Doha, December 02 (QNA) - The Coach of the Australian national football team Graham Arnold confirmed his team's full readiness to face Argentina tomorrow, in the last 16 of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.

Arnold said in the match's press conference today, that his team learned its lesson after losing in its first match against France, especially that the Australian team was not sufficiently ready at the time. The coach indicated that he has respect for the captain of Argentine team Lionel Messi, as a talented star who has a wonderful career and a record of significant achievements. Arnold said that he together with his players seek to cross the Argentine obstacle and qualify for the quarterfinals for the first time in the history of Australian football.

Arnold stressed that the Argentine national football team has some brilliant among its ranks of all kinds, other than the fact that the Argentine people are naturally fond of football, resulting in a challenging game. However, the coach emphasized at the same time his faith in his players capability to give their best in order to achieve the desired result.

Australia national football team coach pointed out that he had not yet decided on the squad formation, explaining that he had monitored and analyzed the Argentina VS Saudi Arabia match, finding that by the Saudi team putting the Argentine squad under immense pressure, the Saudis succeeded in maneuvering their opponent, a tip which will be important for Australia in its confrontation with Argentina tomorrow.

Arnold explained that the Australian league is strong and has provided the national team with fine players, and that the Australian league is no less than European leagues.

For his part, Australian defender Harry Souttar said that his team is able to present a high-level performance in the Argentina match, noting that the Australian squad will do everything possible to pass to the quarterfinals, despite the difficulty of the confrontation against Argentina. (QNA)