Australia arrived at the 2010 World Cup with very little expectation. 2006 was their first tournament since the 70s – they made it through their group but were beaten by eventual winners, Italy – so the following competition was all about continuing the momentum.
It couldn't have got off to a worse start. Germany, one of the favourites for the trophy, scored within eight minutes of the Socceroos' first match through Lukas Podolski. Miroslav Klose doubled the lead before half-time before an Australian sending-off in the second half made things even trickier.
Sure enough, Die Mannschaft are efficient. Two goals in the first 45, two in the second, as Thomas Muller and Cacau rounded off an excellent start. Coach Pim Verbeek was always going to have his work cut out following countryman Guus Hiddink, wasn't he?
The Aussies are back in action today, having qualified as one of the final teams for this World Cup. So cast your minds back and tell us the XI of that day 12 years ago, plus the substitutes who got onto the field.
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Mark White is the Digital Content Editor at FourFourTwo. During his time on the brand, Mark has written three cover features on Mikel Arteta, Martin Odegaard and the Invincibles, and has written pieces on subjects ranging from Sir Bobby Robson’s time at Barcelona to the career of Robinho. An encyclopedia of football trivia and collector of shirts, he first joined the team back in 2020 as a staff writer.
