From the bench,two bright England-based midfielders made their international debut;Riley McGree and Kenny Dougall. The latter capped off a remarkable week by representing his country just days after scoring two goals at Wembley to get Blackpool promoted to the Championship. Dougall came on midway through the first half for James Holland and didn’t miss a beat in the midfield. Neither did McGree. The Birmingham City player made a short cameo off the bench to begin what looks to be a successful international career.
Australia’s win was their first match in more than 19 months and in the time since their last match,a new crop has started to come through. As far as victories go,it was dominant from start to finish. On another day,in another climate,the winning margin could have been heavily inflated.
New generation:Croatian-born Fran Karacic impressed on debut against Kuwait.Credit:AP
The Socceroos know the true tests lie ahead. However,after years of being plagued by issues of depth of talent,Australia looks to be in a better position for the future qualifiers than first expected. The next generation have added a much-needed injection of confidence for what’s to come.
Several more uncapped players wait in the wings ahead of games against Nepal,Jordan and Taiwan and,if others can follow in the footsteps of Hrustic,the Socceroos’ return to international football will carry plenty of optimism with it.
No Mooy,no Rogic,no problem
Australia nudged themselves one step closer to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar with a resounding win but it was the unearthing of Hrustic that could have a greater lasting effect than just the three points.
His third cap but first start in green and gold allayed any fears of the impact the withdrawal of Mooy and Rogic would have on Australia’s creativity.
The Socceroos need just a win and two draws from their final three matches to secure a spot in the next round of qualifying.Credit:AP
Together with Martin Boyle and Awer Mabil,Hrustic made light work of Kuwait’s defence in a polished display that keeps Australia on top of their World Cup qualifying first stage group,maintaining their perfect record with five wins from as many games.
It was the visitors who looked at home from the outset. Australia began brightly and with their first attacking raid,opened the scoring. Forward Mathew Leckie leaped above his markers to head into the bottom corner and put Australia into the lead inside the opening minute.
The tone never looked like turning after that point as Australia tightened their grip. With the word “heat” banned by Arnold,the Socceroos did their best to ignore the near-40 degree temperature that smothered them even in the Kuwaiti night.
To the onlooker,however,it barely looked to affect them. Their passes were hit with precision,their off-the-ball movement incessant as they overloaded a Kuwait defence who could barely find reprieve.
At the heart of Australia’s attacking gameplan was Hrustic. One of the fresher faces in the squad looked every part the seasoned veteran. Given the conductor’s baton,he dictated tempo as the fulcrum between the forward line and midfielders but his role wasn’t restricted to an organisational one.
Midway through the first half,the German-based man created Australia’s second with a superb solo run. Driving into the box,Hrustic darted past one marker with a burst of pace then turned away from another,drawing a foul as his run was checked and winning Australia a penalty.
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It may not have drawn significant contact but the referee ruled enough of Hrustic’s line was blocked to award the Socceroos a spot-kick.
Boyle’s effort was palmed away by Kuwaiti goalkeeper Sulaiman Abulghafoor,but only as far as Jackson Irvine who tapped in to make it 2-0.
The toll of the heat began to emerge in the second half but,even then,it did little more than slow the tempo.
The complexion of the match remained unchanged and,in the 66th minute,Hrustic struck their third when he curled a left-foot dead ball over the wall,into the side netting with such bend that Abulghafoor was left helpless.
His emphatic finish put Australia five points clear of Kuwait and Jordan in second place,needing just a win and two draws from their last three games to seal progress to the next round of qualifiers.
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