World Cup playoff: Rhys Williams would add composure, quality to panicky Socceroos if back for Syria

ANGE Postecoglou cannot make many left-field selections for the Socceroos’ two-legged World Cup playoff next month. There is, however, one ‘risk’ worth taking.

Rhys Williams has impressed in his short time at Melbourne Victory.

ANGE Postecoglou cannot make many left-field selections for the Socceroos’ date with World Cup destiny next month.

There is one ‘risk’ worth taking for the two-legged playoffs against Syria however, new Melbourne Victory signing Rhys Williams.

Far from a token selection, Williams appears ready to slot into the first XI and the highly-debated back three.

Rhys Williams has impressed in his short time at Melbourne Victory.

Having seen Williams train and play, his fitness levels are at their highest since late 2013 when he started in Postecoglou’s first game in charge.

Williams produced an assured display in the November 2013 win over Costa Rica, the last of his 14 Socceroos caps before two torn Achilles’ ruled him out of Brazil 2014 and the 2015 Asian Cup.

With Williams, the big question was not quality but his physical state and he was underdone when recalled by the Socceroos last March, in the midst of a standoff with Perth Glory.

He’s lost four to five kilograms since, looks sharper and has not missed a beat in a two-month pre-season, playing every game.

Williams’ qualities are vast, one isn’t handed the captain’s armband for nothing at a strong club like Middlesbrough, where he played 141 games in nine years amid a tug of war between Wales and Australia.

Rhys Williams was held in high regard at Middlesbrough.

Composed and deceptively quick, Williams is armed with a punchy, penetrating pass capable of breaking the lines.

This is vital because Australia’s ball movement too often lacks speed, so by the time it reaches Tom Rogic and his fellow ‘number eight’, the defence has had time to retreat and outnumber Socceroos attackers.

Williams is capable of pinpointing Rogic and eliminating three to four opposition players in the process, enabling the star to turn and run at the defence in space.

And if the opposition applies a high press, Williams is assured, even capable of beating a player and carrying it into midfield.

His poise would add a vital ingredient to a Socceroos side that can appear panicked and struggles to maintain control while enforcing its possession-based game.

Rhys Williams with Ange Postecoglou during the 2013 clash against Costa Rica.

Williams has played in a back three at Boro, on the left, and he usually plays as a left-sided stopper.

Victory’s first-rate coaching staff has again done the national team a favour, with Williams’ renewed fitness levels coupled with a crash course in playing a Socceroos-esque press and high line, which he has adapted to.

Leadership and physicality are lacking for the Socceroos especially in an intense first leg against a hungry Syria.

Williams, 29, offers that in spades, as Victory coach Kevin Muscat would attest. Ditto captain Mile Jedinak who is likely to return after making his first start since June for Aston Villa on Wednesday morning (EST).

Originally published as World Cup playoff: Rhys Williams would add composure, quality to panicky Socceroos if back for Syria