Bangladesh National football team will face off Australia in their first match of the Preliminary Joint Qualification, Round 2, the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027.
The match will kick off today at the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium at 8pm, local time and 3pm, Bangladesh time.
Bangladesh and Australia will start their campaign with different objectives with the hosts are looking forward for having register a perfect campaign, as they did for the 2022 edition with eight wins.
Might be it would be the toughest challenge for Bangladesh football team since 2015 when they will take on Australia, one of the powerhouses of Asian soccer and are also among the top 30 in FIFA rankings.
When Australia and Bangladesh are going to face off each others, there are a gulf of difference between the two sides in all respects. First of all Australia now are 27th on FIFA ranking when Bangladesh is lying on 183, considering the strength and playing level of Soccerros - they played in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar in last 16 and conceded a fighting 2-1 defeat at the hands of Argentina, the ultimate champions.
Australian players are also physically tougher than the Bangladesh and appraising the skills, power, speed, the six times and five times in a row world cuppers are far ahead of the visitors.
In fact, Bangladesh will face so many tough situation including the conditions of Melbourne also, as Bangladesh players who went Melbourne from 30 degree Celsius have to face a freezing temperature of less than 10.
However, it would be second time meetings of two sides when both the sides played the World Cup 2018 qualifiers in 2015 and Bangladesh suffered 5-0 and 4-0 defeats at away (Perth) and home venues.
Might be this time also the Socceroos will try to bring back the scenario of eight years’ back, as this time they stronger than they were in 2015.
Bangladesh’s preparation for the match against Australia is focusing on a determined fight and their overall recent performances has been promising and positive when they qualified for the round - 2 defeating Maldives 3-2 (1-1- at away and 2-1 at home).
Meanwhile, most of the players of the national sides for the reigning champions of the Bangladesh Premier League have impressive experiences when their team won against Mohun Bagan Super Giants, the Indian Super League champions.
Bangladesh will have to fight at their optimal level to avoid a big margin defeat and might be that would be the strategy of the head coach Javier Cabrera.
The Spanish coach of Bangladesh team also hinted that they would have to play with defending strategy, as the opponents are too tough for them and the condition is also terribly cold, boys will have to fight against the windy and cooling atmosphere.
However, soon after returning from Australia, the Bangladesh team will play their home match of the World Cup Asian Qualifiers against Lebanon on November 21 in Dhaka.
