There was nothing particularly revelatory about the Socceroos’ 1-0 win over Canada, the seventh in a row under coach Tony Popovic, who remains undefeated in 11 games since taking over. It was more a case of further confirmation of the things that he, and the rest of us, already suspected.
For instance: there’s something special brewing between Nestory Irankunda and Mohamed Toure, the pair who Australia’s attack is set to be shaped around in the coming years. We knew this. They showed us against New Zealand. But it was nice to see them do their thing against an even better opponent, creating what proved to be the decisive moment of Saturday morning’s (AEDT) match in Montreal from almost nothing.
Toure made a gut-busting run down the right but, without too many other options, floated a rather hopeful ball into the box. Canadian defender Niko Sigur thought he had it covered – but he didn’t spot Irankunda, creeping up on his blind side, who pinched the ball off him and prodded it home, entirely against the run of play.
Irankunda is best known for his freakish ball-striking, from both set pieces and long distance. But one of the most critical additions to his personal repertoire since he left the A-League has been his off-the-ball work, and his defensive harrying of opponents. This goal came directly from that under-appreciated quality.
The other thing he is known for, of course, is his occasionally short temper – and he almost lost it in the final minutes as Canada’s niggling treatment of him continued with a short push-and-shove session. He copped a yellow card, and was dragged away from the situation by Popovic, who took him off in what he said was a pre-planned substitution.
Nestory Irankunda.Credit: Getty Images
Popovic would not say what he told Irankunda in that moment.
“That’s something more for me and him, that we shared,” he said.
“I’m just proud of his contribution. He’s a young man that has so much growth to come. In the last two games, he’s scored goals for Australia. That’s part of football, and he doesn’t back down.”
We also knew, before this match, that Kye Rowles is a left-sided centre-back, not a left-back or a left wing-back. And we know it even harder now. Friendlies are for experimentation, but surely there is enough proof now that Rowles doesn’t have the qualities needed for that specific wide position in this specific system – which is not to say that he can’t be a massive contributor at the World Cup.
Kye Rowles was given a bath by Tajon Buchanan in the first half.Credit: AP
After a pretty dire first half, in which the Socceroos didn’t register a shot on target, Canada targeted Rowles’ side of the pitch and Tajon Buchanan threatened regularly. When Jordan Bos came on for Rowles early in the second half, the complexion of the match shifted almost instantly. Bos and his explosive pace, power and directness made it easier for Australia to dig themselves out of holes, and helped set up the far more impressive period that followed.
As for Paul Izzo, we had a sneaking suspicion that he was an international-standard goalkeeper. Well, now we definitely know. He was the clear man of the match; but for the eight saves he made, Popovic’s unbeaten record would be in tatters.
Izzo, 30, was chosen ahead of Maty Ryan, who has returned to the squad this window after linking up with La Liga side Levante.
Popovic said pre-match that it was a “little different psychologically” for Izzo to be picked over Ryan, rather than picked in his absence, and that he wanted to see how he handled it.
“I think he answered the question with his performance,” he said.
Ryan remains Australia’s clear No.1, but he has strong competition clipping at his heels, and Izzo’s performance was reflective of an overall resilience in defence possessed by this team.
Finally: we were aware that the Socceroos need to improve how they play with the ball. That remains a work-in-progress, and one that Popovic warned would take a while to iron out.
Loading
“It wasn’t our intention to let them have that much ball. But in certain areas of the park they’re very strong,” he said.
“When you look at where the players of Canada play … how many games they’ve played this season, how many games they’ve played last season, you compare it to us, there’s a big difference there. We want to close that gap and get our players into the bigger leagues where the training is more intense, the competition is harder. We’re in the process of getting that. But we have to start somewhere.
“Would I have liked us to do more with the ball? Yes. But that 20 minutes in the second half was excellent for us. Our challenge is how do we sustain that for longer periods. I think once we start getting players playing regularly in higher-level competition, I think that will happen naturally.”
