Attack is the way to Brazil for Socceroos

As one of the remaining veterans - after the absence or retirements of Vince Grella, Scott Chipperfield, Craig Moore, Jason Culina and Harry Kewell - Timmy Cahill knows better than most what is required in the last four games to seal Australia's third successive qualification, and will have a very good sense of how the team is travelling internally.Hence, why he has become an important spokesman to both send messages to his own players as well as important public messages to ensure football fans get behind the team, as we all must.And Timmy has one message, the Socceroos must attack.

Aside from the fact that this is what Australians love to hear, he is also talking about creating a game of high intensity to put maximum pressure on the travelling Omani’s, something that Holger Osieck has also made very clear is to be the case.When Osieck speaks, there is a fair chance he is also talking to the Omani’s themselves, seeking to have them spend a week considering how Australia is going to come at them at full speed, aiming for a psychological advantage, even if a slim one.Osieck will also have identified two key aspects relating to our final four matches: Australia's considerable record at home and the travel sickness of Asian opponents that the Socceroos needs to capitalize on.
In the third round of qualifying, for example, Oman lost in both Thailand and Australia by a margin of six goals conceded to none scored, but beat both teams at home.

Likewise, in this fourth round, Oman lost by another three goal margin away to Japan, and could only salvage a draw away in Qatar to Iraq.All of which places Australia in a very strong position to qualify, with a game in hand on the rest of the group and with an outstanding, home World Cup qualifying record against all comers over many years.Historically, with parochial crowds screaming them on, Australia has always performed with distinction.Early qualification series were characterized by away games, but thereafter Australia has proven formidable at home. Australia's first qualifier at home was against Israel in 1969, which ended in a draw and, since then, Australia has lost less than 10 percent of its home qualifiers, some of which are more famous than others and live long in the consciousness of the football community.

Such as the Scotland match at Olympic Park in 1985, against one of Scotland’s most celebrated teams, which finished in a draw.Or the draw against the mighty Argentina in 1993 in a match that ended the premature retirement of the great Diego Maradona, or the fateful draw against Iran in 1997.
There have also been mighty wins down the years, in particular the two against a fantastic Uruguay side 1-0 in the first leg of the 2001 series in Melbourne, thanks to a Kevin Muscat penalty, or the famous goal by Mark Bresciano in 2005 in the match the nation stood still for, and will always remember more fondly than just about any other sporting event.Prior to the start of Asian qualifying for the Socceroos, in fact, a major qualifier had not been lost since a loss to New Zealand in 1981.
Once in Asia, the picture naturally improved against inferior opposition to the big South American countries.

In the 2010 qualification series, Australia's first through Asia, the Socceroos won six of seven at home, losing just once with an understrength team against China, and so far this campaign Holger Osieck's side has won three from three in the third round and drawn the only match in round four at home against Japan.Further to this, though, Australia has three home matches left and a win against Oman would not only be a massive boost to qualification, but the risk to reward ratio is at its highest in this match, with still time to play the margins if necessary.There is, therefore, as Timmy and Holger have identified, every reason to attack and use home advantage to Australia's favour by going at Oman from first minute to last.Not only does Oman not travel well but the Aussies are at home, and the players who wore that Socceroos shirt down the years have ensured that today’s players have an extremely proud record to uphold.