The Olyroos’ dream of reaching the Paris Olympics has suffered a blow when the young Australian football hopefuls suffered a disgraceful 1-0 defeat at the hands of Indonesia in qualifying in Qatar.
Still unable to score a single goal after 180 minutes in the men’s U23 Asian Cup, coach Tony Vidmar’s team may have suffered a terminal blow after Indonesian Komang Teguh scored the goal just before half-time on Friday (AEST ) that gave the tournament debutants a surprising victory. in Doha.
The nightmare scenario for the dominant Australians at the Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium unfolded after Indonesian hero Ernando Ari Sutaryadi had his 25th-minute penalty saved by 20-year-old footballer Mohamed Toure.
This left the hard-hitting Olyroos with just one point from their two matches and the bleak prospect of not even reaching the last 16 of an event where they have to finish third to guarantee a place in Paris.
Qatar won their last game 2-1 against Jordan to guarantee qualification for the last 16 with a maximum of six points, and Vidmar’s team must now beat the hosts on Monday morning to have any chance of progressing .
But having drawn 0-0 against Jordan in their opening match, the Olyroos’ fate is out of their hands, and their Parisian ambitions will be ended if Singapore beat Jordan.
The Olyroos’ much-vaunted offensive quality, with Garang Kuol, Alou Kuol and Touré up front, once again failed to materialize as only four of their 16 attempts on goal found the target.
Meanwhile, Komang’s header was Indonesia’s only attempt in four attempts.
The closest Australia came to scoring was when Touré, moments after missing his penalty, almost made amends by heading the crossbar from a corner.
World Cup hero Garang Kuol came on as part of a triple substitution in the 75th minute with Vidmar becoming increasingly desperate, but even with 11 extra minutes his team still failed to break through a stubborn defence.
The other match ended dramatically, with Qatar’s Mohamed Manai heading the winning goal in the 13th minute of added time, after which, absurdly, the VAR spent another six minutes deliberating whether the goal should stand.
He did, and it’s a goal that could mean the end of the Olyroos’ hopes of joining their Matildas counterparts at the July/August Games in France.
AAP
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