Australia roar into Asian Cup quarter-finals with emphatic win over Oman

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) Momentum is everything in football and right now the Australian team also known as (Socceroos) are riding a wave that may carry them all the way to their first AFC Asian Cup title.

The 4-0 victory over Oman in Sydney on Tuesday night secured the Australians a spot in the quarterfinals. The game against South Korea on Saturday in Brisbane will determine who finishes on top of Group A.

This was the Socceroos’ most complete performance since their 6-0 thumping of Uzbekistan in the semifinals of the 2011 Asian Cup in Qatar.

After a year of auditioning players, suffering poor results and facing questions about his football philosophy, Ange Postecoglou’s vision for the national team has started to materialize in the most spectacular fashion.

After a 2014 that produced a measly 12 goals in 11 games, Postecoglou’s men have netted eight times in two matches in 2015.

Just as importantly, the burden carried by Tim Cahill to score has been alleviated. Thus far in the Asian Cup, the Socceroos have had eight different goal scorers, including just one for the talismanic former Everton midfielder.

As in their opening match against Kuwait, the Socceroos looked ponderous and hesitant in the opening exchanges. When Raed Ibrahim’s raking shot drew a brilliant save out of Mathew Ryan, Oman looked most likely to score. Postecoglou will be desperate to eradicate these slow starts as his team will surely be punished against better opposition. /End/