Intro
The majority of football games Australia play will normally be against nations considerably lower than themselves on the FIFA rankings. Games against Thailand or UAE or (back in the days of Oceania) New Zealand are certainly keenly contested but ultimately these are matches in which Australia should be expected to dominate possession, to be the 'proactive' side in breaking down their opponents defence, to be 'playing football'. We've not always had the best record in defeating these teams which has cost us in both World Cup qualifying and more recently against Iraq at the Asian Cup in 2007. This friendly against Denmark, a technically proficient and somewhat tactically advanced side, who are only a week away from their own continental championship, thus presented Australia with a very different challenge. Osieck decided upon a 4-4-2 presumably aimed at containing and counter-attacking the Scandinavians.
Australia's Starting XI
Defending
When not in possession of the ball Australia's two banks of four were immediately apparent. This defensive shape is, according to Roy Hodgson (via Jonathan Wilson), one of the strengths of the 4-4-2, providing that its components are well-drilled and familiar to each other. Australia rarely pressed the Danes until they ventured into the final third, giving the home side the vast majority of possession. Thompson at left midfield was reluctant to follow the rest of the midfield in dropping into shape however, meaning the Australian left became overloaded at times. Wilkshere and North dealt better with the Danes on the right, with Wilkshere effective in stopping Simon Poulsen's overlapping runs from left-back. Spiranovic and Neil both impressed at centre-back; Neil is still solid in the tackle and strong in the air, and his direct balls from the back launched a few decent counter attacks, while Sprianovic showed both his inexperience and potential over the ninety minutes. Denmark's first goal came from Daniel Agger, who stormed forward from centre-back, played one-twos with both Bendtner and Eriksen before dropping to the ground upon Spiranovic's tackle. It was a soft penalty but Agger and co had outfoxed Australia with good combination play at the edge of the box, Spiranovic first turned too slowly and then clattered into Agger clumsily. The lack of game-time Spiranovic has had at club-level lately showed over the whole game, for at times he was too casual or slow to react. Despite this he was comfortable on the ball and dealt with Bendtner well. Hopefully Spiranovic sees more first team football soon as he's clearly in Osieck's thoughts for centre-back. McKay also showed glimpses of class. As a left-back the ex-Brisbane star is somewhat out of his depth but his passing and vision from deeper positions did create chances for those further forward. Australia conceded a second goal on 68 minutes, a corner from Denmark's left-hand side wasn't effectively cleared from the 6 yard box and Bjelland was on hand to tuck the bobbling ball into the net. It was not the first time Denmark had threatened from set-pieces and clearly Australia's defending in such circumstances needs some work. Despite that setback Osieck introduced Carney at left-back soon after this, with Thompson making way. Uzbek-based Carney is clearly more of a full-back than McKay and the switch brought better balance to that flank from then on. The game lost much of its intensity after the second goal, Osieck's men contributing to this by taking more time in working the ball out from the back as the clock wound down. The ways in which Australia's defence conceded in this game were predictable and preventable, but overall it was a disciplined performance against high-quality opposition. The opportunity to practice a deep line, defensive shape and calm (at times direct) distribution will be an asset come the Qualifier against Japan especially, although I'd like to see Carney from the start with McKay back in midfield against Oman as Australia (hopefully) return to a more possession hungry, proactive game-plan.
Australia's Defensive shape
(North out of pic at RB, Thompson still high at LM)
Australia fail to clear corner ball
Denmark score, 2-0
Attacking
Despite experiencing territorial and possession disadvantages Australia created a number of chances through-out the match. This was due to vintage performances from both Kewell and Bresciano. Bresciano began as a deep-playmaker, coming short to receive the ball out from defines before redirecting play further afield, but as the game wore on he began to run with the ball more, testing Denmark's concentration. His partner in midfield Jedinak had a different role in supporting Thompson, Kewell and Brosque up front. Often Australia's back four would look to hit Kewell and Brosque's feet almost immediately after regaining possession. Compared with the Danish defence our front two were unlikely to ever find success competing in the air, but keeping the ball on the deck with such a direct approach required runners in the form of Thompson, Jedinak and occasionally Wilkshere. Australia's coach has no doubt modelled this attacking structure upon that of his native Germany, whose fluid counter-attacking game demolished Australia, Argentina and Enlgand at the last World Cup. Such an approach may not have more luck in drawing out the defences of, for example, Oman but opponents like Japan might afford Australia more space. This sort of attacking instruction requires Australia to be quick-thinking moving forward via one-touch football, and in Kewell, Brosque and Thompson they certainly have players capable of good combination play. Contrastingly the direct alternatives to these players, Cahill, Kennedy, Kruse and McKay, are less suited for Osieck's plans in this respect, although they are all valuable players for Australia. Kewell's holding up of the ball, smart running and, above all, technique are a class above his compatriots and he remains vital for Australia's short-term results. The places of Thompson and Brosque, despite their decent performances here, are perhaps less secure, Cahill and Kennedy being the biggest names in their way. Australia's best scoring opportunities both fell Brosque's way to no avail, while Thompson's attacking forays did little to compensate for his defensive fragility. Kruse, Cahill, Kilkenny and Milligan also got some match practice as the match wound down, all doing no harm to their chances of playing in the next two games. Ultimately the attack came away with nothing against the Danes, but again Australia showed some promise in developing and practicing a counter-attacking style.
Brosque's 1st chance to score, Keeper saves
Brosque's 2nd chance to score, bad touch, keeper collects
Kewell holds ball before releasing Thompson who then looks to pass
Kewell holds ball again, waiting for supporting runners
Conclusion
Denmark face the Netherlands, Germany and Portugal in Euro2012's customary 'Group of Death' and on this showing they look to be worth of a spot in Europe's Top 16 teams. The Danes have variety in attack from Nicklas Bendtner, Dennis Rommedahl and Christian Eriksen as well as Liverpool's Daniel Agger in defence and I wouldn't bet against them upsetting some of their opponents over the next month. Despite all this Australia's main objective in constricting Denmark must be chalked down as a failure, for ultimately the game finished 2-0 to the home side. Having said that I'm not expecting our next game against Oman to be similar to this contest for the simple reason that we'll be after three points against a much lower ranked side. Against Oman we'll need to retain possession better, to press higher up the field and create chances more regularly for a start, which might sway Osieck into a few personnel changes. But, considering the strength of Denmark and the early signs of progress for Australia, this friendly has yielded more than match fitness for our upcoming Qualifiers.
