Future Socceroos – Part 2

Today I bring you the second part of my four part look at the future candidates for Socceroos selection. I previously looked at our goalkeeping stocks, and so now I turn my focus on the guys in front of the keeper, the defenders. And as we know, defenders don’t necessarily always just defend, so I’ve broken down the analysis into two main sections, central defenders and wingbacks.

Central Defenders
Incumbent
Lucas Neill/Craig Moore
Lucas Neill rose to prominence at Millwall when he signed at The Den in 1995. He spent six years there, amassing 174 appearances, before Graeme Souness brought him to Ewood Park in the summer of 2001. He had his most successful time as a player at Blackburn, rising in popularity and reputation to become club captain by the time the 2006 World Cup came around. Neill’s performances at Germany, where he was the rock in the Socceroos’ defence, drew praise from all over. A big money move was on the cards, and in the summer of 2007 there were rumours of illustrious clubs such as Barce, Chelsea and Liverpool all vying for his signature. The most solid bid came from Liverpool, but reports suggest that Neill could not agree to personal terms with the Merseyside club, which eventually led to his transfer to West Ham. Neill was quickly made captain at Upton Park, although his future there is now uncertain, with word that he, along with other high profile players, could be offloaded in the summer to ease the pressure on the wage bill. He has been the most consistent Socceroo in the past few years, and his place in the team is unquestioned. While he had an uncharacteristic dummy spit at the 2007 Asian Cup, he is still the most deserving of the captain’s armband. Still at just 30, Neill should have several good years in front of him.

Craig Moore’s career threw him in the deep end from the start, when he moved as a teenager from the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) to the cauldron of Glasgow with Rangers (back when Rangers were better than Celtic!). He spent the majority of his career at Ibrox, and collected five League Champion titles, four Scottish Cups, and three Scottish League Cups. He was club captain for several seasons, however the arrival of Alex McLeish as manager in 2004 ultimately led to Moore’s exit in January 2005. He spent several more seasons in Europe, firstly with Monchengladbach, then Newcastle, before returning home as the marquee player for Queensland Roar at the start of the 2007 season. Moore has also been a constant at the heart of the Socceroos’ defence, and scored the penalty against Croatia in the ’06 World Cup which helped us secure a draw and progression into the round of 16. At 33, he toyed with international retirement, but an SOS from Pim changed his mind and he is firmly back in the national set-up.

Potentials
Matt Spiranovic – The young Nuremburg defender is the most promising of the young Aussies, and is on a good career path. The 19 year old moved to Germany in 2007, and has seen regular action. Surprisingly, he doesn’t have many international caps to his name, and has been left out of Pim’s recent squads. He had a successful Olympics Games in Beijing, and he is the future of Socceroos central defending. He needs to be fast-tracked into the national set-up, even if he doesn’t play he needs to be in camp for the experience.

Patrick Kisnorbo – The Leicester City defender is relatively unknown in Australia, and this is mostly due to his decision to shun the national team in his younger days. Kisnorbo withdrew from the 2004 Olympics squad to concentrate on club football, and was therefore made to wait till 2007 before he got his chance again for the Green and Gold. However, he was part of the catastrophic defence which received so much criticism in the 2007 Asian Cup, and has since rarely featured for the Socceroos. He’s 27 now, so his international career is at the crossroads, if he doesn’t force himself into the team in the near future he might not get another chance.

Michael Beauchamp – At 27, he’s not exactly a youngster, but at one stage he was the next great hope of Australian defending. A move to Nuremberg in 2007 was seen as a positive step, and with the international retirement of Tony Popovic and Craig Moore, he was the heir apparent to partner Lucas Neill. However, he had a disastrous match against Paraguay (where Beauch’s late own goal cancelled out Poppa’s opener in his final farewell match), and furthermore he unexpectedly lost his club spot to fellow Aussie Matt Spiranovic. He then moved to AaB in Denmark, where he got to taste Champions League football, however he is still yet to establish himself at AaB. Let’s hope he can revitalise his career and live out the potential he once promised.

Chris Coyne – The bustling and hard working defender from Colchester has been a surprise selection to partner Neill when Moore has been injured (especially with his cancer scare last year). The 30 year old arrived on British shores in 1996 with West Ham, but it wasn’t until his move to Dundee in 2000 that he got regular football. This was followed by a successful switch to Luton Town, where he spent a happy six years. Coyne moved again this summer, to Colchester, and has been a constant in their starting eleven. I can’t help but see Coyne as a temporary fix to our defensive problems, and I think he’s only getting the chances because he’s been playing regular first team football (albeit at Colchester) which Pim loves.

