Ange Postecoglou’s Socceroos revolution delivers mixed results in Russia

Ange Postecoglou wants to revolutionise Australian football. He has said so repeatedly during his four-year reign at the helm of the national team, and his players are quick to repeat this mantra at every opportunity. The 51-year-old aspires to create a Socceroos side that favours passing over pragmatism, creative attack over aerial bombardment.

It is fitting, then, that the first true test of Postecoglou’s football revolution came at the Fifa Confederations Cup in Russia. 100 years after a series of political revolts across this vast country changed the course of human history, the Australians arrived in Sochi intending to show the fruits of their own rebellion.

The first stage of the revolution did not go to plan. A flattering 3-2 scoreline belied a comprehensive loss to Germany, and only the world champions’ profligacy in front of goal averted a heavier defeat. Postecoglou was quick to take the blame – “it is no fault of the players to be fair to them – they stuck to our principles” – but there are no consolation points for principled football.

A more evenly-matched encounter with a potent if inconsistent Cameroon side presented the perfect opportunity for Australia to make an impression. If they were to have any hope of achieving Postecoglou’s stated objective of winning the tournament, victory at the imposing Zenit Arena was all-but essential. Yet the Socceroos struggled to contain the Cameroon attacking threat, and were fortunate to leave Saint Petersburg with a 1-1 draw.

In the stands and in the media centre, mutiny was on the cards. One fan even quipped that he would send his travel invoices to Football Federation Australia. The Confederations Cup might be derided as a pointless series of friendlies, but this tournament meant something to those who had made the long journey from Australia. Meanwhile, the Socceroos were missing in action.

The atmosphere was not helped by Postecoglou’s fiery relations with sections of the travelling media pack. The coach has never been the most charismatic at press conferences, but in Russia his contempt for the questions of certain journalists, including this one, was palpable.

When Postecoglou announced six changes for the final group stage match, Australia needed a two-goal victory over South American champions Chile to reach the semi-finals, but the team sheet suggested Postecoglou had already conceded defeat. Out were attacking sparks Tom Rogic and Aaron Mooy, in were first game flop Massimo Luongo and several other fringe players.

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The 1-1 draw that followed was entirely unexpected. Postecoglou’s surprise team selection was vindicated. It was a strong riposte to his many critics. The Australians matched and at times outplayed a truly world class opposition. This was one of the best Socceroos performances of the Postecoglou era.

But ultimately it was not enough. Which makes the task of assessing Australia’s Confederations Cup campaign all the more difficult. On one hand, the Socceroos secured two points from a challenging group, a marked improvement on the zero-point return at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Germany, Chile and Cameroon are third, fourth and 32^nd respectively in the Fifa rankings; Australia languish in 48^th. On that albeit imperfect standard, the two draws should be lauded. Chile are arguably the best team in the competition – to face them at their own game and nearly come away with victory is an impressive feat.

On the other, Australia are still yet to win a game in a Fifa competition during Postecoglou’s tenure. The Socceroos were poor against Germany, middling against Cameroon and superb against Chile. In such circumstances, should one good performance compensate for an otherwise uninspired campaign? Why were the Socceroos unable to find the determination they showed on Sunday earlier in the tournament?

To be fair to Postecoglou, he is no hypocrite. While the Australian manager earlier professed his intention to beat Chile, it would have been easy to claim credit for a valiant draw. But while his players revelled in glory, Postecoglou was his usual dour self at the post-match press conference. “I came here to achieve something and we have fallen short,” he declared.

History is often written with the benefit of hindsight, and the final verdict on Australia’s Confederations Cup campaign will be delivered in several months’ time. If the Socceroos can draw with Japan away on 31 August and then beat Thailand in Melbourne on 5 September, automatically qualifying for the World Cup in the process, Sunday’s draw with Chile could mark a turning point for Postecoglou. If his players can keep repeating that performance, the football revolution in Australia will be alive and well.

But should the Socceroos stumble and miss out on qualification for Russia 2018, this Confederations Cup showing may in time represent the beginning of the end for Postecoglou. The divisive coach had already expressed an intention to leave the post in July 2018, but it is hard to see his desired longer term legacy in Australian football surviving a failure to return to the World Cup. Postecoglou’s revolution would not be the first to find its graveyard in the streets of Moscow.