Culina ruled out of Asian Cup Qualifier against Kuwait

Qantas Socceroo Jason Culina has been ruled out of the squad for the upcoming AFC Asian Cup 2011 Qualifier against Kuwait in Kuwait City on 6 January 2010 after sustaining a knee injury.

Qantas Socceroo Jason Culina has been ruled out of the squad for the upcoming AFC Asian Cup 2011 Qualifier against Kuwait in Kuwait City on 6 January 2010 after sustaining a knee injury whilst playing for Gold Coast United in their Hyundai A-League match against Brisbane Roar on Boxing Day.

Qantas Socceroos Head Coach Pim Verbeek has added Central Coast Mariners midfielder Dean Heffernan to his squad as a replacement.

Heffernan made his Qantas Socceroos debut against Indonesia in the AFC Asian Cup Qualification match in Jakarta earlier this year and was an unused substitute for the match against Kuwait played in Canberra in March.

Kuwait and Australia currently sit on top of the Group B points table of the AFC Asian Cup 2011 Qualifying stage and it is vital that the Qantas Socceroos make the most of the second last qualification match.

The Qantas Socceroos are scheduled to play Indonesia in Brisbane in their final group match on March 3, 2010.

All Qantas Socceroos matches are broadcast live and exclusive on FOX Sports.