...
that's an unfair comparison. that period of arnie's tenure included round 2 asian qualifiers which pump up all those metrics. popovic took over when it looked like we wouldnt qualify and didn't lose a game. beat japan and saudi arabia. we lost 3-0 to one of the best teams in the world. we were missing arguably our 3 best players with injury (circati, bos, souttar). we didn't concede a real chance until the penalty which was the wrong decision - from that point on, we were poor.
 
There is one issue here, it's the manager.

His game plan is one dimensional, and now being found out by teams that have the attacking quality to make us pay. We may shithouse our way out of the 48, we won't go further than the 32.
 
sportaddict said:
that's an unfair comparison. that period of arnie's tenure included round 2 asian qualifiers which pump up all those metrics. popovic took over when it looked like we wouldnt qualify and didn't lose a game. beat japan and saudi arabia. we lost 3-0 to one of the best teams in the world. we were missing arguably our 3 best players with injury (circati, bos, souttar). we didn't concede a real chance until the penalty which was the wrong decision - from that point on, we were poor.
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Also included a world cup and Asian cup.
 
huddo said:
Also included a world cup and Asian cup.
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yep, that's true as well. arnie did a good job. he squeezed the best out of an average squad at a world cup. that was magic. but - the team was not playing well by the end of his tenure - things immediately improved under popa. for one, the team has become much more defensively solid. as i said, until the pen (which shouldn't have been given) - one of the world's best teams barely created a chance. there are things to address with the current team - especially in buildup - but we are trending in the right direction. by the next window, bos, souttar and circati will be back and some younger players will have gained more experience.
 
sportaddict said:
yep, that's true as well. arnie did a good job. he squeezed the best out of an average squad at a world cup. that was magic. but - the team was not playing well by the end of his tenure - things immediately improved under popa. for one, the team has become much more defensively solid. as i said, until the pen (which shouldn't have been given) - one of the world's best teams barely created a chance. there are things to address with the current team - especially in buildup - but we are trending in the right direction. by the next window, bos, souttar and circati will be back and some younger players will have gained more experience.
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I understand you have to compromise on attach if you want to become stronger defensively. But Popa has never shown at any point in his career the malleability to transition away from that defensive structure. For Christ sake he gave up position to Indonesia.
 
Sorry this was for you @biggiemic As people who know Australia and the A League and are used to working lesser squads and younger squads, Nick Montgomery and Serge Raimundo. A pragmatist along the lines of Arnie.

If you want a more attack minded manager Muscat has performed well at Melbourne and elsewhere. Of the Socceroos were playing like Victory did under Muscat no-one would be complaining. - even if we were losing. Poppa problem is that he is getting bad results AND playing dire football.

My pick would have been Montgomery because I am looking for results over style. Many would plump for Muscat.

That the FA apparently only talked to Aloisi - who refused and Popovic is criminal. Now there are rumours of a move against Poppa with Foxe and Okon being considered-ludicrous. I would have considered Tom Sermani over Poppa.

Of course if you don't go Australian or Australian adjacent you can widen the net.
 
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patjennings said:
Here's some stats. Arnold from 2018-2024 has a better win percentage, a better points per game. More goals per game and less conceded than Popovic. Arnold may not have been everyone's cup of tea and there are plenty of better NT managers but he is a better tactical manager, a better man manager and has better results.

All the talk about Aussie DNA was just fodder for the press. He is a very good manager for the level of player we have. He also was meticulous as was Rene scouting the world and the ALM. Something that seems to be missing with the current management.

It is not about picking more players. It is about picking the right players that will add to the group.
Click to expand...
People get all hard about the player selections. I don't see it. Our best players, playing at higher levels are selected, Irvine, Metcalfe, Cicati, Bos, McGree, Burgess and Ryan.
The rest are in the mix and getting some time in the friendlies. There isn't anyone playing at at clearly higher level who isn't being picked. Swapping out O'Neill for x other midfielder who is flavour of the month really isn't shifting the needle.

Stylistically I hate what he is doing, but it can still be effective football when well executed. I think the problem is at a structural level with the systems of play. I never like 3 at the back because it always seems to result in conceding overloads in midfield.
 
Cunningstunt said:
People get all hard about the player selections. I don't see it. Our best players, playing at higher levels are selected, Irvine, Metcalfe, Cicati, Bos, McGree, Burgess and Ryan.
The rest are in the mix and getting some time in the friendlies. There isn't anyone playing at at clearly higher level who isn't being picked. Swapping out O'Neill for x other midfielder who is flavour of the month really isn't shifting the needle.

Stylistically I hate what he is doing, but it can still be effective football when well executed. I think the problem is at a structural level with the systems of play. I never like 3 at the back because it always seems to result in conceding overloads in midfield.
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No it can't. Because we don't have the players to execute it well against better opposition. He is as stubborn as Ange without his style. Ange ended with 0 points at the World cup but still a hero in many people's eyes. Poppa may well do the same at this World Cup but he won't be a hero and the NT will have lost the trust of the sporting public. With the ALM not travelling that well can we afford that
 
Fifa Day some interesting matches

Canada 2-0 Venezuara
USA 5-1 Uruguay
New Zealand 0-2 Ecuador
Japan 3-0 Bolivia
Saudi Arabia 0-3 Algeria
 
Fuck me dead I wish we still had Mooy, with Nestory and Mo he would kill it with balls in behind.

don't understand how we expect O'Neill and Irvine to dominate a midfield.... IT IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN they are like every other aussie midfielder... they are good at recycling possession and getting the ball to creative midfielders. Put fucking mcgree in the middle or someone who can actually play decent passes at pace.. My other call would be Volpato in there.

Popa blaming the eurokids who arent starting and playing 50 games a season. Fuck off. What the fuck does he expect Mo Toure to do? he is so fucking isolated.
 
mkxx said:
Fifa Day some interesting matches

Canada 2-0 Venezuara
USA 5-1 Uruguay
New Zealand 0-2 Ecuador
Japan 3-0 Bolivia
Saudi Arabia 0-3 Algeria
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The USA beating Uruguay 5-0!, I know it was a friendly, but Uruguay must have had a bad day, or the USA played very well.
 
patjennings said:
No it can't. Because we don't have the players to execute it well against better opposition. He is as stubborn as Ange without his style. Ange ended with 0 points at the World cup but still a hero in many people's eyes. Poppa may well do the same at this World Cup but he won't be a hero and the NT will have lost the trust of the sporting public. With the ALM not travelling that well can we afford that
Click to expand...
Excellent post
 
Cunningstunt said:
People get all hard about the player selections. I don't see it. Our best players, playing at higher levels are selected, Irvine, Metcalfe, Cicati, Bos, McGree, Burgess and Ryan.
The rest are in the mix and getting some time in the friendlies. There isn't anyone playing at at clearly higher level who isn't being picked. Swapping out O'Neill for x other midfielder who is flavour of the month really isn't shifting the needle.

Stylistically I hate what he is doing, but it can still be effective football when well executed. I think the problem is at a structural level with the systems of play. I never like 3 at the back because it always seems to result in conceding overloads in midfield.
Click to expand...
Thankfully O'Neill looked better last night. I'd like a back 4 and then to add Robertson or Balard. Balard came in and fired the tempo.

In hindsight this window was a string blooding for Trewin and he was alright against Colombia with some blocks.
 
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