The Caltex Socceroos made a blistering start to the Graham Arnold era on Tuesday morning (AEDT) with their emphatic 4-0 win over Kuwait.
The performance and result not only made a big statement of what this Australian team is set to deliver under their new boss, but also snapped a two-year winless run in Asia.
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Australia’s passing fluency and accuracy was another feature among a number of key facts and stats to come out of the match at the Al Kuwait Sports Club.
Attacking philosophy comes to fruition
The Caltex Socceroos vowed to attack and get on the front foot against Kuwait and they lived up to their promise.
Of the 17 shots Australia fired at goal over the 90 minutes, eight of those were on target for a shooting accuracy of more than 47%.
Underlining how dominant the Caltex Socceroos were, the eight shots that hit the target was the same amount as in all three games combined at the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
And they got into excellent positions in front of goal thanks to the crispness of their passing.
In fact, Australia’s passing accuracy on Tuesday (AEDT) was 86%, the second match in a row the side has passed the ball at better than 85%.
It’s an excellent sign considering they recorded that figure (85%), just once in their eight games prior.
Caltex Socceroos get rewards on Asian soil
Before Australia’s commanding performance against Kuwait, it had been a couple of years since the Green and Gold’s last win in Asia.
In the Caltex Socceroos’ last six matches on Asian soil, it was only the late 1-0 win over the UAE in September of 2016 where they had tasted victory.
While there had only been one defeat in that run – 2-0 to Japan in FIFA World Cup qualifying – it will be a confidence boost heading towards the AFC Asian Cup to get that winning feeling again.
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The Caltex Socceroos have enjoyed their recent meetings with Kuwait as well, and are now unbeaten in their last three matches against the Middle Eastern nation.
Two of those games have been wins where Australia has scored four goals, including the 4-1 win in Melbourne on their way to winning the 2015 Asian Cup.
Did you know?
Tom Rogic’s goal against Kuwait was his first for Australia in 15 internationals.
The Celtic star had scored six goals in his previous 17 caps for the national team.
