Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Sydney: Tim Cahill and his team mates will be focusing on their own performance and not opponents Korea Republic when the Socceroos face off against Uli Stielike’s side in the final of the AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015 at Stadium Australia on Saturday.
The New York Red Bulls striker will be appearing in his second consecutive AFC Asian Cup final after featuring in the 1-0 extra-time loss to Japan in Qatar four years ago and the 35-year-old is taking his usual single-minded approach into the game.
“I’m not going to focus on Korea, I’ve never focused on any team we’ve played,” he said. “I’m only going to focus on us and focus on recovery and the boys being as fit as possible and really understanding the position we’re in.
“If we dictate the game with our intensity and the style of football we play and the way we move the ball, it’s going to be very hard for any team to play us.
“So, congratulations to Korea (for reaching the final), but it’s going to be all about us and the way we prepare and the application and the consistency that we’ve shown throughout this tournament.”
With three goals to his name, Cahill is the top scorer in an Australia team that has featured 10 different scorers across their five games so far with a tournament-leading 12 goals in total.
The Koreans, in contrast, have not conceded a goal during their run to the final, which saw them notch up a 1-0 win over the Australians in the last round of matches in the group stages in Brisbane to take top spot and ensure a run to the final that saw the two-time champions have more recovery time between games.
Video highlights: Australia 0-1 Korea Republic
With Australia seeking their first AFC Asian Cup title since joining the Asian Football Confederation in 2006 and Korea aiming to win the continental crown for the first time in 55 years, the magnitude of the final for both teams is significant.
But for Cahill, who was substituted midway through the second half of the 2-0 semi-final win over the United Arab Emirates in Newcastle on Tuesday, the meeting with the Koreans is just another game.
“They’re all massive…last week, every single game in this tournament,” he said.
“We treat them all the same. It’s our mindset to see the young players and the way we’ve programmed ourselves for this tournament, it is going to be no different to the way we played against the UAE.
“It’s going to be special moment for all of us, for myself playing in Sydney, in front of my family but the mindset is to win, and to win the right way and by playing football and what we believe in. It’s going to be a big night.”
Photo: WSG