Qantas Socceroo coach Holger Osieck has declared all starting eleven spots are up for grabs ahead of the friendly clash against Denmark at the Parken Stadium.
Qantas Socceroo coach Holger Osieck has declared all starting eleven spots are up for grabs ahead of the friendly clash against Denmark at the Parken Stadium.
Osieck ran the rule over his charges for the final time at the match venue on Friday evening, where the roof was closed on the 38,000 capacity arena due to chilly conditions in the Danish capital.
All players in camp are available for selection and many can expect to see game time as Osieck looks to get the best out of his group ahead of crunch FIFA World Cup qualifiers in the coming weeks.
“We have 22 players here and everybody is ready,” said Osieck.
“Except, we have a little bit of a problem with Rukavytsya, he-s suffering from a cold so we left him in the hotel but he should be OK tomorrow.
“To be frank, I-m not sure who is in the best eleven right now.
“I need this game to have a fair assessment and, of course, I need the week in Oman prior to that game to get an even better idea and next weekend I can tell you who the best eleven will be.”
The Danes will present the Qantas Socceroos with a formidable task ahead of the recommencement of Australia-s FIFA World Cup qualifying journey next week.
For the hosts, the match marks their final chance to impress before their Euro 2012 campaign kicks off in the Ukraine next week.
Danish coach Morten Olsen is expected to showcase English Premier League stars Daniel Agger and Nicklas Bendtner alongside seasoned European professionals Christan Poulsen and Dennis Rommedahl.
For the visiting Qantas Socceroos, Brett Holman, Josh Kennedy and Carl Valeri are the only absentees and despite their unavailability Osieck has a strong squad to choose from.
“I know (Denmark) is a great team, I-ve seen them a couple of times, I know their players, they have a lot of quality,” said Osieck.
“If you look at the way they qualified for the Euro-s, that was very impressive and I think for us tomorrow is a very, very important game.
“We can see where we stand and I think it-s going to be a good challenge for us.
“We have been working together now for two years and the question mark is always on the actual form of the team.
“We are getting there and our priority is of course to qualify, that we do well in our Asian group, that is definitely my first objective.”
In Euro qualifying, Denmark only conceded one goal at the venue for the match - recording four wins from as many attempts along the way against Portugal, Norway, Cyprus and Iceland.
Australia last met Denmark in the lead up to the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, where Kennedy netted a second half winner in the Qantas Socceroos- 1-0 win.
The Qantas Socceroos face Denmark in an international friendly at Copenhagen-s Parken Stadium on Saturday, 2 June. Kick off is at 5pm. (Sunday, 3 June AEST, Kick off is at 1am AEST).
The Qantas Socceroos begin their final phase of qualifying for the 2014 FIFA World Cup with a clash against Oman in Muscat on Friday, 8 June.
Soon after, the Qantas Socceroos will host Japan in their first home fixture of the fourth stage of Asia-s FIFA World Cup qualification process on Tuesday, 12 June at Brisbane-s Suncorp Stadium. Kick off is at 8pm.