Asian Cup 2015: Socceroos star Ivan Franjic cleared of serious injury, chance to play final

SOCCEROOS boss Ange Postecoglou says he won’t even consider his alternatives until it’s clear whether Ivan Franjic will be fit for the Asian Cup final.

Australia's Ivan Franjic kicks the ball away rom China's Ji Xiang, left, during the AFC Asia Cup quarterfinal soccer match between China and Australia in Brisbane, Australia, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2015. (AP Photo/Tertius Pickard)

SOCCEROOS boss Ange Postecoglou says he won’t even consider his alternatives until it’s clear whether right back Ivan Franjic will be fit to take his place in Saturday’s Asian Cup final.

Declaring that Franjic had made positive ground towards recovering from the injury he suffered in Tuesday’s semifinal, Postecoglou said he wanted the defender to have every chance of playing in “the biggest game of his life” against South Korea.

Scans on Wednesday cleared the Torpedo Moscow fullback of any major damage. But curiously Postecoglou was unable to clarify the exact nature of the injury, insisting he was only concerned with Franjic’s chances of playing at ANZ Stadium.

That issue is the only major headache for Postecoglou, who suggested he would make few other changes to the team that defeated the UAE 2-0 in the semifinal.

SAINSBURY PREPARED FOR RIGHT-BACK IF NEED BE

Ivan Franjic is vital to Ange Postecoglou’s finals plans.

Franjic himself was in good spirits on Thursday and more positive than he had felt 24 hours before, hopeful of maintaining his ever-present record at the tournament.

“He’s definitely still a chance,” said Postecoglou.

“He had some scans but nothing really came up. Of course he’s sore but post game he was less of a chance than he is now. It’s nothing serious, if it was a normal break (between games) he’d be fine. With the quick turnaround that’s an issue, but balanced against that it’s such a big game and I’m sure he’ll give himself every chance.”

Franjic had described it as a “jarred hip” despite holding his groin when he suffered the injury, and Postecoglou could shed no definitive light on it.

“I’m not an expert, I just ask the doc if he’ll be available or not,” he said.

“He’s tweaked his hip or his groin or something in that area, overstretching. It’s nothing serious, there’s time pressure — but sitting here now he’s a good chance to play.”

Trent Sainsbury and Mark Milligan are the two obvious replacements, with no specialist cover left in the squad, but Postecoglou said he expected minimal changes to the team.

“Today’s a recovery day, tomorrow we’ll have a session, so we’ll see how everyone pulls up — but I wouldn’t envisage too many changes,” he said.

“I never go with Plan Bs, something else will turn up tomorrow and we’ll need Plan C.

“We’ve got options in the squad, but in fairness to Ivan we’ll give him the chance to be fit. If not, then we’ll look at them. It’s a bit different in tournament mode, it’s probably the biggest game in his life. You want to give people the chance to put their hands up, if you start preparing Plan Bs then it kind of makes it extra difficult for him.”

South Korea captain Ki Sung Yueng told reporters that he anticipated the final being determined by “mental strength rather than physical strength”, and Korean analysts have suggested that the Socceroos will face intense pressure from being the host nation and favourites.

But Postecoglou said the game would pivot on which players would seize what opportunities came — or spurn them.

“It will come down to moments — of brilliance, or someone losing the plot,” he said.

“All we can do is prepare really well, and above all maintain our composure and discipline on the day. There’s so many external factors can affect the result — the things we can control are our performance, our composure, our discipline.”

Originally published as Asian Cup 2015: Socceroos star Ivan Franjic cleared of serious injury, chance to play final