Talent there despite Olympic miss: Aloisi

Former Socceroo John Aloisi says he believes there's plenty of talent coming through Australia's ranks despite the Olyroos failing to qualify for Rio.

Brisbane Roar coach John Aloisi doesn't believe Australia's failure to qualify for this year's men's Olympic football tournament is a case of a lack of young talent.

The Olyroos were knocked out of the AFC Under-23 Championship in Qatar on Thursday morning after a goalless draw with Jordan in their final pool match at the tournament, which doubles as an Olympic qualifier.

That draw meant Australia finished third in their pool behind Jordan and the United Arab Emirates and were eliminated from the tournament.

It's the second Olympics in a row where Australia will not take part in the men's tournament after also missing out on the London 2012 games.

Aloisi, a member of Australia's 2004 Olympic team, said it wasn't up to him to analyse what may have gone wrong during the failed qualifying campaign.

But he doesn't think it's a sign the up and coming players aren't good enough.

"I know Aurelio Vidmar is a good coach, he'll be disappointed not to qualify but we've still got talented players coming through," the former Socceroo said.

The Roar had three players in the Olyroos squad in Jamie Maclaren, Brandon Borrello and James Donachie.

Aloisi says he's confident the disappointment of missing Olympic qualification won't have long term ramifications for his charges.

"They're young and they've got hopefully a long career in front of them," he said.

"They've got more opportunities to play in tournaments, it's part of being a footballer how you handle disappointments."


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Source: AAP



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