Popovic's Australia perfect the art of qualifying ugly

SYDNEY :Tony Popovic would not deny that his Australia team are tough to watch at times but the former centre half has done what he was brought in to do and taken them to the brink of qualification for the 2026 World Cup.

The Socceroos were distinctly second best to an understrength Japan in Perth on Thursday but Aziz Behich's late winner means they only have to avoid a 5-0 loss to Saudi Arabia in Jeddah on Tuesday to punch their ticket.

"It was a special, special night," Popovic told reporters. "The outpouring of emotions when we scored, and obviously after the game, yeah, they are moments I'll always remember.

"We've all played a part in getting us to this point, and we want to go to Saudi Arabia now and really finish the job off."

Saudi Arabia was the site of Popovic's greatest triumph as a club coach in 2014, when his Western Sydney Wanderers team drew 0-0 with powerhouse Al Hilal in Riyadh to become Asian champions in only the second year of the club's existence.

It was partly that continental experience that encouraged Football Australia to bring Popovic in as coach last September when Graham Arnold quit with the World Cup qualification in trouble.

The football has not always been pretty but the Socceroos are unbeaten since he took over with four wins and three draws, having conceded just five goals and scored 14 in the seven games.

Popovic acknowledged there was plenty of room for improvement but said the seconds before Behich's goal proved there was already a strong platform of resilience to build on.

"Although football wise, we need to get better, and we will get better, but in that moment, the 90th minute, we had six players in the box, six players trying to score a goal," he said.

"We were tough, we kept a clean