Match Preview: Argentina vs Australia

The wait is almost over as the Subway Socceroos will get to test themselves again against Argentina for the second time in just over six months.

Only this time, La Albiceleste come into Thursday night's meeting at the Workers' Stadium in Beijing, China as World Champions having lifted the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™. 

The two nations of course met back in December in the Round of 16 which saw Lionel Scaloni's troops defeat a gallant Green and Gold outfit 2-1.

Fast forward to half a year later and Graham Arnold has named a youthful but equally exciting squad for the international friendly, with several experienced members ruled out through injury. From the current 23-man side, 12 were part of the Subway Socceroos' campaign in Qatar.

However, that presents an exciting opportunity for a host of youngsters to showcase their abilities and impress the boss. The average age in the squad for this clash is 24.6.

Four players have only represented their country once, while two players in Alessandro Circati and Tom Glover are both uncapped having been called into the Australia camp for the first time.

This will be the ninth encounter between the two teams as Australia continue to face strong opposition ahead of the next FIFA World Cup 2026™ qualifying cycle and AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023™ in January next year.

Arnold's men faced South American opponents in March against Ecuador, recording a 3-1 win and 2-1 defeat in the two-match series, while the Argentines beat Panama and Curacao 2-0 and 7-0 respectively.

Argentina come into contest with a strong squad, littered with world-class talent including the likes of Lionel Messi, Angel di Maria, and Enzo Fernandez. You can see the full squad here.

The anticipation is certainly high for this one with millions of Australians keen to see how we will fare against the world's best.

Opta Insights

• Argentina are undefeated in their last seven men’s ‘A’ internationals against Australia (W6, D1); they have conceded only a single goal across the first halves in that span.
• This will be the first time Australia has played a men’s international away from home since a 2-1 defeat to Argentina at the 2022 FIFA World Cup; the Socceroos will be looking to avoid back-to-back losses in such fixtures for the first time since June 2019.
• Argentina have lost only one of their last 45 men’s internationals (W34, D10, inc. penalty shootouts) – a 2-1 defeat to Saudi Arabia at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
• Aiden O’Neill (Australia) has made 179 metres from carries in men’s internationals in 2023, 19 more than any other Socceroos player.
• Harry Souttar (Australia) has a passing accuracy of 88% from 43 passes in men’s internationals in 2023, the best rate of any Socceroos player (min. 10 passes).

World Ranking

Argentina: 1
Australia: 29

READ MORE: Our previous meetings with Argentina
READ MORE: The potential debutants and returning players for Australia's clash against Argentina

What they said

Graham Arnold

"I want do better than what we did against Ecuador, you know, and I thought that three halves out of the four against Ecuador were very good.

"And again, it's about bringing these kids into the environment and giving them this opportunity. Because unless you give those opportunities in life, you never know what will happen.

"... It's a fantastic opportunity for all of us. And, you know, as I said, the fact that we're playing against the world champion straight after a World Cup is a one off, I don't think it's ever happened before for the Socceroos and Argentina had a big role to play in that to play against us."

Alessandro Circati

"I knew in myself what I felt was right and what I felt was the right thing for me to do.

"I know I made the right decision and I'm sure of it.

".... It's been exciting, I've met all the boys now and they've all been super welcoming."

Mathew Ryan

"It's obviously always great to be in here, the opportunity to represent our country is one, which should obviously never be taken for granted. 

"It's nice to see obviously, a lot of youthfulness around the squad, I think it adds a lot of excitement. And obviously, you know, thinking about the future and all that.

"I think it's important to use these windows coming up to try and blood as many as we can, and, you know, give the guys the opportunity to make the most of the opportunities of being here in camp."

How to watch

The match against Argentina will be broadcast live and free on Australia's 'Home of Football,' Network 10.  

The international friendly will also be streamed live via both 10 Play and Paramount+.

International fans, stay tuned for more information around how you can watch the game.

MORE DETAILS: How to watch - Argentina v Australia
INTERNATIONAL AUDIENCES: How fans all over the world can tune in 

Subway Socceroos Squad vs Argentina I Beijing, China – Thursday, 15 June
 

International Friendly

Date: Thursday, 15 June 2023
Venue: Workers' Stadium, Beijing
Time: 10.00pm AEST
Broadcast: Live on Network 10 and on 10 Play and Paramount+.