To see the Olyroos in training...

“Mentally, I've never worked with such strong players. They are mentally beautiful," he said.

“When you are coaching in Holland, you have always to worry about the players going to the pubs and discos.

"That is not a problem here, they are very much self disciplined.”

The FFA national technical director – who coached the Olyroos for the first six months of this year - also paid tribute to the A-League for giving so many of the current U/23 side regular first team football.

He added: “Together with the 14 games that the Olyroos have played, you can see the improvement that it has made.

"It has been a good step forward to see so many playing regularly.”

On November 17, the Olyroos play their vital Olympics qualifier with rival Iraq in Gosford followed by a trip to North Korea.

A win over the Iraqis will all but guarantee a spot in Beijing. Which means even more top level competition over the next year for a side that is our future Socceroos.

Baan, however, expressed his concern with the number of injuries our players pick up, saying that excessive stretching could be to blame for the number of groin strains, for instance.

The Dutchman also spoke about Australia's experiences in Asia and the difficulties we have as newcomers.

“Playing in Asia was a big lesson for us,” he said of the Asian Cup. “Not only the heat. The referees are a big issue and we have to adjust our game for this.

“A lot of our players also get unnecessary yellow cards in the A-League and that is because of a lack of technique - they are losing possession and then come in with two legs and of course there are yellow cards.”

To see the Olyroos in training...