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Tag: Australia National Soccer Team

  • More charges filed after violent pitch invasion in Australia

    More charges filed after violent pitch invasion in Australia

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    MELBOURNE, Australia — The number of people charged over a violent pitch invasion at a Melbourne A-League match has increased to 13, police said Wednesday.

    An additional 18 people have also been identified following public appeals with more charges expected to be filed in coming days.

    More than 150 spectators stormed the AAMI Park match between Melbourne Victory and Melbourne City on Saturday, injuring goalkeeper Tom Glover, referee Alex King, a TV cameraman and two security guards. It came at the 20-minute mark of the match.

    All four men allegedly responsible for those attacks have been charged or identified.

    The new charges include two men aged 23 and 26, charged with violent disorder, criminal damage, unlawful assault and a string of other offenses. A 17-year-old boy was charged on summons with reckless conduct endangering serious injury and discharging a lit distress signal, over an incident that saw the cameraman hit by a flare.

    About $100,000 worth of damage was caused to the venue and about 80 flares or fireworks were set off, according to police. Poles and bottles were thrown at police on the field when they responded.

    All those charged over the pitch invasion have been bailed out and will appear in court in February.

    Video on social media showed a man throwing a metal bucket of sand at Glover during the melee. He was taken off the field dazed and bleeding and later received stitches to a facial laceration. He was back at practice with the club on Monday.

    City led the Victory 1-0 when the match was first suspended and then abandoned.

    Football Australia has vowed to impose heavy punishments against those found responsible and has ordered the Victory to show cause why it should not face severe sanctions for the conduct of its supporters.

    The Victory could face a financial penalty, points deduction or possibly have fans locked out of stadiums.

    The incident has blighted an otherwise upbeat time for soccer in the country, coming two weeks after Australia’s strong World Cup showing in reaching the round of 16 before a narrow 2-1 loss to eventual champion Argentina.

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    More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • Messi, Argentina try to avoid World Cup upset vs. Australia

    Messi, Argentina try to avoid World Cup upset vs. Australia

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    DOHA, Qatar — Australia’s players speak in glowing, almost reverential terms about Lionel Messi.

    “He just does things that, you know, no one else can do,” forward Mathew Leckie said.

    Milos Degenek went even further. “Probably,” the Socceroos defender said, “the best footballer ever to grace the game.”

    Imagine, then, how they’ll be feeling on Saturday when they share the same field as Messi and his Argentina team in the last 16 of the World Cup.

    These are pinch-yourself times for a group of unheralded players who were expected to be on their way home by this stage of the tournament. Yet here they are in Doha, looking to cause the latest upset in a World Cup that has been full of them — right from the moment Saudi Arabia shocked Argentina in perhaps the most unlikely win in the tournament’s 92-year history.

    That set the tone for the past two weeks, during which Japan has beaten both Germany and Spain, Morocco has defeated Belgium, Tunisia has beaten France and, let’s not forget, Australia has stunned Denmark.

    The Australians want to add to that list.

    “No one expects us to win,” Leckie said. “So let’s shock the world.”

    Don’t expect any complacency among the Argentina squad, though. Not after what transpired against Saudi Arabia during the group stage.

    “We know, at the moment, everything is very difficult,” said Messi, who is bidding to win the World Cup in his fifth and likely last attempt. “All the opponents are complicated. We know it as well as anyone.”

    There is a growing feeling, though, that Argentina might have come through the worst of the storm. It is only a week ago that Argentine soccer was going through a period of introspection, digesting one of its most embarrassing results ever.

    Then, after an hour of its second group match against Mexico, the Albiceleste were being held 0-0 to raise the genuine prospect of a group-stage exit with a game to spare.

    Now, Argentina has qualified as the winner of its group and is facing the world’s 38th-ranked nation, which is playing at this stage of the World Cup for only the second time, after 2006. Netherlands or the United States will be the opponent in the quarterfinals.

    None of Argentina’s players will dare get ahead of themselves but it’s undeniable that the draw has opened up for them.

    “We went back to being what we were for a long time,” Messi said after Argentina’s 2-0 win over Poland that secured a place in the last 16, “and how we were looking to be at the beginning of the World Cup, which for different reasons we could not manage.

    “It gives confidence for what is coming.”

    Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni looks to have finally found a winning formula in Qatar. The center of midfield now appears to be set, with Alexis Mac Allister and 21-year-old Enzo Fernandez having forced their way into the starting team alongside Rodrigo De Paul.

    Up front, Julian Alvarez has dislodged Lautaro Martinez and should keep his place against Australia, fresh from finishing off a 27-pass sequence for an exquisite second goal against Poland.

    The only place that looks up for grabs is at center back, with Lisandro Martinez having dropped out against Poland perhaps so Argentina had a taller player to deal with the aerial threat of Robert Lewandowski.

    Given only one player in Australia’s 26-man group plays in Europe’s top five leagues, it appears to be a mismatch at Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium. For spells of its win over Poland, Argentina played like a team that arrived in Qatar riding a 36-match unbeaten record and as one of the tournament favorites.

    And then there’s the Messi factor, a subplot which is hanging over the World Cup as he looks to win the only major title to elude him in his career.

    “I think they’re obviously driven by the motivation that it could be Messi’s last World Cup,” Degenek said, “and he wants to win the World Cup and end it on a high.

    “For us, it’s about stopping that. Unfortunately, I’m a big fan of his, but I’d love to win the World Cup probably more than him.”

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    Steve Douglas is at https://twitter.com/sdouglas80

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    AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • France can win WCup group in style, Tunisia simply must win

    France can win WCup group in style, Tunisia simply must win

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    DOHA, Qatar — Defending champion France has not won its three World Cup group-stage matches since winning its first title in 1998.

    Tunisia hasn’t even won three matches in its World Cup history, but must beat France on Wednesday to have any chance of advancing to the round of 16 in Qatar. And Tunisia‘s coach Jalel Kadri is feeling the heat.

    “I’m not in Jalel’s position,” France coach Didier Deschamps said. “But they will go for broke.”

    Kadri said before the tournament it was his “personal mission” to advance past the group stage and hinted he would quit otherwise.

    The French are looking to match the ’98 team captained by Deschamps. But with Les Bleus already qualified, they only need a draw to guarantee top spot in Group D.

    Deschamps has the luxury of resting key players.

    “There will be changes,” he said. “Everyone’s ready to play.”

    He was evasive when asked if the prolific Kylian Mbappé insisted on playing or accepts he needs a breather.

    “Physically he’s fine,” Deschamps said. “Kylian doesn’t have a big ego, he’s important for us and makes the difference. But he’s always accepted what the team needs.”

    One option is to move Antoine Griezmann up from his new position in right midfield into a striker’s role alongside Olivier Giroud, who needs one more goal to become France’s all-time leading scorer with 52 goals.

    Deschamps hailed the unselfishness of Griezmann, a prolific forward himself with 42 goals and 26 assists for France.

    “He gets as much pleasure tackling someone as setting up a goal,” Deschamps said. “He’s always been like that. For him it’s not even been a sacrifice (in midfield).”

    The gulf between the sides looks vast.

    France has six goals in two games — three for Mbappé and two for Giroud — while Tunisia was blanked after drawing 0-0 with Denmark and fluffing chances in a 1-0 defeat against Australia.

    The Tunisians have never been past the group stage in five World Cups and their two wins were 40 years apart: against Mexico in 1978 and Panama four years ago in Russia.

    Despite good technical ability, there appears little cutting edge to this Tunisia side, despite the presence of attacking midfielders Wahbi Khazri — who scored twice at the last World Cup and has 24 international goals — and Naim Sliti.

    France, however, carries multiple attacking threats.

    Deschamps has always been a shrewd tactician, with deep layers of tactical knowledge gleaned from playing and coaching in Italy with Juventus.

    In Qatar he’s kept things more simple with a direct approach that has surprised opponents, using the wings as his main route to goal.

    It worked immediately, with the team scoring with three headers — a rarity for France — against Australia.

    The pace of Mbappé on the left and Ousmane Dembélé’s searing speed down the right, with the ideal marksman in Giroud benefitting from the crosses. If Dembélé comes off, then Deschamps can turn to Kingsley Coman — who scored Bayern Munich’s winner in the 2020 Champions League final.

    “Our wide players make the difference. Look at who they are!” central defender Raphael Varane said. “Going wide knocks our opponents off balance.”

