Australia’s midfielder Ajdin Hrustic and Japan’s midfielder Hidemasa Morita fight for the ball during the 2022 Qatar World Cup Asian Qualifiers group B football match between Japan and Australia, at Saitama Stadium in Saitama, October 12, 2021. — AFP pic
MELBOURNE, Dec 13 — Australia’s next World Cup qualifier against Vietnam on Jan. 27 will be held at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, Football Australia said on Monday.
The match looms as a must-win for the Socceroos who are third in Group B of Asian qualifying on the road to Qatar behind leaders Saudi Arabia and Japan.
The top two teams in the group qualify automatically, with the third-placed team having to win a series of playoffs to reach the finals in Qatar.
Australia won the away qualifier against Vietnam 1-0 in Hanoi in September.
Vietnam are bottom of Group B, having lost all six of their qualifiers in the current phase.
Due to border restrictions, Australia have played almost all of their home qualifiers on neutral territory since the outbreak of Covid-19 but hosted Saudi Arabia in Sydney for a 0-0 draw in last month’s qualifying window. — Reuters