Australia 0-0 (5-4 on pens) Peru
Australia have reached their fifth consecutive World Cup with a 5-4 penalty shootout win after a 0-0 draw against Peru last night at the Al Rayyan Stadium.
This inter-continental play-off match was as good as advertised since it turned out to be a nail-biting affair. And in the end, it was the Socceroos who secured their spot for World Cup 2022 following a rollercoaster qualification campaign.
Andrew Redmayne became Australia’s hero as he made crucial saves during the penalty shootout, which proved to be the main difference for the Socceroos.
Graham Arnold’s side became the 31st nation to join the exclusive 32-team cast in Qatar. On the other hand, the final spot for November’s festivities is up for grabs between Costa Rica and New Zealand, and their match will happen in just a few hours from now.
Although there weren’t any goals from Australia and Peru, there are still a couple of World Cup 2022 highlights to look into and SBOTOP is here to recap them one by one.
Highlights of the game
Australia were on roll heading into this match and they set the tempo early on. But despite having the edge, they couldn’t get any clear-cut chances.
One of Australia’s rare opportunities came at 41st minute when Martin Boyle whipped a cross to Jackson Irvine, but the St. Pauli midfielder sent his headed effort wide.
Following a dry first half from either side, it was Los Incas who came out strong in the second half as they tested Australian goalkeeper Mat Ryan – who made a vital save as Sergio Pena teed up Christofer Gonzales. Minutes later, Aaron Mooy had a shot from 20 yards that drifted out wide.
Come the 80th minute, the Socceroos had three good opportunities to break the deadlock. Ajdin Hrustic’s tame spot-kick was easily saved by Pedro Gallese. Aziz Behich narrowly missed his curling ball after breaking through the Peruvian backline minutes later, and Awer Mabil found Hrustic via a through-ball but Gallese came to the rescue once more.
Edison Flores had two chances of his own to try and steal the match for Los Incas as he tested Mat Ryan a couple of times towards the end of extra time but couldn’t convert.
After 120 minutes couldn’t separate Australia and Peru, the qualification for the World Cup in Qatar came down to the penalty shootout, and Graham Arnold made one bold move that would turn out to be genius by bringing on Andrew Redmayne to replace Mat Ryan.
Christian Cueva was then stretchered off due to an injury and was replaced by Alex Valera. It was a huge blow for the Peruvians since Cueva is likely to have been one of their best penalty takers ahead of the shootout.
Martin Boyle missed the first for Australia while Gianluca Lapadula made it for Peru and it looked like Los Incas were about to win. However, Luis Advincula misfired and the Socceroos converted five straight.
Alex Valera, who was brought on to replace Christian Cueva earlier, was under immense pressure to draw level.
Andrew Redmayne danced along the goal line and waved his arms around as part of his penalty-saving tactics, and it worked to perfection as he dove down to his right and blocked Valera’s low ball.
Joyous scenes followed for Australia thanks to the “Grey Wiggle”, although Redmayne refused to take credit for winning the game and the spot for Qatar.
Key statistics
Australia are no longer new to matches like these as they’ve participated in a record six previous inter-continental play-offs prior to last night.
There are now three inter-continental play-off ties that have been settled by penalties, and all of them were won by the Socceroos.
Substitute Andrew Redmayne – the hero for the Socceroos – only had two caps prior to this game.
The shots between Australia and Peru were pretty even as the Socceroos had 11 total shots while Los Incas had 10. Peru, though, had the slight edge in the possession at 53-per cent.
What’s next?
After going through a gauntlet and defying the World Cup 2022 odds to book their berth in Qatar, Australia will take a break in these next few weeks.
They’ll take on New Zealand in a friendly at Eden Park in late September before facing France for their first Group D match at Qatar in November. The Socceroos are also grouped alongside Denmark and Tunisia.
As for Peru, it’s back to the drawing board for Ricardo Gareca and co. Like Australia, they’ll also have a long break, but they won’t have any international competitions anytime soon.
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