The Socceroos will host Japan at Stadium Australia on Thursday night, in one of the biggest games the team has played since joining the Asian confederation 15 years ago.
Australia’s qualification campaign is in serious jeopardy – with anything less than three points on Thursday night spelling the end of hopes of a direct path to Qatar. It wouldn’t be game over at that point, with the safety net of the play-offs still present.
What times are the games?
Australia host Japan in Sydney on Thursday, March 24 at 8.10pm AEDT. Six days later they’ll travel to Jeddah for their final game, against Saudi Arabia, which kicks off at 5am AEDT on Wednesday, March 30.
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How can I watch?
Both games will be broadcast on FTA television on Channel 10 in Australia, while Wide World of Sports will be providing coverage before, after, and during the matches.
How can Australia qualify?
Australia are currently three points behind Japan and four below Saudi Arabia in the race for the top two spots.
The good news, in a way, is that Australia’s two remaining games are against both of those teams. The bad news is that Saudi Arabia’s other game is against China and Japan’s against Vietnam, both of whom have already been mathematically eliminated and have nothing to play for.
There are hypothetical scenarios in which Australia could draw either match and still qualify, but they are very far-fetched so for all intents and purposes, Graham Arnold’s men need the full six points.
Australia’s superior goal difference to Japan means that a win by any margin in both games would mean Japan would have to beat Vietnam by at least six goals to leapfrog the Socceroos.
If the Saudis were to win their game against China before welcoming Australia five days’ later, they would be assured of qualification, regardless of the result in Sydney – meaning they could perhaps rest players against the Aussies.
What happens if we finish third?
Australia would be forced to take the long road to the World Cup, as they did in the last cycle, first beating Syria and then Honduras in the play-off rounds.
Just like last time, Australia will be paired against the third-best team from other Asian qualification group, which this time around will be one of UAE, Lebanon, or Iraq.
Unlike in 2017, however, it won’t be over two legs. Both the Asian and inter-confederation games will be one-off fixtures in Qatar, one week apart from each other, in June.
And this time around, Australia would not face the fourth-best team from North America, but rather the fifth-best from South America.
Instead of the likes of Panama or Costa Rica, Australia will instead have to play either Uruguay, Peru, Chile, or Colombia.
Obviously all of those teams have world class players, but the idea of having to beat Uruguay in a World Cup qualifier will spark some horrible memories from 2001, and some brilliant ones from four years’ later.
Who is in the Australian squad?
Thirty-four-year-old Uruguayan Bruno Fornaroli has been handed a spot in the squad for the first time, after FIFA eligibility rules changed recently, allowing for him to play for the nation he just became a citizen of.
Australia are without a host of key players – with Craig Goodwin and Jackson Irvine ruled out after the former was deemed a close contact of a COVID case and the latter tested positive himself.
They join other stars such as Aaron Mooy and Riley McGree on the sidelines, while Tom Rogic is in doubt after being on the wrong end of a red card-worthy tackle in his most recent game for Celtic.
Full squad: Nathaniel Atkinson, Aziz Behich, Martin Boyle, Nick D’Agostino, Milos Degenek, Kenneth Dougall, Mitchell Duke, Ben Folami, Bruno Fornaroli, Denis Genreau, Rhyan Grant, Ajdin Hrustic, James Jeggo, Fran Karacic, Joel King, Mathew Leckie, Awer Mabil, Jamie Maclaren, Connor Metcalfe, Andrew Redmayne, Tom Rogic, Kye Rowles , Mat Ryan, Trent Sainsbury, Gianni Stemsness, Marco Tilio, Danny Vukovic.
When is the World Cup?
The main tournament won’t be in the Australian winter as it is every other four years, and will instead begin in late November, due to the climate in Qatar.
The first match of the tournament will be at 9pm on November 21st in Australia, and the final is on the 19th of December at 2am AEDT.
Who has qualified for Qatar 2022?
Aside from the host nation, only a handful of others have already punched their tickets. Iran and South Korea have already locked up the top two spots in the other Asian qualifying group, and both Brazil and Argentina will finish in the top four in South America regardless of the results on the final two matchdays.
The ten group winners from European qualifying were all confirmed last last year – Serbia, Spain, Switzerland, France, Belgium, Denmark, Netherlands, Croatia, England, and Germany.
Three more European countries will join them, with a series of mini-tournaments to be played over the next fortnight. One of Wales, Austria, Scotland and Ukraine will qualify, one of Poland, Sweden and the Czech Republic, and one of Portugal, Italy, Turkey and North Macedonia.
In Africa, all five spots will be decided in the next week as well, in five two-legged play-offs after the group stage concluded. Egypt play Senegal, Cameroon play Algeria, Ghana play Nigeria, DR Congo play Morocco and Mali play Tunisia.
As mentioned, New Zealand will play the fourth-best team in North America, with it looking likely that Canada, USA and Mexico will claim the three automatic spots from that conference – but could still mathematically drop below either Panama or Costa Rica.