The Young Socceroos - whose 23-man squad was named by coach Ante Milicic on Saturday - must finish in the top four at the tournament to seal a spot for the main event.
Milicic was hoping to have X-factor magician Arzani as his mainstay in Indonesia, especially since the only game time he’s been allotted since joining the Hoops on loan from Manchester City has been a handful of outings with the reserves.
While the U-19 Championships, which kick off on October 18, don’t fall on official FIFA dates, Mililic believed Celtic would see the benefit of Arzani playing at least three tough games in seven days, especially since his match fitness has been called into question since arriving in Glasgow.
But Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers has dug his heels in, preferring to keep Arzani under his watch, especially since his arrival in Scotland he’s already been involved in a week-long Socceroos training camp in Turkey and will join Graham Arnold’s squad in the UAE next week ahead of their international against Kuwait on October 16 (AEST).
Celtic face the likes of Hibernian, RB Leipzig, Hearts (twice) and Dundee during the duration of the tournament, with Arzani still battling to force his way into Rodgers’ match-day first team squads.
While Football Federation Australia are disappointed in Celtic’s stance, Milicic met no such resistance in winning the release of Ipswich Town striker Ben Follami, Heerenveen forward John Iredale, Everton defender Con Ouzounidis or Borussia Monchengladbach’s attacking weapon Christian Theoharous.
Australia begin their Group C campaign against Korea Republic at the Patriot Candrabaga Stadium in Bekasi on October 19.
Three days later Milicic’s rookies return to the same venue to take on Vietnam, before meeting Jordan at Pakandari Stadium in Cibinong on October 25.
The Young Socceroos, who last qualified for the U-20 World Cup in 2013, travel to Singapore on Sunday to continue their build-up for Indonesia.
"The upcoming AFC U19 Championship in Indonesia represents a great opportunity for this group of players to be exposed to international football," Milicic said.
"During our camp in Singapore we will look to add to the work that we did while on the Sunshine Coast, and earlier in the year during our camp on the Central Coast.
"Our camp in Singapore will include matches against leading Malaysian club side Johor Darul Ta'zim across the causeway on October 11 and Singapore Under-21’s four days later."
Full Young Socceroos' 23-man squad
