From The Stands Asian Cup Preview – Group A
Group A of the 2015 Asian Cup will certainly be the headline one of the group stages, with hosts and favourites Australia the main team that everyone will be keeping an eye on. The group also includes the Korea Republic, making it the only group to include two Asian qualifiers for the World Cup, as well as Kuwait and Oman who will certainly be pushing for a place in the knockout stages. The group includes the opening game of the tournament and the tastiest encounter of the early part, Australia vs Korea Republic.
Australia
The home nation will be going in to the tournament as favourites and with plenty of confidence, despite their poor run of games recently. The ‘Socceroos’ have only won 1 of their last 12 fixtures; an edgy 2-3 win over Saudi Arabia back in September.
One thing in the favour for the hosts is the fact that all but one of these games has been away from home; the last home fixture was way back in May in a World Cup goodbye match for the fans, which ended at 1 goal apiece.
Only being a new side to the federation, the Australian side would love to prove themselves to the other nations by taking some silverware on home ground, while a strong performance would put them onto the world map and give them a better chance at hosting a World Cup in the future.
2011 Result: Runners-up
FIFA Ranking: 100
Best Result: Second (2011)
Key Players: Goalscoring has been a problem for the Aussies of recent, with influential striker Tim Cahill the only reliable player putting about the ball into the back of the net. Cahill has 36 goals for the green and gold; the rest of the squad has 31. Assuming the New York striker can stay fit, he will be essential to attacking success the Australian’s have; any cross into the area will have opposition defence’s on high alert with the high flying striker hanging around.
Possibly the most in form player of the tournament for the host nation is goalkeeper Maty Ryan, who has been in superb form for Club Brugge in Belgium. The 22 year old earned a new contract on a ‘lucrative deal’ for his club after winning ‘Professional Goalkeeper of the Year’ for the last season and will be a massive part of stabilising an unsettled defence.
Supporters: Named the Terrace Australis, the main supporter group of the Socceroos are certainly very passionate, shown in the World Cup in Brazil where fans travelled in their thousands to support their nation. With Tifos, Capos and organisation into an active area for the tournament on their own turf, expect the Australian fans to be extremely loud throughout all their games and give the team that extra edge in matches.
The Green and Gold Army, otherwise known as the GGArmy, is the link between fans and games and ensure the Socceroos are well supported. With a network of around 20,000 fans and a reach of many more, the GGArmy will ensure games in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane are effected by informed, passionate and loud fans!
Prediction: 1st
Korea Republic
Historically, the Republic of Korea, otherwise known as South Korea, have always always been thought of as one of the superpowers of Asian football. Having previously finished 9 times in the top three of the tournament and qualified for the past 8 World Cup, including the one they hosted back in 2002, the nation’s football pedigree is well known and is supported by the strong domestic league called the K-League.
Recently results have been a mixed bag for the Koreans, who have only won 5 out of their last 15 matches including a desperately disappointing World Cup where they failed to win a game and were bundled out of their group in last place, a group which many tipped them to advance from.
After a post-World Cup decline and installation of new manager Uli Stielike, the Koreans will be hoping that the newly invigorated side can take the big step forward into the competition in which they are one of the favourites to win.
2011 Result: Third Place
FIFA Ranking: 69
Best Result: Champions (1960)
Key Players: Captain Ki Sung-yueng will be the most commonly known player, currently an influential cog to a successful Swansea City midfield. The squad is littered with players playing in the top European leagues, including Son Heung-Min, an attacker for Bayer Leverkusen who will be one of the more dangerous players for the Koreans.
Cha Du-ri is the oldest member of the squad and just one of many in the squad to play for some of the biggest teams in Asia. His experience, along with Jung Sung-ryong and Lee Jeun-ho will be enormous in spurring on the team which is predominantly comprised of younger players with plenty of talent but perhaps a little lacking of experience in big games and pressure scenarios.
Supporters: The official supporters group of the South Korean team is known as the Red Devils, coined due to the teams red shirt. The Red Devils are well known for being highly organised and extremely passionate in support of their nation. Expect to here various Korean chants and songs as well as a drum beating loudly and proudly in the active area.
Supporters often wear red horns as a show of allegiance to their team and are kitted out in red. Australia has close to 100,000 people who identify themselves as a descendent or migrant from Korea, so expect to see them out in big numbers to support their nation at their three group stages matches and knockout games if they get so far.
Prediction: 2nd
Kuwait
A definite underdog to get out of the group, Kuwait will have a tough time if recent results are anything to go by. More worrying for the Kuwait side is their most recent fixture against fellow group underdogs Oman, where they lost by 5 goals to 0 and failed to get out of the group stage of the Gulf Cup.
