Socceroos v Syria FIFA World Cup qualifier: Ange Postecoglou’s side must learn to kill the game off

WE can curse the penalty that should never have been but the Socceroos’ World Cup qualifier against Syria should have been over long before then, writes ROBBIE SLATER.

The Socceroos’ World Cup dreams are on the line. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)

WE can curse the penalty that should never have been in Friday’s Socceroos v Syria match, but the truth is the game should have been over long before then.

Once again — as we saw against Thailand — there was nothing wrong with our football in the first 60 minutes, but our finishing simply has to get better in these crucial games.

We dominated the first half, then right up until the 60-minute mark we had the opportunities to put Syria away.

But then we lost our momentum, they got a little bit better, we got a little bit worse and it resulted in them grabbing a late 1-1 draw.

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Omar Alsoma scores Syria’s controversial penalty. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)

As dubious as the penalty was — to anyone watching it wasn’t a penalty — with five minutes remaining, you can’t say Syria didn’t deserve the draw.

Ange Postecoglou summed it up pretty well when he said the game became “chaotic”, which suited them because we lost all control.

That’s certainly a worry, but on the other hand it’s also understandable when you’re away from home and playing against an emotional team.

Ange Postecoglou must get more urgency from his team. (Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)

So, as disappointing as it was in the end that we couldn’t put them away, putting everything aside it’s still a decent result. We scored away, grabbed a draw, and now we can bring them back home where our record is nothing short of fantastic.

We very rarely lose at home. Even against Thailand, though we didn’t get the goals we needed, we still beat them. So I think we can be very confident without being complacent, because the last half-hour against Syria showed that, when the game became chaotic, they began to pose a threat and looked dangerous.

There will be some fresh legs at ANZ Stadium on Tuesday night, with Tom Rogic just one of those expected to start. We’ll dominate again and because of that have a lot of the ball, so we will need players who are going to run and open up the opposition.

It’s far from over, but we’re certainly in the driving seat.