Socceroos coach Ange Postecoglou believes his side's preparations have been very strong as Australia gear up to face Saudi Arabia on Friday morning (AEDT).
Temperatures are expected to soar and the Socceroos will play in front of 60,000 screaming Saudis, but Postecoglou said his side is ready for whatever gets thrown at them.
โWhilst the conditions are warm we don't think they are as warm as we have faced before. The players have coped really well with it,โ Postecoglou said.
โThe players are well adjusted to the heat and will be able to cope with whatever happens tomorrow night.
โWe love playing in front of big crowds. It's a fantastic stadium here and I'm sure the players will love playing in it and in front of a big crowd.
โWe expect that it's going to be a tough game and we prepare to win the game. You don't just go in there thinking things will happen. Expect is the wrong word,โ Postecoglou added.
โWe go into every game preparing to play at our best and we know when we do that we're a difficult team to beat. It's not a matter of rolling up and thinking things will happen, that's not the values of this team.
Both sides have begun their qualifying campaigns with two wins from two, meaning the winner of this match will lead the group through three matches.
Socceroos captain Mile Jedinak echoed Postecoglou's thoughts, saying he and his teammates are full of confidence after a fruitful start to their qualifying campaign.
โWe've come here and we've had a good couple of day's preparation," Jedinak said.
โWe know it's going to be a tough game, Saudi Arabia coming off the back of two wins. [Playing] away from home is always tricky but we go into the game full of confidence.โ
