The prospect of long haul flights for World Cup qualifiers against some of Asia's weakest sides may not send pulses racing for all of Australia's top soccer players, but coach Ange Postecoglou has demanded all hands on deck. The Asian Cup champions will bid for a fourth successive World Cup at Russia 2018 and their first phase of qualifying will see them criss-cross the sprawling continent to play the likes of 167th-ranked Bangladesh and 153rd-ranked Kyrgyzstan. Tajikistan (143) and Asian Cup finalists Jordan (103) round out a group which offers more of a logistical challenge than a serious threat to the Socceroos' Russian ambitions. Australia's majority of top Europe-based players have often been given a leave pass to avoid early stage qualifiers for World Cups in the past and they have gladly accepted them. But Postecoglou said he expected all to be clamouring for selection in a resurgent team that has high hopes of making an impression in Russia after dominating Asia's quadrennial showpiece on home soil in January. "There wouldn't be a player who wouldn't walk here if I asked them to," Postecoglou told reporters in Perth on Thursday, where the Socceroos play their first home qualifier against Bangladesh. "This is playing for your country in a World Cup game at home. Getting releases for players is the last thing on my mind. "The players feel like we're on a good path and some good times are just around the corner, and they don't want to miss out. "The ones who weren't in the Asian Cup squad I'm sure they would have been watching it on telly (TV) or in the stadium thinking they want to be a part of that next time. "To do that, you have to put your hand up every time we play. The players have been fantastic so far." Postecoglou said he hoped to have his best team out on the park for each match and would not experiment too much. "As Asian Champions we have our own standards we want to maintain and improve," he said. "These are serious games because qualification for the World Cup is at stake." Out of all the teams, Australia have only played Jordan before and Postecoglou joked that his players were in for a learning experience. "Some people got some geography lessons last night, found out some countries they probably didn't think existed," he said. "But I'd much rather this format than playing endless friendlies." (For more sports news andupdates, followAhramOnlineSportson Twitter at@AO_Sportsand onFacebookatAhramOnlineSports.) http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/127834.aspx
