The Australians were flawless from the spot, and Saudi Arabia were too through four attempts, before Hall dived to his right and stretched his left arm high into the air to pull off a save that immediately entered the nation’s footballing folklore.
Making the moment even more special was that it acted as a tribute to his late grandfather, who passed away earlier in the tournament.
After making the all-important save, Hall got up and made a beeline towards the camera to kiss the words written on his glove ‘for you grandad’.
The incredibly touching moment might also launch Hall’s career to another level.
In January 2024, Premier League club Brighton snapped up the youngster from Adelaide United for an undisclosed fee on a three-and-a-half-year contract, following in the footsteps of Socceroos captain Mat Ryan, who was the Seagulls’ first choice goalkeeper from 2017 to 2020.
Hall has not be called up to the senior squad, but has been a part of Brighton’s U21 team during his time on England’s south coast so far and quickly endeared himself to the fans courtesy of filthy moustache and mullet combination.
He has made just two appearances, starting in both, this season after also making two starts last campaign.
Keen observers of Australian football will remember Hall for his history-making moment in the A-League.
On New Year’s Day 2022, Hall became the youngest goalkeeper to make their A-League debut when he replaced the injured James Delianov 31 minutes into Adelaide United’s 4-0 victory against Wellington Phoenix.
Hall was just 16 years and 350 days old when he stepped onto the pitch at Hindmarsh Stadium.
He made another three appearances for the Reds in the premier Australian competition before departing for England.
But he did not go unnoticed with Schwarzer saying on Optus Sport back in 2022, that Hall has “a big future”.
“I’ve got a player for you that I’ve seen quite a few highlights of and what I’ve seen of him, I’m very impressed and I think the kid’s got a big future,” Schwarzer said.
“Steven Hall, a goalkeeper at Adelaide United. He’s played three games, he came on – I think he was the fourth goalkeeper. I’ve liked everything about him.
“He’s 17-year-old, made his debut at 16. He looks calm, he look assuring, he looked commanding in his own 18-yard box. There’s quite a few saves I’ve seen him make and he made them look easy.”
It is in national colours where he has truly proven to be a star on the rise, however.
Hall has also featured for the Olyroos, Australia’s men’s U23 team, and in recent weeks in China, he has shown why he is highly touted within Australian ranks.
The heroic moment may never have happened if not for two less celebrated, but crucial saves during the quarter-final win against Iraq.
The Young Socceroos came from behind twice to prevail 3-2 and book their place in this year’s FIFA U20 World Cup in Chile by advancing to the semi-finals, but the script could have easily been different if not for Hall’s excellence.
He pulled off two vital stops in the second half to deny Iraq and send Australia on the road to the title with a clean sheet in their 2-0 semi-final win against Japan following.
The 20-year-old, who was allowed to play in the U20 Asian Cup because players born on 1 January 2005 or later are eligible, and he turned 20 on January 16, is almost certain to be a key figure in Australia’s U20 World Cup campaign in September and October.
If Hall can continue to hold his nerves in the big moments, who knows where his career might take him and if Schwarzer is right, Australia might just have its next star goalkeeper.
The tight rope Ange Postecoglou is walking is getting narrower.
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That is to be expected when a big six club like Tottenham sits 14th on the Premier League table almost two-thirds of the way through the season.
This time last week Spurs were still in the Carabao Cup, FA Cup and the Europa League.
Now, only the latter remains.
The results are not stacking up in the Australian’s favour, but there is an unshakeable feeling among his backers that if he was not an outsider in English football, he might be afforded more rope.
It has been highly publicised that Tottenham have been hit with an injury crisis in recent months.
“There’s got to be a better appreciation for what a very small group of players have been doing for the last two and a half months,” he said.
“It can’t be that people think that’s an excuse. That’s just not anywhere near close to objective analysis. That’s just agenda-driven stuff.
“If it’s to get rid of me that’s fine. Good on ya. Go for it a million times.
“But in terms of this group of players, what they’ve given over the past two and half months has been outstanding, it’s a credit to them, I can’t speak highly enough of them.”
Yet, the questions keep coming despite the most glaring issue being clear for all to see.
Postecoglou has been repeatedly forced to put out a makeshift defence with first choice goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario, centre back pairing Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven, and left-back Destiny Udogie all spending extended periods on the sidelines.
Further afield, midfielders Rodrigo Bentancur and Yves Bissouma have been regularly unavailable, while their goal scoring stocks have suffered the blows of injuries to Dominic Solanke, Brennan Johnson and James Maddison at various times.
Logically, it is no surprise that the losses have mounted.
Liverpool sink Spurs in run to final | 02:05
Just as they did for Newcastle United last season.
The Magpies lost ten of their first 21 Premier League encounters last campaign.
