The Start of a New Era: Socceroos 1 - 0 Costa Rica

What a difference a new coach makes! I had the pleasure of attending Ange Postecoglou's first match in charge as the Socceroos defeated Costa rica one nil. A great build up in the week prior to the match increased everyone's expectations, including my own. I had high hopes leading up to the match that the Socceroos would finally turn it around and start heading towards the right direction... I was not disappointed. It was evident from the get go that Ange's style of play was in full effect. After a shaky first couple of minutes the Socceroos settled into the match and showed some very promising play. Words to describe their performance would include dominant, controlled, determined and comfortable. It is amazing what our new coach has been able to do in such a short time and it's sad to think what could have been if he had taken over much earlier.

All the talk during the week had focused on smaller side tracked issues including the captaincy discussion, the question over Lucas Neill's future and Mark Bresciano's ban by FIFA for an illegal transfer. All I wanted to think about was what formation, tactics and style Ange would bring to the Socceroos and how they would go about executing it. All my questions were answered as the Socceroos lined up in a clear 4-2-3-1 formation with a starting lineup of RYAN, FRANJIC, NEILL, WILLIAMS, DAVIDSON, JEDINAK, MILLIGAN, BRESCIANO, KRUSE, VIDOSIC and LECKIE. The Socceroos managed to express Ange's style of football very well, there was crisp passing, a high tempo, lots of energy, determination and attacking football. We played in a positive manner, looking to keep possession and play it out from the back. Of course it wasn't a flawless performance but there were plenty of good signs of what's to come.

Defence

Matt Ryan looked comfortable between the sticks and his ability to play it with his feet suits Ange's style of football extremely well. He didn't do much wrong during the match but was hardly tested by a toothless Costa Rica, the goalkeeping debate is settled for now. Overall the back four were fairly solid but they didn't have a lot to do throughout the match. The full backs put in a lot of work and gave a lot of energy to the team by constantly pushing forward and tracking back. FRANJIC was one of the standouts of the match going about his business like it was just another A-League match. Davidson's performance was more erratic with moments of great composure followed by terrible decisions, I'm surprised he played the full ninety. The biggest question to come out of the match is the centre back pairing, which was unconvincing. The substitutions made it clear that Ange is looking for someone to partner NEILL. In all honesty I think NEILL is the one that should make way for a MCGOWAN and WILLIAMS pairing.

Midfield

The midfield was one of great contrasts. The central pairing of JEDINAK and MILLIGAN was the best aspect of the Socceroos' lineup while a sluggish performance by BRESCIANO hindered the side and made us slow in transition. It was amazing how quickly we won the ball back once we lost it, largely due to the defensive midfielders' work rate. JEDINAK and MILLIGAN as the two holding midfielders need to be the first names on the team sheet, they were outstanding. It's sad to say but BRESCIANO is just not up to it anymore. Always a yard too slow and showed a heavy touch. Once ROGIC came on to replace him we were a different team. ROGIC is something special, a type of player that Australia hardly ever produces. He can dribble and create, very smart and composed for such a young player. Definitely someone that we could build the team around. My main doubt in the midfield is our transition and creativity. We're still too slow at moving the ball forward and we lack that magical player that can create things out of no where, hopefully ROGIC will solve that.

Attack

Our attackers worked hard and produced chances. However, there were many times where we looked lost in the final third and lacked direction. I was most impressed by LECKIE, as he worked very hard, showed good technique and should have scored a goal. KRUSE looked good as usual using his pace to try to get in behind the defence while VIDOSIC looked a bit lost out there. We generated some good plays by working the ball through midfield and using some quick passes to release our forwards but too many times we don't know what to do with the ball once we get up there. We need to be more clinical and Ange needs to work more on the movement up front. CAHILL also looked a bit lost and slow when he came on but he always manages to find a way to score and is a must have weapon, even on the bench. Whether he will be a regular starter or not is yet to be seen. OAR also made an impact when he came on and was clearly superior to VIDOSIC. On the night we could have had more goals but at the same time we lacked direction and a finishing touch.

Overall a very promising performance, big improvements and a re-energised team. We should not get carried away though and it's important to note that this was essentially a second string Costa Rica side with nothing to play for and trying new things in preparation for the World Cup. There were lots of positives but still plenty to work on.