Asia kicks back into gear for a new international cycle

Some two months after Australia lifted their first Asian Cup title, it all gets going once again in Asia for a new international cycle which will be welcomed by some but not by many in a broadly depressing environment for the continents footballing nations. Asia’s international calendar is one of extremes, packing in two major tournaments (World & Asian Cups) within a narrow 9 month corridor before embarking on a 2 year long qualifying procedure for both competitions, dragging out and rarely producing any real quality until its climax.

 

For many in search of redemption this offers valuable experimentation and possible improvement, most pertinently felt by Asia’s standout underperformers of the last year; Japan. A winless exit in Brazil last summer which saw Alberto Zaccheroni lose his previously secure seat was miserably followed up with a listless quarter final exit in Australia. Another tournament down, another manager, in this case Javier Aguirre exited under a black cloud of controversy given the match fixing allegations being aimed in the Mexican’s direction.

 

The new incumbent of the hotter than most seat is the widely admired Vahid Halilhodzic, who performed admirably with Algeria at the last World Cup. Whether he can truly turn around the fortunes of arguably the continent’s most talented squad is unlikely to be seen for years but on paper at least it looks a favourable appointment. In all likelihood the next 12 months are going to be spent at a pedestrian pace given the lack in quality of opponents lined up, offering Halilhodzic the perfect opportunity to blood a new generation of players ahead of Russia’s World Cup in 2018.

 

Nothing could be further from Japan’s plight than that of Australia. A nation who despite a miserable lead up, stuck firm with their coach Ange Postecoglou in promise of a marked improvement at their home Asian Cup, and how that improvement was delivered. While Japan are seeking to appease their demanding fan base, Australia are already looking forward at going one step further and markedly make an impression against Europe’s finest. They kick off the cycle with a friendly tour of Europe including one of the highlights of the March international window, facing World champions Germany in their own backyard.

 

Postecoglou’s response to earlier concerns over form was that his side were still developing, which in hindsight looks calculated and now heavily beneficial given his side goes into the new cycle hungry and in little need of refreshing. The new Socceroo structure starting with Mat Ryan, through Trent Sainsbury and Massimo Luongo to Matt Leckie is now well developed to suceed at the next World Cup, however centre forward remains an area that needs to be refreshed in the coming year. Tim Cahill continues on for now, but focus will shift onto the likes of Tomi Juric and Nathan Burns to grasp their opportunity in the limelight.

 

Australia’s performance and ultimate result in Germany on the face of it may be seen as an isolated foray into Europe but should be cheered on not just back at home in Oz, but across the whole of Asia. A winless World Cup for all Asian nations in Brazil won’t have gone by unnoticed by the FIFA hierarchy ahead of a roughly contested presidential battle. In simple terms Asia need to make an impression on the outside footballing community sooner rather than later if they’re to continue to cling on to their valuable 4.5 slots for World Cup qualification. 

For years Africa have petitioned for a greater number of slots, while the emergence in form of CONCACAF in Brazil has led many to believe that the AFC would be the federation to be hit the hardest by any changes to FIFA’s World Cup portion control. News coming out of UEFA in the last week suggesting Europe’s number of slots could be raised ahead of Russia has rung alarm bells that this could be a much quicker change than any Asian football observer had ever considered.

 

One criticism behind AFC nations going into worldwide competitions has always been the organisation behind the scenes of the federations, which yet again has reared its ugly head in Iran. The IFF are once more engaged in temperamental talks with their Portuguese coach Carlos Queiroz, who not for the first time has threatened to leave his post due to “external pressures”. Another nation in a managerial crisis of their very own is neighbouring Iraq, who appointed Akram Salman as their new coach to widespread condemnation in succession to the popular and forward thinking Radhi Shenaishil who led them to the Asian Cup semi-finals. Salman’s introduction has many Iraqis believing that their impressive young squad is bound to take a backwards step after such a promising couple of months at the start of the year.

 

It’s not all doom and gloom across the board by any means; China PR came out of the Asian Cup in high spirits and have also made great strides into the club game, with their clubs sides progressing well at the start of the AFC Champions League group stage. Similarly UAE are starting to build their reputation outside the region and have committed their in-demand coach Mahdi Ali to a long term deal in hope and growing expectation of their first World Cup appearance in over a decade.

 

While sights are firmly focused in the future for most, there is still plenty to fight for in the short term as the final seeded spot for World Cup/Asian Cup qualifying goes up for grabs in the coming weeks. Oman, Iraq and Saudi Arabia are all possible candidates in need of crucial ranking points to sneak a favourable rank for next month’s qualifying draw, however none go into this month’s international window in the greatest of mind sets. Saudi Arabia have been particularly subdued. Cosmin Olariou’s departure from his temporary charge after the Asian Cup leaves them without a full time leader going into a crucial week of point chasing.

 

Elsewhere Korea Republic are looking to gain a head of steam after an almost faultless Asian Cup campaign. Ever since taking over, Uli Stielike has cemented a rigid core to the side which has provided defensive stability but may need an extra flourish in attacking areas to make a real impact outside the region. Attempts to get the best out of talisman Son Heung-Min remains an obvious target, however focus should be shone on leading forward Lee Jeong-Hyeop, with many questioning whether his surge in form from Australia can be anything more than a flash in the pan.

 

This coming week in general offers a first glimpse of the future of Asian international football after what has been a pretty disastrous outgoing cycle. It does however give the elite AFC nations at least, their final chance of facing opponents from outside Asia for another 12 months. While Japan and Korea Republic have decided to sidestep the opportunity to test themselves fully, the likes of Australia, Iran and Qatar should be praised for putting themselves out there in pursuit of improvement. Let’s all hope in four years’ time we’re talking about the rapid rise of Asian international football rather than it’s meagre decline that’s currently on display for the whole world to see.