    The French seem very relaxed at this World Cup, which hasn’t always been the case, notably when the squad went on strike at training at the 2010 World Cup.

    Midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni even started learning piano on Monday night, joining a group of wannabe musicians in the squad.

    “Hopefully if we win the World Cup we can put on a concert,” he joked.

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    AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • Australia’s emotions run high after rare World Cup win

    Australia’s emotions run high after rare World Cup win

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    AL WAKRAH, Qatar — Mitchell Duke celebrated scoring Australia’s winning goal by forming a “J” with his fingers in a tribute to his son Jaxson, who was in the stands.

    Coach Graham Arnold dragged injured winger Martin Boyle — on crutches — into the celebratory huddle as fans sang merrily along to Men at Work’s “Down Under,” blaring over the stadium speakers after the final whistle.

    Later, Arnold was wiping away tears.

    It was an emotion-filled day for Australia, which beat Tunisia 1-0 Saturday for only its third win in World Cup matches.

    Duke gave Australia the lead midway through the first half with a header.

    “I actually was messaging some of my family, saying that I was going to score today, and I told my son that I was going to be able to share this moment with him and get that celebration,” Duke said. “I haven’t seen it yet but apparently he did it back to me from the stadium, which was a really special moment that I’m going to treasure for the rest of my life.”

    Australia hadn’t won at the World Cup since beating Serbia in 2010 and it means the Socceroos still have a chance to qualify for the round of 16, despite losing to defending champion France 4-1 in their opening match.

    Boyle was injured a few weeks before the tournament and Arnold explained why he moved him into the team’s staff as “vibe manager” in Qatar.

    “To keep all the guys up, because he’s one of the most fantastic blokes you’ll ever meet,” Arnold said. “There was no way he wanted to go home, and no way I wanted to send him home. He deserves it more than anybody for what he did in the qualifying campaign.”

    In the final round of group games on Wednesday, Tunisia will play France and Australia will meet Denmark.

    After a scrappy start from both sides, Australia went ahead with a play out of the back from its goalkeeper. Duke collected the goalkeeper’s pass near the middle of the field and made a quick touch to set Craig Goodwin down the left flank. Duke then sprinted forward to nod Goodwin’s deflected cross into the far corner with his back to the goal.

    The score quieted the large contingent of red-clad Tunisia fans among the crowd of 41,823 inside Al Janoub Stadium, and sent the small pockets of Australian supporters dressed in yellow into delirium.

    Tunisia impressed when it held European Championship semifinalist Denmark to a 0-0 draw in its opener but only occasionally threatened against Australia until the Aussies sat back and defended toward the end.

    Australia had also gotten off to an early 1-0 lead over France in its opener but then was outplayed in a loss which it blamed on a series of defensive errors.

    There were fewer errors this time, and some timely interventions, too — none bigger than a last-gasp sliding clearance from center back Harry Souttar to block Mohamed Dräger’s dangerous shot shortly before halftime.

    Tunisia is still seeking to advance from the group stage for the first time in its sixth World Cup appearance but now needs to beat France.

    “This edition of the World Cup has had surprises for everyone, the larger squads have been defeated,” Tunisia coach Jalel Kadri said. “We still have one more match to go and we’ll play our hearts out.”

    NO CELEBRATING

    Still not sure of advancing, Arnold warned his players in his post-match speech about getting too excited.

    “I just said, ’No doubt the nation is extremely proud, but we’ve done nothing. You’ve achieved something we can talk about when we get home. I don’t want any celebration. Just enjoy these couple of minutes on the pitch with the fans. Then ice baths, recover and get ready for the next one,’” Arnold said.

    PRIME TIME

    Fans watching at home in Australia witnessed the win in a rare World Cup match shown in prime time on a Saturday night Down Under.

    “There’s one or two teams that bring the nation together and that is the Socceroos and the Matildas,” Arnold said, using the nicknames for Australia’s men’s and women’s national teams. “When the Socceroos play at World Cups, AFL fans, rugby league fans, cricket fans; they all become football fans. And I can imagine the celebrations that are going on at home. … I think they’ll be a few hangovers in the morning.”

    POLITICAL STATEMENT

    During the second half, Tunisia fans held aloft a large Palestinian flag with the words “Free Palestine” printed on it.

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    Andrew Dampf is at https://twitter.com/AndrewDampf

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    AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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