The sweltering heat of Muscat awaits the Qantas Socceroos as they kick-off the final phase of Asian Football Confederation qualifying for the 2014 World Cup against Oman on Friday.
Date: Friday June 8 Kick-off: 11.00pm AEDT/5.00pm UTC Venue: Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Muscat
Head-to-head: Played 5, Oman 1 win, Australia 3 wins, 1 draw
Previous Meeting: Oman 1-0 Australia, World Cup Qualifier, Muscat, November 12 2011
Past five matches: Oman: Japan 3-0 Oman, World Cup Qualifier, Saitama, June 3 2012 Oman 1-1 Lebanon, International friendly, Muscat, May 28 2012 Oman 2-0 Thailand, World Cup Qualifier, Muscat, February 29 2012 Oman 5-1 India, International friendly, Muscat, February 23 2012 Oman 2-2 Congo DR, International friendly, Muscat, January 17 2012
Australia: Denmark 2-0 Australia, International friendly, Copenhagen, June 3 2012 Australia 4-2 Saudi Arabia, World Cup Qualifier, Melbourne, February 29 2012 Thailand 0-1 Australia, World Cup Qualifier, Bangkok, November 15 2011 Oman 1-0 Australia, World Cup Qualifier, Muscat, November 12 2011 Australia 3-0 Oman, World Cup Qualifier, Sydney, October 11 2011
Analysis:
The sweltering heat of Muscat awaits the Qantas Socceroos as they kick-off the final phase of Asian Football Confederation qualifying for the 2014 World Cup against Oman on Friday.
Josh Kennedy and Carl Valeri rejoin the squad having missed the trip to Denmark due to club commitments with J.League outfit Nagoya Grampus and Italian second division club Sassuolo respectively but Australia are expected to be without new father Brett Holman.
Excluding Holman, Chris Herd and Adam Federici, Australa's German coach Holger Osieck has a close to a full squad to choose from and is likely to stick to his preferred 4-3-2-1 formation, with Valeri and Kennedy in contention for a starting spot.
Despite Saturday's friendly ending in a 2-0 loss to the Danes, who are preparing for the European Championships in Poland and Ukraine, Osieck said the outing provided valuable game time for a number of players lacking match fitness or recovering from injury.
Australia created several chances but failed to convert and Osieck will be hoping his forwards will prove more efficient in Oman's capital.
The Qantas Socceroos' last visit to Muscat resulted in a 1-0 defeat, ending a seven-match unbeaten run stretching back to January 2011, when they suffered an extra-time defeat at the hands of Japan in the Asian Cup final.
With Japan accounting for Oman 3-0 in their opening match of the final phase of qualifying, Bristol City midfielder Neil Kilkenny knows it is important for Australia to get off to a winning start before their showdown with the Blue Samurai in Brisbane four days later.
"We have to start off this group stage with a win and a positive performance," Kilkenny said.
And having experienced more mild conditions in Denmark's capital, weather may be a factor for the Socceroos, with temperatures expected to hit the high 30s in Oman on Friday.
Nevertheless, 26-year-old Kilkenny is confident Australia can get the job done.
"We know it's going to be hot," he said.
"The conditions are going to be hard and they're going to be used to it, but we're very confident that we can go there and get a win.
"We just have to concentrate on ourselves. We know the longer it goes on, the harder it gets with the teams that we're going to be playing, but we're all looking forward to getting back into the World Cup qualifying stages and hopefully qualifying."
Oman were beaten quite comfortably by the Japanese but if it were not for the goalkeeping exploits of captain Ali Al-Habsi, it may have been a lot worse.
Wigan man Al-Habsi kept a clean sheet against Australia at home and manager Paul Le Guen will be determined for his star man to produce another inspiring performance.
Talisman Aman Al Hosni scored the decisive goal when Oman defeated Australia in Muscat last year to take his international tally to an impressive 38 goals from 78 appearances.
At the conclusion of the match, the Qantas Socceroos will fly to Brisbane for their enticing encounter with rivals Japan at Suncorp Stadium on Tuesday June 12.