AUSTRALIA'S injury woes have deepened with midfielder Brett Emerton and striker Scott McDonald now ruled out of Thursday morning's World Cup qualifier against Bahrain.
To see the Roos' overnight training session...
A hamstring strain forced 29-year-old Emerton out of Blackburn's 2-1 loss to Sunderland in the English Premier League at the weekend, with Socceroos medical staff advising him not to travel to Bahrain.
Pim Verbeek's squad is now looking less imposing, with Emerton joining Vince Grella (hamstring), Queensland Roar captain Craig Moore (testicular cancer), Newcastle Jets defender Mark Milligan (Achilles) and Matthew Spiranovic (ankle) on the sidelines from the original 24-man squad.
And things could get even worse with hitman McDonald also forced to withdraw just hours before Celtic's 2-1 victory over bottom side Hamilton in the Scottish Premier League.
Celtic manager Gordon Strachan confirmed McDonald would not travel to Bahrain.
"He won't fly, it's impossible with the virus to get on a plane and be in that restricted area for that amount of time and then go out in the heat and try and train. He is weak as it is," Strachan said.
Emerton, who signed a new four-year contract with Rovers in July, has been a crucial cog in the Socceroos midfield, scoring twice in Australia's 4-0 thrashing of Qatar last month.
The Socceroos head into the match on top of Group A with six points from their two games.
Temperatures in Manama are expected to reach 25 degrees Celsius, with the match kicking off at 6pm local time (2am Thursday AEDT).
To see the Roos' overnight training session...
A hamstring strain forced 29-year-old Emerton out of Blackburn's 2-1 loss to Sunderland in the English Premier League at the weekend, with Socceroos medical staff advising him not to travel to Bahrain.
Pim Verbeek's squad is now looking less imposing, with Emerton joining Vince Grella (hamstring), Queensland Roar captain Craig Moore (testicular cancer), Newcastle Jets defender Mark Milligan (Achilles) and Matthew Spiranovic (ankle) on the sidelines from the original 24-man squad.
And things could get even worse with hitman McDonald also forced to withdraw just hours before Celtic's 2-1 victory over bottom side Hamilton in the Scottish Premier League.
Celtic manager Gordon Strachan confirmed McDonald would not travel to Bahrain.
"He won't fly, it's impossible with the virus to get on a plane and be in that restricted area for that amount of time and then go out in the heat and try and train. He is weak as it is," Strachan said.
Emerton, who signed a new four-year contract with Rovers in July, has been a crucial cog in the Socceroos midfield, scoring twice in Australia's 4-0 thrashing of Qatar last month.
The Socceroos head into the match on top of Group A with six points from their two games.
Temperatures in Manama are expected to reach 25 degrees Celsius, with the match kicking off at 6pm local time (2am Thursday AEDT).
To see the Roos' overnight training session...
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