Adrian Leijer – Another youngster with promise, if only he can get a game somewhere! After a couple of successful years with Melbourne Victory, where he picked up the gong for A-League Young Player of the Year in 06/07, the then 21 year old moved to Fulham in 2007, but has not played a first team game since. In fact, the only first team match Leijer has played in the past 18 months has been his international debut against Singapore in March 2008. The potential is definitely there, and hopefully his recent loan move to Norwich will mean more game time and a chance to be considered for future Socceroos squads.

Others to keep an eye on:
Jade North, Incheon (Korea), 27
Mark Milligan, Shanghai Shenhua (China), 23
Ryan McGowan, Hearts (Scotland), 19

Wingbacks
Incumbent:
Luke Wilkshire (R) / Scott Chipperfield (L)

Luke Wilkshire was part of the Middlesbrough youth system but never really got going, despite spending five seasons at the Riverside. A subsequent move to Bristol City was the turning point in his career, as his performances there were enough to convince then Australian manager Guus Hiddink to pick him for the 2006 Wold Cup. Several solid performances in Germany, plus the endorsement of Hiddink, paved the way for a move to Dutch side FC Twente. Two years of consistent first team football led to his most recent move, to Dynamo Moscow. While noted as a midfielder, his versatility has seen Pim regularly start him as the right wingback for the Socceroos. Only 27, his game still has room for improvement and barring any major hiccups, the right back role will be his for quite some time.

Scott Chipperfield’s career has often been referred to as the Cinderella story of Australian football, as Chippers started out as a bus driver while playing part time for his local club. Several good seasons at Wollongong was followed by a move to Swiss side FC Basel, where he has been a loyal servant for eights years and counting. Started off his career as a left winger, but his acute defensive awareness and courage was recognised by Hiddink, who turned him into a wingback of prominence in the lead up to the 2006 World Cup. In-fact, his defensive prowess had been so highly regarded that Hiddink often used Chippers as the left prong in a three-man defence. However, he is getting on in age now (33), and his is one of the positions which will need to be addressed in the near future. There were rumours of him moving to Hertha during the January transfer window, but that never materialised. The latest news is that Chippers will be returning to Australia as expansion side North Queensland’s marquee player next season.

Potentials:
Dave Carney – The flamboyant left winger turned wingback is an exact mould of Chipperfield. Both possess a high degree of close control, flair, and defensive awareness beyond expectations. However, while Chippers has only had two clubs in his professional life, Carney has pin-balled his way through seven already. Originally a youth product of Everton (where he was supposedly the ying to the yang of one certain Wayne Rooney), his rejection there left him in football wilderness for several seasons, before a move home for the inaugural season of the A-League with Sydney FC kick-started his career. His exciting play ignited the young league, made him a fan favourite and shot him into Socceroos consideration. Carney is the logical replacement for Chippers when he chooses to retire, and while the 25 year old’s club career had again stuttered at Sheffield United, hopefully his recent loan move to Norwich can get him back on track.

Scott Jamieson – If you’ve read some of my other posts then you’ll know how highly I rate this guy. The Adelaide youngster returned to Australia after three fruitless years playing youth team football at Bolton, and has ignited the A-League with his pace, maturity and technique. He formed a wonderful partnership with Cassio on the Red’s left flank, and was rewarded with an international call-up, as well as being recognised as the A-League’s most recent Young Player of the Year. In time, hopefully Jamieson will grow, and form the ideal left flank partnership with Carney for the Socceroos.

Ruben Zadkovich – Remember him, Sydney fans? Zad was a utility player who filled the gaps for the Sky Blues, and he was always considered to possess more athleticism than actual technical ability. The 22 year old transferred to Derby County last season, although his chances there have been limited. I can’t really say that Zad will be considered as “the future,” but the truth is that I can’t think of any other prominent Aussie right backs. Luckily Wilkshire is still young.

Others to keep and eye on:
Shane Stefanutto, Lyn Oslo (Norway), 29
Daniel Mullen, Adelaide United, 20

Who should partner Lucas Neill after Craig Moore retires?
( polls)