Comeback kid Daniel Arzani set to get Socceroos career back on track
Socceroos coach Graham Arnold believes Daniel Arzani will fulfil the potential that made him a World Cup player at just 19. Arzani is pushing to make his first appearance for the national team since the 2018 World Cup in Russia when the Socceroos face Vietnam in their next qualifier for the 2022 tournament on Tuesday night.
With winger Martin Boyle under an injury cloud due to a tweaked hamstring in Friday’s 3-0 win over China in Qatar, Arzani is one of the contenders to replace the Scotland-born attacker for the Group B clash in Hanoi.
It would be a significant moment for 22-year-old, whose career has stalled through a combination of injury and lack of opportunity in the past three years. An ACL tear while on loan from Manchester City to Celtic brought Arzani’s dramatic career rise to a shuddering halt.
Since then Arzani has made just five senior appearances in the past three seasons and is attempting to resurrect his career with another loan spell, this time at Belgian second division club Lommel. Arnold however is confident better days lie ahead for the youngster.
“He’s such a great kid, such a beautiful kid that I’m just here to support him and support the rest of the players,” Arnold said. “Obviously I’ve had a lot of life experiences in football and just trying to help the kid get back on track.
“We have a lot of conversations, he knows I’m here to support him in his career and, again, what’s important for me is that he fulfils his potential. He’s still got time to do that. The kid’s only 21-22. He’s had a tough last couple of years but I’m 100% sure the kid will bounce back and get that career back on track.”
A victory against Vietnam, who are playing in the third stage of World Cup qualifying for the first time, will extend Australia’s winning streak to 10 matches. It would also give them an early edge over Group B rivals Japan, who are looking to bounce back from a shock 1-0 loss to Oman in their opener last week when they take on China in Doha’s Khalifa International Stadium.
“I haven’t looked at that winning streak ... it’s about the game [Tuesday] night, getting three points to have a great start to our World Cup qualifying campaign, and keep that going,” Arnold said.