Australia players celebrates their winning goal during their World Cup play-off clash with UAE at Ahmad bin Ali stadium in Doha, Qatar, June 7, 2022. /CFP
Australia coach Graham Arnold warned his team they must improve to beat Peru and make it to a fifth straight World Cup after Ajdin Hrustic fired a late winner in a nerve-wracking 2-1 play-off victory over the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in Doha.
The Eintracht Frankfurt midfielder's deflected volley in the 84th minute decided the feverish Asian playoff on Tuesday in the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium that will host seven games in the World Cup finals in November.
More than 4,000 UAE fans made up the majority of the crowd in the 40,000 capacity arena in the Doha suburbs, where the players were blasted with air conditioning to keep the evening temperatures down.
Australia coach Graham Arnold during their World Cup play-off clash with the UAE at Ahmad bin Ali stadium in Doha, Qatar, June 7, 2022. /CFP
Jackson Irvine had put Arnold's side in front with a close-range strike in the 53rd minute but Caio Canedo levelled four minutes later with an emphatic finish into the roof of Mathew Ryan's net.
Australia will take on a dangerous Peru side in the same stadium in a do-or-die clash on June 13 in their quest to qualify for the finals and Arnold said he expected more from his players.
"We need to improve more. I expect another big improvement after this game," he said.
"Obviously one game at a time and I thought the UAE put in a very good performance, a tight game, but we have had good preparation ... there was more cohesion with our play and after that game I expect we will be even better against Peru.
"My focus has been on our defense because we have been sloppy, conceding goals in the last couple of (FIFA) windows. We could have scored more, but at the same time there are things that we need to tidy up as well defensively to make it tougher."
Australia's Martin Boyle (L) fights for the ball with Ali Hassan of the United Arab Emirates during their World Cup play-off clash with the UAE at Ahmad bin Ali stadium in Doha, Qatar, June 7, 2022. /CFP
"We conceded a goal and we shouldn't have," said Hrustic. "But we kept going, kept fighting and we took our chance, and the goal for Australia was for all the boys, for the staff, because we have been through a lot and it hasn't been easy."
The UAE had been looking to qualify for the World Cup for only the second time since their debut in 1990. Their Argentine coach, Rodolfo Arruabarrena, said the UAE players "lacked the stamina in the last 15 minutes".
New Zealand take on Costa Rica in Doha on June 14 to decide the final qualifier for the tournament that starts November 21.