GOALMOUTH PROBLEMS

Wherever Arnie’s travelled, he’s required a strong, confident goalscorer. In 2013 he was fortunate enough to have a resurgent Daniel McBreen at the Mariners, who single-handedly bore the brunt of Central Coast’s attacking haul.

Matt Simon was at his peak in 2011, while at Sydney FC he’s had Bobo. It’s concerning that in 2015 - before Bobo - Arnold finished seventh with Sydney FC despite the presence of Serbian sensations’ Milos Ninkovic and Milos Dimitrijevic.

The Socceroos don’t have a world-class striker, let alone one with an experienced, physical presence.

If Arnold can transform Tomi Juric – who’s now entering his physical peak – from a technically gifted forward into a ruthless goalscorer, it will be one of his finest coaching achievements yet.

Otherwise, there are physical forwards lurking in the wings, awaiting their chance. Arnold’s era could be the making of strikers like Kwame Yeboah and Golgol Mebrahtu. The only certainty is that the goals are going to have to come from somewhere if Arnie’s going to keep his job.

TACTICAL NOUS

Arnold's Mariners’ defence was one of the finest the A-League's ever seen. Sydney’s midfield screen is one of the finest the A-League's ever seen. Forwards working without the ball isn’t just a tactic, it’s a way of life under the Socceroos coach-in-waiting. 

This defensive solidity has allowed the 54-year-old to modernise his tactics by adopting an aggressive full-back approach. Whether it’s Rhyan Grant, Michael Zullo or Luke Wilkshere, Arnold utilises full-backs young-and-old better than any other A-League coach. 

Many of Arnold’s tactics contain the most-effective, exciting aspects of Postecoglou’s style, while minimising its most-obvious deficiencies – susceptibility to counter-attacks, interceptions and quick passing combinations.

One of the Socceroos’ finest performances under Ange was the 1-1 draw with Chile at the Confederations Cup, where aggressive pressing breathed life into the likes of Robbie Kruse, Tim Cahill and James Troisi. It wasn’t just effective, it was downright exciting.

Every Socceroos fan will be hoping Arnold can provide the best-of-both-worlds: Intelligent pressing, bombing fullbacks, insightful through-passes, quick turnovers and overwhelming counter-attacking movements.

THE KIDS AREN’T ALRIGHT

While Arnold’s coaching has improved dramatically since 2007 - to the point where his claim of being “a completely different person” holds huge weight - his focus on youth has declined markedly throughout his career.

While not quite Brisbane Roar, Sydney’s Dad’s Army epitomise Arnold’s successful approach. It’s the antithesis of Australia’s progressive philosophy, especially considering many of the Socceroos’ brightest talents are our youngest.

But the motto that you can’t win anything with kids has worked wonders for Arnold at the Sky Blues. So if Australia won’t breed the new generation under our next coach’s stewardship, hopefully they can at least win something.