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Socceroos players are relishing their dream shot at facing Lionel Messi, but they’ll have no qualms in sending their footballing idol into international retirement.
Graham Arnold’s men will face Argentina on Sunday morning (6am AEDT) in the biggest match of their lives and they are not hiding their admiration for the man many consider football’s GOAT.
“I always loved Messi and I think he’s the greatest that’s ever played the game,” Socceroos defender Milos Degenek said on Thursday.
“But I think it’s not an honour to play against him because he’s just a human as we all are. It’s an honour to be the round of 16 of a World Cup. That’s the honour in itself.
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“… in the end it’s 11 against 11, it’s not 11 Messis. There’s one. And obviously we know their squad is full of stars, even (Paulo) Dybala is on the bench and Martinez comes off the bench. So it’s a squad that’s immaculate.”
Asked whether he was a Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo man in football’s never-ending legacy debate, goalscoring hero Mat Leckie sided with his teammate Degenek.
“I am a Messi man,” Leckie said.
“He’s naturally is the most talented player I have ever seen with the ball at his feet and he just does things that no-one else can do.
“In saying that, we have come across great players last night (against Denmark) and in this tournament as long as we’re a collective group, as we have been until now, we can stop their strengths, stop them from being dangerous and that is what we will try and do.”
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The Socceroos are huge $13 outsiders in the matchup but Leckie believes they essentially have a free hit at doing what no Australian team has done before by making the last eight.
“N-one expected us to be here, we throw everything at them,” he said.
“And there’s no real pressure for us … no-one expects us to win so let’s shock the world.
BIKE IN A POOL? INSIDE ‘EXHAUSTED’ SOCCEROOS’ RECOVERY
The Socceroos have access to world class medical facilities across two venues in Qatar with a team of doctors, physios, sports scientists and massage therapists working with individual players up to a whopping 10 hours a day.
Every available minute and recovery method will be valuable over the next 48 hours as Australia, and Argentina, face a brutal three-day turnaround from their final group stage matches.
As well as the wide range of sporting and medical facilities on offer at Australia’s World Cup base, the Aspire Academy, the Socceroos also have access to the Aspetar sports medicine hospital only five minutes down the road.
Recovering players have access to high-tech equipment including altitude rooms – used to allow them to train cardio under lesser strain to their bodies – anti-gravity treadmills and other recovery facilities and everything is fair game even … cycling in a pool.
“Everyone does their own individual thing, whatever helps them. There’s no real restrictions on what they or you’re not obligated to do anything that you don’t want to,” Leckie said on Thursday.
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“They have got everything there for us, you can throw a bike in the pool and ride a bike in the pool, you can do everything.
“We’re very lucky to have that, it has been a massive advantage, especially the intensity that we play. We know as a team that we need to work harder and win our physical battles to get results, that has been the success for us, it’s massive to get our bodies right for the game.”
Leckie said he was “exhausted” after his match-winning performance in Australia’s 1-0 win ove Denmark.
“I think most of the boys were, everyone threw everything at that game to get a result,” Leckie said.
“It wasn’t too different from the Tunisia game. We have already been to Aspetarr, done our recovery … today, tomorrow it’s going to be obviously a major point of just getting recovery in because it’s all about getting the body ready to put in another shift.”
‘NEW GOLDEN GEN’ WANTS A NAME
Graham Arnold lauded his Socceroos side as the ‘new golden generation’ after the win over Denmark. But striker Jamie Maclaren believes the current team needs its own name to distinguish from the feats of the iconic 2006 side.
Both Australian teams reached the World Cup knockouts stage but they have contrasting stories, with the 2006 littered with household names playing at some of the biggest clubs in the world, and Arnold’s side defying the odds with a youthful squad relatively inexperienced at the highest level.
“I’ve got a huge respect for the golden generation. They’ve got all the praise. I’ll be the first person to back them and say that they were great but we need a name,” Maclaren said.
“I don’t know if it’s the silver generation … whatever you wanna call us.
“At the end of the day we’re just honest Aussies who love our country.
“Platinum generation … I don’t know but there’s got to be some sort of thing because we have an identity and we believe. Maybe give us the ‘believe’ identity.”