Undeniably, not good enough for a club with a lot of financial power considering its 80% per cent ownership by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, well-known for funding LIV Golf and spreading their wealth throughout the sporting world in recent years.
But manager Eddie Howe faced nowhere near the level of scrutiny Postecoglou has received.
It was widely accepted that the Englishman, who made his name by taking Bournemouth to the Premier League for the first time, had his hands tied by an injury-riddled squad.
The added pressure of mid-week European competition, Newcastle played in the Champions League for the first time in 20 years, as well as cup fixtures and always demanding league schedule took its toll.
It sounds familiar to Postecoglou’s current predicament.
But unlike in Howe’s case, the English press, pundits, former players and fans have been baying for blood.
And despite sometimes justified criticism of Postecoglou’s polarising tactics, some of the reasons for doing so have not always been fair.
“Spurs’ Australian head coach is the latest target of the village idiots; the half-pint pundits and critics who prefer to laugh at the fact he finishes his sentences with ‘mate’ than listen to him contextualising his team’s problems,” football news correspondent for the UK Telegraph Matt Law wrote.
The mockery unfortunately goes hand-in-hand with the club Postecoglou is at.
Tottenham are repeatedly a laughing stock among rival fans courtesy of the well-documented absence of silverware in their trophy cabinet since 2008.
The regularity with which they sack managers, Postecoglou is their 12th permanent manager this century, is the bud of many jokes.
So too is the behaviour of their fans, who even wanted their own team to lose the penultimate game of last Premier League season at home to Manchester City, which they did 2-0, to deny arch enemies Arsenal the title.
Therefore, of course, when an Australian arrived in north London with tales of how he has won a trophy in his second season with Celtic, Yokohama F. Marinos, the Socceroos, Brisbane Roar and South Melbourne, the punch lines were being written.
Add to that the fact he had shown an unwavering commitment to attacking football, even when times are tough. That was until their last Premier League outing, a 2-0 victory away at Brentford, as a more defensive approach broke a seven-game winless streak in the league.
Spurs sat deeper and gritted their teeth for 90 minutes, showing that they can be more resolute in defence, but Postecoglou is still spoken of as a madman.
There are choruses of laughter in pubs and football clubs across England at Postecoglou’s and Tottenham’s expense, and they have only grown louder in recent days.
Ange denies Tel initially rejected Spurs | 01:11
In the past week, another dismantling by Liverpool, in the form of a 4-0 drubbing at Anfield in the second leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final after leading 1-0 following the first leg, was followed by a 2-1 defeat at Villa Park in the fourth round of the FA Cup.
There is little shame in losing to the Premier League leaders, or Aston Villa have qualified for the Champions League Round of 16, but that did not prevent the pile on.
Former Tottenham midfielder Jamie Redknapp was scathing on Sky Sports after the Liverpool loss, saying “I cannot remember a team in my lifetime go down with less of a fight with what Spurs did today”.
“Not having one shot on target in the semi-final of a second leg when you’re trying to change the course of your history?” he added.
Fellow former Spurs midfielder Jamie O’Hara, who has been a very vocal critic of Postecoglou, took to X to call for his sacking.
“It’s time to go now, Ange is out of his depth. [Unai] Emery is on a different planet compared to him and his players bopped us off the park. Should have been five, we’re like reserve team playing in academy games that don’t matter, it’s crazy,” O’Hara wrote.
It did not help things for Postecoglou either that Liverpool great Jamie Carragher opted to rub further salt into Spurs’ wounds.
“It’s Tottenham!” Carragher said on Sky Sports. “When do Tottenham ever win a big game? When do Tottenham ever go and surprise, win against the odds?”
The last few months it must have felt like Postecoglou was being forced to play game after game at a casino where the house always wins.
With the injury crisis, the odds have been massively skewed against them, but the cup competitions kept the hope alive.
Now, only the European dream remains to fulfil the Postecoglou prophecy of winning yet another trophy in his second season in charge of a team.
Spurs finished fourth in the new look league phase of the Europa League with five wins, two draws and a loss to automatically advance to the Round of 16.
Awaiting them will be one of Midtjylland, AZ Alkmaar, Real Sociedad or Galatasaray but arguably more important than the opponent they face, will be the respite Postecoglou’s injury hit squad receive.
Their next European clash is not until March 6 as they will enjoy some much-needed breathing space between matches this month after a manic December and January.
Tension eases as Spurs advance in Europa | 01:57
Spurs played 17 matches across all competitions in that stretch as the casualty ward overflowed.
It was reported by the UK Telegraph on Monday that Postecoglou has implemented a much-needed reset by affording the squad two days off this week to recharge the batteries before facing Manchester United at home in the league on Sunday.
“The boys who are coming back, we’ll get the opportunity to give them a whole week of training, which is great,” Postecoglou said.
