Graham Arnold’s Socceroos face first test in Kuwait

What can we expect from Graham Arnold’s second coming as Socceroos coach?

Socceroos coach Graham Arnold. Picture: AAP

It is the moment he has been waiting for patiently — the chance for redemption, the chance to make an impact on the international stage as a coach.

So, what can we expect from Graham Arnold’s second coming as Socceroos coach?

We will find out soon enough when he takes the reins of the national team in a friendly against Kuwait in Kuwait City in the early hours of tomorrow morning (AEDT).

Arnold has completed the full circle, returning to the Socceroos set-up 11 years after the caretaker role he assumed for 12 months following his mentor, Guus Hiddink’s successful tenure.

Back then it was suggested the job was too big for Arnold and had come too soon for him.

The haters had a field day, lashing him after Australia were bundled out of the 2007 Asian Cup by Japan in a penalty shootout. What the critics overlooked at the time, and even to this day, is that the Socceroos performed superbly in that match, playing for 50 minutes with 10 men after Vincenzo Grella had been sent off. Harry Kewell and Lucas Neill both missed penalties in the shootout.

But back to the present and what we know now is that Arnold is a much wiser operator — a shrewd coach who has achieved remarkable success at A-League level with the Central Coast Mariners and Sydney FC.

He has proven himself in the national competition by winning championships and Premiers Plates with both the Mariners and Sydney FC, as well as setting a host of records with the Sky Blues that might not be broken for some time.

Now, with the shadows of former national team coaches Ange Postecoglou and Bert van Marwijk hanging over him and the critics waiting in the background, the challenge is to work his footballing magic with the Socceroos.

It is a task made more difficult by the fact he will have just three friendlies, including this Kuwait game, to mould a squad in his own image as he prepares for the defence of the Asian Cup won under Postecoglou in 2015.

But there will surely be some who will not cut him any slack if the Socceroos don’t successfully defend their title in the UAE in January. It will be much the same if they don’t produce the sort of football they did at the World Cup under van Marwijk, even though they were bundled out at the group stage in Russia.

None of this, however, will worry Arnold, who has gone about his first four months back in charge thoroughly and meticulously as he attempts to rebuild the national team. He has signalled his intentions by selecting the likes of Thomas Deng, Denis Genreau, Kenneth Dougall and Awer Mabil in the squad.

There is an emphasis on finding new attacking options given Australia’s lack of goals from open play. It is instructive that Mile Jedinak (17 goals, many from penalties) and Tim Cahill (21) provided 38 of the 90 goals scored over the past four years.

With Jedinak and Cahill now retired from international football, Arnold has to not only find more sources for goals but also replace their leadership qualities.

But he won’t sacrifice his basic principles of playing the game — holding possession, being strong in defence and then hitting in numbers in attack.

Importantly, he is very fluid with his tactics, often changing shape from a 4-2-3-1 to a 4-4-2. He is not afraid to change it up if things are not working out, even if he has to do it in the first half.

The perception is that Arnold relies too heavily on defence and that his teams can be boring. But that wasn’t the case with Sydney FC last season, when they broke the record for most goals scored in an A-League season with 64.

Few would be disappointed if Arnold can transfer that mantra and success to the Socceroos.