Socceroos seek the right blend

The Socceroos' reward for victory in their second last match in Group B against joint leaders Kuwait in Kuwait City on January 7 (AEDT) is qualification for the 16-team finals in Qatar.

The 23-member squad contains 15 A-League players, amongst them Melbourne Victory defender Matthew Kemp, Brisbane Roar winger Tommy Oar and Perth Glory goalkeeper Tando Velaphi, who have all been picked for the first time.

Sydney FC defender Simon Colosimo returns to the squad after last appearing for Australia in a friendly against China in Guangzhou in March 2007.

The match does not all on a FIFA date so most of the European-based stars are unavailable due to club commitments.

“It is our intention to win qualification as quickly as possible,” Socceroos coach Pim Verbeek said.

“We go straight into camp in Dubai after the weekend round of A-League matches where we will spend a few days together, which is good because we have a few new players who have to get used to the system.

“But we have a good mixture of experienced and young players.

“It will be a difficult game for us and we will have to be at our best to beat Kuwait, who deserved to beat us 1-0 in Canberra last year.

"But all we need for qualification is one win out of two matches so we are keen to finish it off in Kuwait.”

Australia’s final qualifier is against Indonesia in Brisbane in March.

It is not yet known if Verbeek will veer away from his preferred 4-2-3-1 formation in Kuwait but in-form Sydney striker Alex Brosque said he would love to be given a chance to play alongside his Melbourne Victory counterpart Archie Thompson in a two-pronged attack.

“It was good to be picked for the first time against Oman but to be picked and be in the mix again definitely feels better,” Brosque said.

"There are players here in the A-League who can mix it with the European-based players.

"My best position is up front with another forward and I thank my club coach Vitezslav Lavicka for giving me the chance to play there this season.

“I’m most comfortable as a striker and for this reason I’d love to play with Archie up front. He is a goer and so unpredictable. In a way he is like my Sydney strike partner Mark Bridge.

“It won’t be easy to get into the team, though, because I am competing with Europe-based fringe Socceroos strikers like Nikita Rukavytsya and Bruce Djite.”

Brosque said he was sure Verbeek would pick an attacking formation for the must-win game, even if he went with one recognised striker.

“The three men behind the striker are supporting forwards anyway and I’ve played in that role many times,” Brosque added.

“I think I would do well in that position if I get the chance.”

Verbeek said he was impressed with the blistering form of Brisbane’s precocious 18-year-old winger Oar, who has been rewarded for setting the A-League alight with a string of magnificent performances.

“I think he is doing very well in the league. He is young and talented and now we play to see how he handles the pressure,” Verbeek said.

“He definitely could play because if you are good enough you are old enough. But I have two players in that position so he is a 50-50 chance.”

SOCCEROOS SQUAD: Alex Brosque (Sydney), Jacob Burns (Perth), Nick Carle (Crystal Palace), Simon Colosimo (Sydney), Jason Culina (Gold Coast), Bruce Djite (Genclerbirligi), Eugene Galekovic (Adelaide), Scott Jamieson (Adelaide), Mike Jedinak (Antalyaspor), Matthew Kemp (Melbourne), Shane Lowry (Aston Villa), Matthew McKay (Brisbane), Craig Moore (Brisbane), Tommy Oar (Brisbane), Nikita Rukavytsya (Twente), Matthew Spiranovic (Nurnberg), Mile Sterjovski (Perth), Archie Thompson (Melbourne), Matthew Thompson (Newcastle),Tando Velaphi (Perth), Dario Vidosic (Nurnberg), Danny Vukovic (Central Coast), Luke Wilkshire (Dynamo Moscow).