Goal! Weekly Article 26: Olyroos Beijing 2008

OLYROOS IN BEIJING BATTLE
Australia face uphill task for Games Glory
By Julius Ross

A foiled terrorist threat will be the least of the Olyroos’ worries when they begin their campaign at the 2008 Beijing Olympics in 11 days time.

Graham Arnold’s side is scheduled to commence their first two games of the tournament in Shanghai Stadium – an Olympic venue targeted by an unknown international terrorist group.

Local police last week cracked a terrorist cell, via a series of raids, which was planning to attack the stadium, however, the Shanghai Public Security Bureau could not reveal details about any of the information collected.

Despite the raids reducing the threat levels, the possibility of a terror attack still exists.

But Graham Arnold’s side will disregard the risk of an attack and focus instead on the uphill task of progressing past challenging opponents in Group A.

Drawn against reigning Gold medallist Argentina, along with tricky opposition in the form of Serbia and the Cote d’Ivoire, Australia will face stiff competition in a bid for an Olympic medal.

Argentina will pose the greatest challenge for the Olyroos during the group stage, with the South American side looking to defend their gold medal achievement at the Athens Games in 2004.

With the likes of Boca Juniors’ Juan Roman Riquelme, Liverpool’s Javier Mascherano and the possibility that Barcelona’s Lionel Messi will join the Olympic side despite protestations from his Spainish club, the Albicelestes will be formidable opponents and are likely to retain their crown.

Although he has been named in the Argentine squad for the Games, Messi may miss the tournament because Barcelona expects him to play in the UEFA Champions League qualifiers that commence mid-August.

With the formidable Argentinean side in a class above the Australians, the Olyroos will look to secure positive results from their clashes against European qualifier Serbia and African representative Cote d’Ivorie.

But that will not be an easy feat, with the Ivory Coast possessing talents such as Chelsea’s Salomon Kalou and Serbia having experience across the board.

Although it appears that the Olyroos will struggle to impose themselves on the early stages of the tournament, Arnold remains optimistic that his side has the chance of securing Olympic glory.

Despite the threats on and off the pitch, Arnold is confident that the Olyroos have a chance at securing a medal at the Games due to his squad’s ability to play in testing conditions, illustrated by their recent results against the likes of South America’s Chile.

The ex-Socceroo coach believes that his side will need to play ‘Asian-type football’ and football that suits the gruelling conditions in China.

But the Olyroos have struggled in their last two friendly matches against Asian opponents in the lead up to the Games, losing narrowly Japan 2-1 and China 1-0.

Arnold has included the services of overage players and national favourites, Archie Thompson, David Carney and Jade North to assist the U23 squad with their international experience.

Arnold hopes that his side will be able to emulate the quarter-final appearance that Australia made at the Athens Olympics four years ago.

The side will face the Korean Republic in their final pre-tournament warm-up match this Thursday, before preparing for kick off against Serbia in their opening match of the Games.

Although Australia’s Olympic glory is often secured in the swimming pool or on the athletic track, the Olyroos will be attempting to achieve a rare Games victory on the green grass of the football pitch.


The 16 team tournament will feature nations qualified from the Asian, African, North American, South American, Oceanian and European regions:
QUALIFIED NATIONS
Host Nation:
-China

AFC Preliminary Competition:
-Australia
-Korea Republic
-Japan

CAF Preliminary Competition:
-Cameroon
-Côte d'Ivoire
-Nigeria

CONCACAF Preliminary Competition:
-Honduras
-USA

2007 South American Youth Championship:
-Brazil
-Argentina

OFC Preliminary Competition:
-New Zealand

2007 UEFA U-21 Championship:
-Netherlands
-Serbia
-Belgium
-Italy