The World Cup was still far from starting and in fact it had already started. Because, deep down, the World Cup is made of stories and that of Andrew Redmayne, the hero of the Australian tie, is worth it: he entered at 119 ‘in the play off The intercontinental qualifier for the final, the 33-year-old goalkeeper who at one point thought of quitting football (including because of the frustration he felt at 15 when he passed a trial at Arsenal but ended up not signing in exchange for Polish Szczesny). he entered alone to try to stop Peru’s penalties with a dance over the line and even secured the win in the match played in Qatar. Now, he is one of many debutants for the Socceroos in Qatar. – and no one forgets him anymore.
There’s almost a feeling of deja vu in this group D, which once again unites France, Denmark and Australia with Tunisia (in 2018 it had been Turkey), but with the whole of Oceania appearing even less valued than in Russia. Gone are the times of names like Tim Cahill, Harry Kewell or Mark Viduka, leaving room for some elements of teams that have even played in the Champions League or play in Serie A but are far from the status achieved by their predecessors, such as Aaron. Mooy and Ajdin Hrustic. Coach Graham Arnold’s faith remains, protagonist of another of those World Cup stories by not summoning his son-in-law, Trent Sainsbury, pointed out by many even as a starter during the finals. “It was one of the most difficult calls I had to make,” admitted the coach who also left out Tom Rogic, from the WBA, seen as one of the best Australian players today who did not make the call again.
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Source: Observadora
