Cahill injured himself late in the 1-0 win over Bahrain on Wednesday morning (AEDT) and Australian medical staff have opted to take cautious approach ahead of Sunday's clash with Iraq.

Cahill will be given every chance to prove himself while David Carney and Luke Wilkshire, who have overcome shoulder and groin injuries respectively, and should play at least some role in the game. Brett Emerton will sit out the game through suspension.

Meanwhile, midfield pair Mile Jedinak and Brett Holman have denied there is any sense of revenge against the Iraqis for Australia's loss to the Lions of Mesopotamia in the 2007 Asian Cup group stages.

"I don't think revenge is the word," said Holman. "But it would be nice to get a win as they've won the last couple of games against us and had the upper hand."

Jedinak said: "Personally, not being there last time, I'm not thinking about that, though I'm not sure about the rest of the boys and this is a different game.

"But let's not kid ourselves - they are the defending champions for a reason. They are a good side and we are expecting a tough game."