Here’s everything you need to know about the Asian Cup - the biggest tournament outside of the World Cup for the Socceroos, which kicks off this weekend in Qatar.

India captain Sunil Chhetri’s goal haul sits behind only Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. On Saturday, he will face the Socceroos and hope to add to his tally.

Australia head to Qatar looking to rediscover the form that took them to the round of 16 in 2022 as they hunt a second continental title As Australia prepares to compete in its fifth Asian Cup, commencing against India on Saturday evening, so too arrive the inevitable questions that come with these tournaments. Just how far can they go once the action begins in Qatar? And at what point will they have met a reasonable level of expectations? The goal of all 24 competing nations is to win. But even with the progress they have made in recent years, narratives associated with the likes of Petar Šegrt’s Tajikis or Kim Pan-gon’s Malaysians not standing triumphant at the Lusail Stadium come 10 February will sharply contrast with those that will be spun if Jürgen Klinsmann’s South Korea or Hajime Moriyasu’s Japan aren’t doing so. Continue reading...

Former Socceroos captain Tony Henderson remembers the greatest player he faced, the iconic and late German captain Franz Beckenbauer who arrived at Moore Park in 1979 with his star-studded New York Cosmos side.

Mitch Duke had a simple header into an open goal to score the Socceroos' second goal in their final hit-out, a 2-0 win over Bahrain, before the Asian Cup.

A hard-fought and frustrating 2-0 friendly win over Bahrain was the perfect final tune-up for the Socceroos’ Asian Cup campaign, according to coach Graham Arnold.

International friendly: Bahrain 0-2 AustraliaMitch Duke wraps up win after early own goal Australia scrapped out a 2-0 win over Bahrain in their final tune-up before their Asian Cup campaign. A week out from the Socceroos’ opening group match against India, Graham Arnold’s charges took the lead via an own goal from Amine Benaddi in the 35th minute before Mitch Duke added another in the 61st minute. Winger Craig Goodwin had a hand in both goals in the friendly at the Baniyas Stadium in Abu Dhabi. The difficult nature of the victory, as Australia dominated possession but had just seven shots and struggled to create clearcut chances, offered little relief over concerns that they may find it hard to break down deep-lying defences in the Qatar tournament. Continue reading...

Only 12 of the 26 players who went to Qatar for the World Cup last year will be returning there next month for Australia’s Asian Cup mission.

Ange Postecoglou’s diamond-in-the-rough find who starred at the 2015 Asian Cup won’t be part of next month’s tournament in Qatar after calling a premature end to his international career.