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For the second straight qualification campaign, Australia’s World Cup fate verges on the outcome of an intercontinental play-off match, as the Socceroos will be desperate to avoid their first World Cup qualification failure since 2002.
The Aussies shook off the disappointment of their initial AFC qualifiers on Wednesday (AEST) with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over the United Arab Emirates.
Ranked number 22 in the world, Peru are now the only team standing in their way of a ticket to Qatar, as a daunting play-off in the early hours of June 14 (AEST) in Doha awaits them.
The winner of the match will book a spot in Group D alongside France, Denmark and Tunisia, in a near identical scenario to that of Group C in 2018 which comprised the former two sides, as well as Peru and the Socceroos.
The two nations have suffered through a tumultuous qualifying campaign up to this point, with both narrowly missing out on automatic qualification in their respective confederations.
Unlike the Socceroos, Peru were on the back foot early within CONMEBOL’s lengthy 18-match qualification system, as they went without a win from their first seven games.
Early defeats to Brazil and Colombia were of particular concern to long-time manager Ricardo Gareca, but the Peruvians steadied with a three-match winning streak towards the back end of the qualifying phase.
Late stumbles to eventual qualifiers Uruguay and Ecuador broke La Blanquirroja’s chances for automatic qualification, but their seven wins earned throughout the campaign proved enough to beat both Colombia and Chile to the play-off spot.
The fine form of Christian Cueva, as well as forwards André Carrillo and Gianluca Lapadula, ensured that the Peruvians were not starved of goals throughout the campaign, as the trio accounted for over half of their 19-goal tally.
Celta de Vigo midfielder Renato Tapia also proved a major force in the Peruvian ranks, as his overbearing presence and composure in the middle of the park was often a starting point for the side’s creativity in the final third.
Australian’s only official game against the South Americans was memorably the final game of the 2018 group stage in Russia, as emphatic finishes from Carillo and Peru’s all-time leading goalscorer, Paolo Guerrero, sealed the Socceroos’ fate of exiting in the group stage for a third straight World Cup with a 2-0 loss.
However, Socceroos coach Graham Arnold is certain that his side’s fighting ability will be able to match the attacking flair of Peru this time around.
“That is what I have been driving to the boys ... about the Aussie DNA,” Arnold said after the UAE game.
“And that is fight, scratch and do whatever you have got to do to win the game. However we win it, who cares? Just win it.”
The Socceroos also hold a significant height advantage over their opponents, which Arnold will undoubtedly be hoping will topple the attacking threat of the Peruvians.
However, striker Lapadula has other ideas about how Peru can match the Socceroos on a physical level despite the height difference.
"I only believe in work because you will always succeed at work, so I always prepare myself," Lapadula said.
"Now I have only the responsibility of achieving my dream of qualifying for the World Cup."
