Socceroos coach Graham Arnold believes his players are starting to play with freedom at just the right time of the Asian Cup after sealing progression to the quarter-finals with a 4-0 win over Indonesia.
Australia teed up a blockbuster clash with either South Korea or Saudi Arabia with their heaviest win in Doha on Sunday (Monday AEDT).
The Socceroos took the advantage via Elkan Baggott’s own goal in the 12th minute then doubled it through Martin Boyle’s 45th-minute diving header.
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Craig Goodwin came off the bench to score a 89th-minute volley and assisted Harry Souttar two minutes later to complete the victory in front of 7863 fans at Jassim bin Hamad Stadium in Doha.
“It was a tough game but obviously the quality that we’ve got up front came through,” Arnold said.
“The improvements today was the individual belief and some of the actions the boys were doing. It was, in a lot of ways, more freedom from them and more relaxed.
“And that’s what I want. I want them to show their individual qualities.
“It’s good to have a great system of play, and it’s good to have great attacking patterns.
“But I’d rather see these boys relax and show their skills and show their imagination – and I saw that growing today.”
There will be one big concern, though. Gethin Jones limped off in the 69th minute with a groin injury, and went to hospital for scans.
South Korea and Saudi Arabia play on Tuesday (3am Wednesday AEDT), with the quarter-final scheduled for Friday (2.30am Saturday AEDT).
“We get a couple of days off now to rest and recover which is crucial,” Arnold said, after conceding his charges could improve “in every aspect”.
“The most important thing is we get our game right, we get our brains cleared, our brains ready, and then the boys know their jobs and they can go out and get it done.”
Australia didn’t have a shot until Boyle’s goal and didn’t record a second until the 80th minute. With a pro-Indonesia crowd bringing a loud, parochial atmosphere, the Socceroos’ defence looked panicked.
Just three minutes into the game, Indonesia’s Rafael Struick flicked a close-range effort over the bar – one of five first-half shots from the world’s No.146-ranked side.
Australia drew first blood when Irvine burst down the right and into the box, before his attempted cross took a heavy deflection off Baggott and beat goalkeeper Ernando Ari.
“If we didn’t concede that unlucky goal, the whole game would have been changed,” Indonesia coach Shin Tae-yong said.
For the second, Jones launched a wonderful cross-field ball towards the far post, where Boyle flung himself forward to head home.
Indonesia faded in the second half as Mitch Duke (hamstring) and Goodwin (knee) returned from injury in the 61st and 86th minutes respectively.
In the dying minutes, Australia broke through again when Connor Metcalfe cleverly backheeled to Atkinson, and the full-back picked out Irvine.
The midfielder’s header was well saved by Ari, but Goodwin pounced on the rebound and buried a skidding volley.
Two minutes later, from a free kick, Goodwin turned provider for Souttar, who turned home a lovely flick-header.
“I know there’s people back in Australia asking for or wanting to see what an impact player is off the bench,” Arnold said.
“Maybe that’s a good role for Craig Goodwin.”
