Arise Irankunda: Australia has new prince as Socce...
Key takeaways
- You will have to earn every look at the goal, no matter how glancing.
- Examining the stat sheet of the Socceroos 2-0 win over Türkiye on Saturday evening would tell you that this was an absolute smash-and-grab.
- Sure, Türkiye controlled possession, fielded the likes of Arda Güler and Hakan Çalhanoglu -- and brought Kenan Yildiz on at halftime -- but they never dominated.
Why this matters: a sports story that could shift standings, legacies, or fan conversations.
They will bend, but they will not break. You will have to earn every look at the goal, no matter how glancing. No matter how on top of the game you feel, you can never afford to turn off for a moment. Men at Work's seminal track Down Under will be belted out by a boisterous Australian crowd. Oh and Nestory Irankunda is going to the moon.
Examining the stat sheet of the Socceroos 2-0 win over Türkiye on Saturday evening would tell you that this was an absolute smash-and-grab. And, yes, in all honesty, it was. But that would lose the nuance; overlook that this was a carefully orchestrated heist, one carefully planned by coach Tony Popovic and executed by his players with a level of unyielding commitment and dedication.
Defending as though their lives depended on it, every single shot of the 30 that the Turks fashioned at BC Place felt like it was contested, every move into the box converged upon by a sea of green-and-gold shirts, and no cause was too hopeless to chase, nor wasn't any ball worth hurling bodies in front of. Sure, Türkiye controlled possession, fielded the likes of Arda Güler and Hakan Çalhanoglu -- and brought Kenan Yildiz on at halftime -- but they never dominated. Because dominating would imply there was a moment where they were dictating terms to the Australians, and never once did it feel like the Socceroos were helpless, simply waiting for their opponents to deliver a telling blow.