After a disappointing draw against Iraq, Australia will target lift-off in their 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign, with a win over the United Arab Emirates in Sydney on Tuesday.
European roundup World Cup qualifiers
The Socceroos missed out on a chance to keep pace with Saudi Arabia and Japan, when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Iraq on Thursday.
In the lead for a considerable time in the match, after Mathew Leckie scored in the 39th minute, Australia let in a late equaliser to drop two points. Ahmed Yaseen scored for Iraq in the 76th minute in Tehran, with that result keeping the Socceroos three points behind the leaders.
Saudi Arabia and Japan both have 13 points each from six matches, with Australia on ten points, while UAE have nine.
So, it goes without saying that this match at home is really a must-win for Australia.
"Sometimes internally the feeling is a hell of a lot different to what's happening outside," Australia manager Ange Postecoglou said, insisting the Socceroos still have a lot of confidence, despite the trick position they find themselves in.
"We've been building something and we've built a pretty strong foundation, there's still a great deal of belief. I understand the anxiety around it, that's why we love sport."
That love will go down considerably if Australia fail to pick up all three points on Monday, and one of the players expected to help them get the needed victory will be Tim Cahill, the veteran who just seems to go on and on and on.
Cahill will definitely be in the matchday squad for this game against the UAE, but Postecoglou is yet to decide if the former Everton man will start the game or come off the bench, with the manager pondering whether to start with Tomi Juric up front again, having done so against Iraq.
"Timmy comes into calculations, but I thought Tomi was really strong on a tough pitch," Postecoglou added. "We wanted him to get into some more threatening areas but some of our delivery to him was really poor.
"Timmy's a threat, and we got 20 minutes out of him. He's certainly ready to play if we go that way but either way he'll definitely play a part."
UAE would have been disappointed with not being able to get anything out of their match against Japan, who scored a goal in each half to pick up a 2-0 win in Abu Dhabi. With four points separating them from the top two, this has become a must-win game for UAE as well, making the match all the more enticing.
When and where to watch live
Australia vs UAE is set to begin at 8pm local time, 2.30pm IST, 10am BST, 1pm GST on Tuesday. Live streaming and TV information is below.
Australia: TV: Fox Sports 4. Live Streaming: Foxtel Play.
Middle East: TV: Bein Sports Arabia1. Live Streaming: Bein Sports Connect.
India: No live coverage.
USA: TV: ESPN3. Live Streaming: Watch ESPN.
SouthEast Asia: TV: Fox Sports.