A pre-tournament friendly against Iraq will give them more promise, where the Al-Azraq managed a 1-1 draw. Times used to be much better for Kuwait who had a golden era in the late 1990s and early 2000s, managing to make it to the quarter finals and semi finals in back to back cups in 1996 and 2000. Since then, the Kuwait side’s fortunes have been worse, managing only the group stages twice and not even making it into the 2007 tournament.
2011 Result: Fourteenth
FIFA Ranking: 124
Best Result: Champions (1980)
Key Players: Not many of the Kuwait players will be familiar to those in Australia, with the majority of the side playing in the domestic league in their home nation. The team does have one thing going for them, experience and knowledge of their system.
The danger man for the team nicknamed The Blue would have to be Musaed Neda, who has scored 16 goals for his national side and is a danger from set pieces, with goal against the Socceroos back in 2011 a reminder of his ability. Bader Al-Mutawa has 149 caps for his nation with 47 goals, proof that he can also find the back of the net and once trialled with Nottingham Forest in England.
Supporters: As shown here, the Kuwait supporters are passionate about their football and will put emotion into cheering on their team, although unfortunately active support numbers will be low due to the distance that supporters will have to travel as well as the amount of Kuwait-born people in the country, with only 577 responses of Kuwaiti ancestry in a recent census in the country.
Prediction: 4th
Oman
Oman are certainly one of the least experienced sides when it comes to tournament progression; the side has never made a World Cup and has only twice qualified for the Asian Cup, in 2004 and 2007, where they failed to make it out of the group stages. The little known Oman league is where all but one of the squad ply their trade, where qualification to the Asian Champions League is not possible.
An impressive performance in the Gulf Cup will give hope to the Omani supporters, losing in the semi finals to eventual winners Qatar after topping their group in the qualification stage. A 4-1 loss to China in Campbelltown in the lead up to the tournament is less encouraging however, although a 2-2 draw with Qatar in Canberra shows they will certainly be no walkover.
2011 Result: DNQ
FIFA Ranking: 93
Best Result: Ninth (2004)
Key Players: Ali Al-Habsi is without a doubt the talisman of the Oman team. The former Premier League keeper, who currently competes in the Championship in England with Brighton and Hove Albion, is the captain of the side and has already notched up 100 caps with his nation. Expect at 1 or 2 fantastic performances from him, although his recent stint on the bench may see him come into the tournament a bit cold.
Other players to look out for are Amad Al-Hosni and Ahmed Mubarak Al Mahaijri, who have both also amassed over 100 caps for their nation and will look to be integral parts of the team who will challenge to get out of the tough group under the guidance of former Paris Saint Germain defender Paul Le Guen.
Supporters: Support for the national team is massive back in Oman, where good results are received with lots of hype and good publicity for the national team, while losses result in frustration and disappointment. Oman is certainly only a growing football nation but will struggle to have much of an attendance in any of their matches, with less than 4 million residing in the country itself, they will unfortunately be one of the least supported nations in the tournament.
Prediction: 3rd
Key Fixtures:
Australia vs Kuwait. 9/1 at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium 7:30pm.
The opener of the tournament. Following a ceremony and massive build up, host nation Australia will be faced by a fired up Kuwait team, keen to cause an upset on the biggest stage in Asian football and give themselves a really good chance at getting out of the group. Kuwait have an extremely good record against the side in green and gold too, with 5 wins and 2 draws from 10 encounters.
Australia vs Republic of Korea. 17/1 at Brisbane Stadium 8pm.
Probably the most enticing game of the group stages, 2 of the 4 Asian qualifiers for the World Cup will come face to face in a group match which could very well decide who comes 1st and 2nd in the group. Expect a jam-packed Brisbane Stadium to enjoy the entertainment as two of Asia’s powerhouses play a probably high-tempo and highly entertaining fixture.
Full Group A Schedule
Australia vs Kuwait. 9/1 at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium 7:30pm.
Republic of Korea vs. 10/1 at Canberra Stadium 4pm.
Kuwait vs Republic of Korea. 13/1 at Canberra Stadium 6pm.
Oman vs Australia. 13/1 at Stadium Australia 8pm.
Australia vs Republic of Korea. 17/1 at Brisbane Stadium 8pm.
Oman vs Kuwait. 17/1 at Newcastle Stadium 8pm.
Who do you think will win the group and are you attending any games from this group? Let us know in the comments below!
Other From The Stands Asian Cup Previews
Group D : Coming Soon
Image Credit: www.resources0.news.com.au, www.noonchi.us, www.arabtimesonline.com, fr.fifa.com.
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