There's an increasingly familiar sentiment lingering at the end of Socceroos games of late. The frustration of an underwhelming performance, amplified by a scoreboard that is far more generous. It's a dissatisfaction that is difficult to channel and Australia's 1-1 draw with Cameroon in the Confederations Cup ensured there were no signs of that changing soon.
While Australia's performance against the African champions was a vast improvement on their previous games this month against Saudi Arabia, Brazil and Germany, it was a long way from restoring faith tarnished by their uninspiring performances of 2017.
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Socceroos and Cameroon draw in Confederations Cup
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It was more purposeful in direction, perhaps their most mature in possession and certainly their most astute positionally as the inclusion of Alex Gersbach provided a sense of balance sorely missed this year. Of the three left-sided players trialled in coach Ange Postecoglou's polarising formation, the 20-year-old left-back looked the most natural fit with an impressive display that won plaudits as well as a second-half penalty for Australia's equaliser.
However, there were few signs of an end to the defensive rot that has plagued the back line this year. In yet another case of the scoreboard serving as positive spin for the Socceroos, they were left thanking a flurry of missed chances from Cameroon who bemoaned their inability to convert more than one of their 19 shots on goal. On another day, their striker Vincent Aboubakar would be leaving with his first international hat-trick, the match ball and potentially interest from several clubs bigger than his current employers, Besiktas.
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His liberty and space inside the box indicated Australia's defence remained porous since a switch to a more attacking line-up in March, but Friday morning's match showed the frailties aren't simply systemic. Postecoglou has come under intense scrutiny for his gamble with a 3-2-4-1 formation that has failed to convince the broader public, pundits and punters alike. This time his tactics weren't solely the focus.
For the overwhelming majority of the first half, the Socceroos matched the African champions. They controlled possession, were given the space to dictate the tempo and a more direct attack showed signs of being threatening. However, it was ripped apart at the seams a minute before half-time by a routine ball forward, one that required little tactical insight to defuse.
Centre-back Trent Sainsbury abandoned his post, Milos Degenek was beaten to the ball by Marseille winger Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and when he chipped over goalkeeper Mat Ryan, the forensic examiners of Postecoglou's tactics realised the problems may have deeper roots.
Former Chelsea and Melbourne City winger Damien Duff recently suggested Australia doesn't have the cattle to play out of the back. In doing their best to silence pundits like him, the Socceroos exposed themselves to a worse crime of being unable to propel the most basic of tactics: counter-attacks.
For all the positives in possession, the problems remained the same without it. Cameroon's strength in transition showed how the Socceroos appeared susceptible to pace and direct attacks, particularly in the second half. Many of the players struggled to handle the tactics of the Africans and a quick look through the team sheet could explain why.
The list of clubs alongside the names on the back line doesn't match-up with the other areas of the park. If there's a criticism directed towards this generation of players, it's that they're more focused on football being a profession rather than a career.
Several players have passed-up blossoming careers in Europe for more lucrative deals in the weaker leagues of Asia, particularly defenders such as Sainsbury, Ryan McGowan, Matt Spiranovic and to a lesser extent, Degenek. It's stalled the development of some and exposed a lack of depth, so much so that arguably our best centre-back, Spiranovic, lost his national team place by remaining in the Chinese second division. After guiding Australia to an Asian Cup title in 2015, he was nowhere to be seen in the Socceroos' next tournament, and should they reach another in the World Cup next year, Spiranovic faces an uphill battle to be part of that as a result of his club choices.
Was Friday's continuation of Australia's poor defending endemic of broader issues? Time will tell. But, in conceding in such elementary fashion and fortunate not to cop three more, it made it clear the players must also take ownership of the state of the national team, not just the coach.