Souttar blow sours Socceroos’ homecoming

Socceroos coach Graham Arnold says he’s “devastated” for injured defender Harry Souttar, who’ll miss Australia’s crucial World Cup clash with China with injury.

The Stoke defender will head for scans on Friday after picking up the suspected knee injury in Australia’s 0-0 draw with Saudi Arabia on Thursday.

Souttar was taken off on a stretcher late in the piece at Commbank Stadium in Parramatta after tracking back to cover a Saudi break.

He turned and fell to the ground, clutching at the back of his knee in agony before being tended to by medical staff.

Arnold refused to confirm the nature of the injury, but Souttar will be badly missed when Australia head to the UAE to take on the Chinese next week.

“It’s very serious. It is probably too early for me to say what it is,” Arnold said.

“He’s in quite a lot of pain and he’s getting scans on Friday morning, but I don’t think he’ll be coming to the UAE for the China game.

“I’m really down and devastated for Harry.

“He’s such a great kid. I believe he’s the best centre-back in Asia.

“If it turns out to be a bad injury, it’s not only a blow for Harry, then it’s a blow for us.”

The setback would be significant not just for the Socceroos but also Souttar’s domestic club Stoke, who are chasing promotion in the English Championship.

In a glimpse of Arnold’s thinking ahead of the game against China, Milos Degenek was deployed at the back after Souttar went off.

Australia seemed to lose focus after Souttar’s departure and were reliant on Mat Ryan’s reflexes to keep the Saudis at bay after dominating for most of the game.

“It got the boys down a bit and they see such a good guy going off on a stretcher,” Arnold added.

“It probably, mentally, had a bit of an effect on them. After that we were a bit sloppy.

“It was two teams working hard and we both walked away with a point.”

Souttar blow sours Socceroos’ homecoming
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