#30-Australia

#30-Australia
Nickname-Socceroos
Asian Football Confederation
FIFA Ranking-#56 (February 2014)
Group B (Spain, Netherlands, Chile, Australia)
Projected Results...
Loss to Spain
Loss to Netherlands
Loss to Chile
Manager-Ange Postecoglou
Qualified through second place finish in AFC FIFA WC Qualification Group B
4th World Cup Appearance (1974, 2006, 2010)
Projected Finish-Fourth in Group B

Australia...sucks for them but they have probably less than a 1% chance of making it through the group stage.  This group is essentially the group of death-the most difficult group in a major tournament.  Spain are the defending World Cup champions from 2010, and won the Euro in 2012.  Netherlands?  Spain's opponents in the 2010 World Cup Final, and a team that qualified very easily.  Chile is also a very strong team and in the top 10 of FIFA for most of the qualifying period.  Plain and simply-Australia will not have a good tournament, and largely due to their bad luck in the World Cup draw.  If Australia had a better draw, I would think they could possibly finish 2nd in a group and then be out in the knockout stages.  However, signs are good for the progress of Australia's national team.  This is their third straight World Cup that they qualified for, and club soccer in Australia is improving more and more each year.  Australia has some quality in their team, and though they recently lost to Brazil and France each 6-0, they beat Costa Rica (another World Cup team) 2-1 and tied Japan 1-1 in 2013.  Australia are ranked 30th for me because of their chances to qualify for the group stages, but they are better than some of the teams that will have a lower number ranking in my blog. Ok, we know Australia is extremely likely to be knocked out in the group stage, but who will be key players to watch if they are going to get a win or a draw somewhere in here?


Tim Cahill-Timmy used to be a fantastic attacking player for Everton in the EPL, and in 2012 he signed with the local MLS team the New York Red Bulls.  This guy is everything you want in your captain and star player.  He's the smallest guy on the pitch but his heart and soul are bigger than anyone else's on the pitch.  He plays injured, he wins headers in the air even if he's half a foot shorter than the player he is challenging, and he scores clutch and timely goals.  Cahill is the consummate professional, and I can't type enough good things about the guy.  His stats for the Socceroos are 66 appearances, with 29 goals.

Mile Jedinak-A midfielder who plays for Crystal Palace in the EPL.  Really plays more of a distributive role, not a great scorer, but Australia will benefit having a player who plays in the biggest league in the world.  He will be important if Australia are going to get a result in the group.

Lucas Neill-The most experienced defender on the Socceroos.  He has played for some big clubs in England in his past, including Millwall, Everton, Blackburn, and West Ham.  He also played for Galatasaray from the top flight in Turkey.  Neill has almost 100 appearances for the national team, and though he is past his prime at age 34, he will need to play his best to give the team a chance to win a game, or at least tie one.The Socceroos won't have much success at this tournament because of the teams they were drawn with, but Australia is trending upward, and provides optimism for the growth of the sport in Australia for the years to come.