November 16, (THEWILL) – The Australian national football team, the Socceroos, got their 2023 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign off to a flying start on Thursday, with an emphatic 7-0 victory over Bangladesh.
Playing at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium in front of 20,876 enthusiastic fans, Australia asserted their dominance over the minnows from the outset. Graham Arnold’s men went ahead after just 4 minutes courtesy of a Harry Souttar header from a pinpoint Craig Goodwin free kick.
The lead was doubled midway through the first half when Connor Metcalfe’s precise cross was turned home by Brandon Borrello. Mitchell Duke then grabbed a quickfire brace to make it 4-0 before the interval, capitalising on chances created by his teammates.
The second half belonged to substitute Jamie Maclaren, who came off the bench to net an impressive hat-trick. The inform striker coolly finished moves created by Jordan Bos and Massimo Luongo to put the result beyond any doubt. With the 7-0 triumph, Socceroos head coach Arnold set a new record for most matches in charge of the Australian national team, surpassing former teammate Frank Farina’s previous high of 59 matches.
Currently ranked 27th in the world, Australia will be hoping to qualify for their fifth straight World Cup and seventh overall. After reaching the knockout stages in Qatar in 2022, the Socceroos have signalled their intentions early with this statement victory over 183rd-ranked Bangladesh in the second round of Asian qualifying.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
