Socceroos prove hard to beat as quest to reach 2026 World Cup goes down to the wire | World Cup 2026 qualifiers

Nothing lasts forever, especially in the capricious world of football. And after having results go their way so often during World Cup qualification, it felt inevitable that the whims of the footballing gods would at some point turn away from Australia.

While Tony Popovic’s side did pretty much everything they could over the last week, smashing Indonesia 5-1 in Sydney before dispatching China 2-0 in Hangzhou, Japan did everything but score against Saudi Arabia in Saitama on Tuesday. That result ensures the Socceroos’ hopes of automatic qualification for the 2026 World Cup will go down to the wire in June.

Given that much of Australia’s fortune during the third phase of Asian qualifying has centred around them dropping points, perhaps Saudi Arabia would have seen their trip to Saitama as something of a karmic swing. There, they ground out a goalless draw six months after their Australian rivals had done the same to supplant them in one of the group’s two automatic qualification slots. Daizen Maeda rattled the woodwork early on and Hajime Moriyasu’s side ended the contest with 78% of the ball, but domination of possession could not be turned into clear-cut chances, let alone goals – and Saudi Arabia kept alive their hopes of seizing second place in three months.

With eight of 10 games in this phase of qualification complete, the Socceroos sit second in Group C with 13 points, three points clear of Saudi on 1o. After their narrow 1-0 win over Bahrain, Indonesia sit in fourth on nine points, while Bahrain and China occupy fifth and sixth on six points. A small mercy for the Socceroos is that regardless of what happens in June they cannot fall into one of those bottom two slots – and be eliminated from qualifying. Their worst-case scenario now is to be forced into further rounds of qualification.

Japan, who have an unassailable lead atop the group, will head to Perth for the first game of that window, while Saudi Arabia will travel to Bahrain. Both the Socceroos and Green Falcons will then likely head to Riyadh for a game that if the scriptwriters get their way, could mean everything. In a slightly less dramatic reality, given Australia’s goal difference now stands at plus-seven compared to their rivals’ minus-two, a draw in that contest would almost certainly be enough for the Australians to punch their tickets to North America, as would a win over Japan in the preceding game. Given the challenges that Bahrain have given Saudi Arabia in recent months – beating them in both the Gulf Cup and World Cup qualifying – it is not inconceivable that Dragan Talajić’s side could render things almost moot by getting the job done in Riffa.

For the Socceroos, however, the belief within the group will be that they can win both their upcoming games, allowing the nerds to put away their calculators. Australia are still undefeated since the arrival of Popovic, and the win over China was another example of his side doing exactly what they needed to get a result in Asia; taking an early first-half-lead before shutting the door through disciplined and well-organised defending in the second. It’s not always pretty but it’s an approach that helped the coach once grind out an Asian Champions League crown and one which could now send him to a World Cup.

That’s not to say Australia are the finished article. They’re crying out for a difference-maker in attack who can receive and operate with the ball in packed opposition penalty areas. And there’s still no clear answer in the No 9 position. But there were building blocks over this window. Jackson Irvine is in career-best form and Nishan Velupillay can’t stop scoring. Despite a raft of injuries, the side conceded just one goal in 180 minutes and, entrusted with a debut in Hangzhou, Ryan Teague looked like he’d been playing for years in the Socceroos midfield.

“One of the common themes we have is to be hard to beat,” skipper Maty Ryan said. “We’ve given testament to that so far. Our definition of it isn’t just to sit behind the ball and defend deep. It’s picking and managing moments; when to press, when to go forward with the ball – making good decisions.

“The stakes every time you get to pull on the national team shirt are of the highest order. Our nation deserves our utmost attention, commitment, sacrifice and energy. Whatever is at stake, it will never change in that regard. We’re going to stay present out there and stick to our characteristics and principles and we know when we do that consistently well within a game, training and our preparation we give ourselves the best chance of getting a result.”