The Socceroos will continue their quest to qualify for the 2022 World Cup on Thursday night, when they host Nepal at Canberra Stadium.

Coming off a 3-0 victory away to Kuwait in their opening match, Graham Arnold’s men will be looking to get the job done on home soil, before a trip to Kaohsiung to face Chinese Taipei a few days later awaits them.

The squad almost identical the one that flew to Kuwait a month ago, with Bailey Wright replacing an injured Trent Sainsbury and Dimitri Petratos coming in for Massimo Luongo.

Defender Harry Souttar could make his international debut, with the 20-year-old putting in strong performances for EFL League One club Fleetwood Town.

Nepal defeated Chinese Taipei 2-0 in their last match, however suffered a 7-0 thrashing at the hands of Kuwait in their opening encounter. In comparison, the Socceroos earned a 3-0 victory in Kuwait.

Regardless, it is vital that the Socceroos do not get complacent. They should be aiming to win all their home matches in this round of qualification.

There will be lots of Nepalese fans in the stadium, with the Nepal supporter bay sold out.

This will be the first match that the Socceroos have played in Canberra since 2015, when they defeated Kyrgyz Republic 3-0 in November.

Tim Sperliotis
tsperliotis@gmail.com