Mike Grella has delivered a parting shot to the Socceroos following the team’s World Cup exit, declaring the Australians are “nowhere near good enough” to compete with top-tier nations.
The American pundit became public enemy No. 1 in Australia ahead of the Socceroo’s World Cup match against the United States, predicting the contest would be a “lay-up” for the tournament co-hosts.
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After becoming public enemy No. 1, he doubled down on his criticism last month, calling the Australian team “inferior”, and the loud-mouthed pundit couldn’t resist mocking the Socceroos after the United States cruised towards a 2-0 victory in the group stage.
And now, Grella has given the Socceroos a send-off following Australia’s penalty shootout loss to Egypt in Dallas on Saturday morning AEST, claiming they don’t have the “skill” and “quality” to back up their aspirations.
“I love football, I love watching the World Cup in particular, but in football and in life you can talk,” Grella told CBS.
“You can say, ‘I wanna do this, and I wanna do that’.
“But in the end, the whistle blows, you go on the scale, and everything you did weighs and they say, ‘What’s your worth?
“For Australia, I understand they have an unbelievable spirit. They love to play sport. I understand they have pride when they talk about their football team, The Socceroos.
“But in the end, you have to show what you’ve been working on.
“Where are the players? Where’s the skill? Where’s the quality?
“You don’t have it.”
Grella, who represented Leeds, Swindon Town, Bury and Scunthorpe during his playing days, compared Australia’s football aspirations to his own.
“I wanted to play in the Premier League,” he said.
“I wanted to play in the Champions League.
“But I never did.
“Same with Australia. They wanted to accomplish something in the World Cup, but with the emotions, and in their own head.
“In reality, when the whistle blows and the game starts, you have to be able to go with the football.
“They’re nowhere near good enough with the football.
“Did they fight? Yes.
“Did they do their country proud? One hundred per cent.
“Should the country be proud of what they did? For sure.
“Did they fight to the end? For sure.
“But in the end, you need to be able to know how to play with the football. There’s levels to it, and they don’t have the high level to it with the football.
“End of story.”