Shock for St. Paul Australians Jackson Irvine (31) and Connor Metcalfe (24) in front of the Bundesliga-Duel on Sunday (7.30 p.m., live DAZN) against Leipzig. Their national coach has given up after the botched start to the hot World Cup qualifying phase.
Graham Arnold (61) has coached Australia in a total of 55 games since 2018 – the longest tenure in the history of the “Socceroos”. On average, Arnold scored 2.04 points per game. “Thanks for everything, Arnie,” the Australian association posted on X after his resignation.
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St. Pauli captain Irvine made 49 of his 70 international appearances under Arnold. Metcalfe (23 international matches) made his debut in the national jersey under him on June 7, 2021. Before the World Cup qualifying trip in early September, Irvine emphasized: “I get so much energy from these moments. That’s one of the reasons why I love the game and the work in this team so much.”
But the start of the final qualifying phase went wrong. The Australians lost 1-0 at home to Bahrain and only managed a 0-0 draw in Indonesia. China (October 10) and Japan (October 15) are now waiting in the difficult Group 3, and in November they will face Saudi Arabia and Bahrain again.
Next to football legendModel show by Alica Schmidt
Those: Instagram: AlicaSchmidt, Akilde, BOSS20.09.2024
From the group of six, only the first two qualify directly for the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico. Third and fourth place still have a chance via the play-offs. Australia is currently fifth.
“We will act quickly in appointing a new head coach to ensure continuity and stability, particularly with a view to the crucial second phase of the AFC Asian Qualifiers next month,” said association boss James Johnson.