MELBOURNE: Australia coach Graham Arnold was engulfed in a storm of criticism from home fans and media on Wednesday after the scoreless Socceroos again failed to despatch a low-ranked opponent in World Cup qualifying.
Hoping to rebound from a shock 1-0 loss to Bahrain on home soil last week, the Socceroos were held 0-0 by world number 133 Indonesia in Jakarta on Tuesday in a setback to their hopes of direct qualification for the 2026 showpiece in North America.
By contrast, Group C heavyweights Japan backed up their 7-0 demolition of China with a 5-0 thrashing of Bahrain in Riffa to hold top spot on six points, while West Asian powerhouse Saudi Arabia beat China away to lie second.
With only the top two qualifying directly, fifth-placed Australia will be under huge pressure to take maximum points at home against China in next month's qualifying window.
Australia have long struggled to score against teams who sit back and defend in numbers but patience is wearing thin.
"It sharpens the scrutiny on Arnold, his tactics and his selections, with the national team clearly struggling to function in attack," soccer writer Vince Rugari wrote in the Sydney Morning Herald.
Australia had 15 corners and hogged 63% of possession against Indonesia, and while they racked up 19 shots on goal only five of them were on target.
Underlining his frustration, Arnold, usually the most staunch defender of his players, was critical of them, saying he could not "play the game for them."
"Second spot is on four (points) at the moment," he said of the standings.
"So it's not like it's a disaster, but I've got to go home and do a lot of thinking."
Plenty of fans on social media suggested Arnold has had more than enough thinking time and called for change.
Some may have short memories.
Less than two years ago, Arnold was feted as a national hero as the Socceroos reached the last 16 at Qatar and won two matches at a World Cup for the first time.
Arnold has insisted the Socceroos can go further in 2026.
However, there was dwindling confidence among home fans on Wednesday that he is the right coach to take them there.
"As unpleasant as it is to say, Australia's struggles in possession against anything resembling an organised defence are starting to look like an Arnold problem," local soccer writer Emma Kemp wrote in The Age.--REUTERS