- Patrick Yazbek could make his Socceroos debut against Lebanon
- He is of Lebanese origin, a decision that upset Lebanese coach Miodrag Radulovic.
- The World Cup qualifier will take place in Canberra from 7.45pm AEDT on Tuesday.
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Probable Socceroos debutant Patrick Yazbek’s decision to pledge his international allegiance to Australia rather than Lebanon has been criticized by Cedars coach Miodrag Radulovic.
Socceroos coach Graham Arnold said former Sydney FC midfielder Yazbek had a “more than 90 per cent” chance of making his national team debut against Lebanon in the FIFA World Cup qualifier. Tuesday night in Canberra.
Australia are looking for back-to-back wins over the Cedars and beat them 2-0 in Sydney last week.
“He’s Australian first and foremost,” Arnold said bluntly of Sydney-born, Norway-based Yazbek, whose heritage is Lebanese.
‘His mom and dad are from Lebanon, and he has that in him too… he’s a fantastic kid.
Patrick Yazbek’s loyalty to Australia has been criticized by Lebanon coach Miodrag Radulovic (Yazbek is pictured playing for Sydney FC in 2022)
Socceroos boss Graham Arnold said Yazbek was ‘Australian first and foremost’
Radulovic (pictured) said the young Australian’s decision to go with the Socceroos means he will be wasted on the bench rather than being a leader for Lebanon.
“(To) make his debut against Lebanon, it’s a great thing for him and his family that they will never forget.”
However, Radulovic said Yazbek, 21, would have been better off playing for his team.
“I think it would be better to be one of the leaders of our team (instead) than to sit on the bench (for Australia), but this is his decision,” said the Montenegro-born mentor.
“I’m not interested anymore.”
Former Central Coast Mariners Academy player Jackson Khoury is part of the Lebanon squad
The Lebanese team includes one Australian-born player: former Central Coast Mariners Academy attacker Jackson Khoury.
‘He has great potential. He is the future of the Lebanese team,” Radulovic said of the 21-year-old Khoury.
Radulovic was “optimistic” about Lebanon’s chances in Canberra and said his team’s performance in last Thursday’s loss to the Socceroos in Sydney was “much better” than the 2-0 scoreline indicated.
‘We will try to correct the mistakes we made and be much more effective in attack. I hope for a good performance and a much better result,” he said.
Radulovic said he was using the matches against the Socceroos to prepare for June’s crucial World Cup qualifiers against Palestine and Bangladesh.
“We need to win those games in June, that’s our goal,” Radulovic said.
It comes as Arnold will play a very different starting XI in Canberra on Tuesday night as the national team takes the next step in its bid to qualify for the World Cup.
The Socceroos, whose starting team could see up to five changes from last week, will guarantee a place in the next qualifying round with a win in Canberra.
However, Arnold is desperate to win not only on Tuesday night but also in June, also against Palestine and Bangladesh, to ensure the Socceroos have a perfect record in qualifying for the AFC second round, which should prove in which they are one of the three nations in pot one. for the draw for the third qualifying round.
“The important thing is that we win these three games,” Arnold said. ‘My focus is the players and doing the job for the nation.
“It is important that we come out with concentration and mentality and, above all, with the energy in front of a full stadium to put on a great performance.”