“By the time we get to the back end of the week we should have something resembling a squad of players to prepare for a big game. That then folds into the following week when, again, we’ve got seven days and no midweek game to prepare for the next game.
“So that gives us a real good opportunity to get some work into the guys who have been out for quite a while and give some rest to the guys who have been going at it. So by the time we get back to being in Europe and having midweek games we’ll be in a much better shape.”
Postecoglou will be hoping the refresh, along with the possible returns of Vicario, Udogie, Maddison, Johnson and Wilson Odobert will be the morale booster the playing group desperately needs.
Their frustrations came to the fore during the Villa loss on Sunday.
“Spence ripped off his sock tape, threw it on the ground and headed straight down the tunnel with Yves Bissouma at full time,” The Athletic’s Jay Harris wrote.
“Pedro Porro jumped up after being nutmegged and left in a heap on the floor by Marcus Rashford. He then brought Villa’s new striker down with a wild kick on the edge of the box and somehow escaped punishment. The Spain international received a yellow card in the final 10 minutes for a tackle on Ramsey.
“Bentancur was booked for dragging down Rogers. Bergvall jumped into a tackle on Rogers and then clattered into him later on. He eventually picked up a booking for a foul on Ramsey, too.
“These are the moments when Postecoglou needs his senior players, including the captain Son and Dejan Kulusevski, to calm everyone down.”
Jovial Ange jokes before crucial goal | 00:57
If the players can reset, they may be able to claw their way back to the days of Postecoglou’s honeymoon period at Spurs.
The 59-year-old was a breath of fresh air when Tottenham amassed 26 points in his first ten games in charge, a Premier League record, when he took over last season.
Most promising for Postecoglou is that the formula is still there.
“The statistics still tell us this Tottenham team, for all their struggles this season, play a little differently to everyone else. The principles of play that had Postecoglou’s Spurs five points clear at the top of the table early last season remain in place,” Sky Sports’ Adam Bate wrote.
“No team in the Premier League has won the ball high up the pitch more times than Tottenham. No team allows so few passes per defensive action. No team plays with more width than Tottenham. By design, it is supposed to be intense and expansive.”
The numbers are a promising sign that if the medical staff can get most of their stars back on the pitch, the performances may turn quickly.
Who knows what will happen in the Europa League knockouts, but for what it is worth, Howe’s Newcastle won nine and drew four of their final 17 Premier League games last season once the midweek grind subsided.
They finished seventh, and currently sit sixth, two points shy of fourth-placed Chelsea and one of the lucrative Champions League places.
Perhaps if Postecoglou is afforded the leniency of an Englishman, he may have the time to turn things around in a similar fashion.
Who knows, they still have one chance to fulfil his trophy prophecy.
Socceroos skipper Mat Ryan has been brought back into the starting lineup but there was no such luck for Riley McGree as Australia take on India in their Asian Cup opener.
Both players did not take part in the warm-up friendly against Bahrain but the duo were passed fit for the India clash.
Follow all the action from the Socceroos’ Asian Cup clash against India in our LIVE BLOG below!
However, Ryan earned a start while McGree was left to make do with a spot on the bench.
Elsewhere across the team, Martin Boyle finally gets to represent Australia in an international competition after injury robbed him of appearances at the 2019 Asian Cup and the 2022 World Cup.
There’s also a competitive debut for Bolton Wanderers defender Gethin Jones, who slots in at right back.
Arnold also went with the familiar trio of Jackson Irvine, Keanu Baccus and Connor Metcalfe in midfield.
The Aussies will look to avoid a similar start to this edition of the Asian Cup after a disastrous start in the last time they competed in the continental competition.
The Socceroos slipped to a shock 1-0 loss against Jordan five years ago but thankfully rebounded with wins against Palestine and Syria to seal a spot in the knockout stages.
Although India may be ranked 77 places below the Socceroos in 102nd, they will likely look to sit deep and stunt the Aussie forwards.
The ability to break down India’s low block will also be of great interest to Aussie fans given the Socceroos’ struggles over the years to unlock deep backlines.
An Arsenal star had VAR to thank for masking his egregious error, while a Newcastle midfielder’s ability to play on the edge remains a serious bone of contention.
Elsewhere, Liverpool’s expensive forward continued to misfire but a club legend pointed to another area on the field that the Reds desperately need more help in.
Foxsports.com.au reviews the weekend that was in the latest edition of Premier League Talking Points!
ARSENAL GK ‘ALL OVER THE PLACE’ AS VAR MASKS MAJOR ERROR
Much of the focus from Arsenal’s 1-0 defeat to Newcastle was around VAR.
Gunners boss Mikel Arteta raged about it in his post-match interviews, the club backed him up in a stern 112-word statement and fans were left to vent their fury on social media.
But it’s all a happy distraction from a hot topic that’s becoming more of a worry for Arsenal.
With Aaron Ramsdale already established as their first choice goalkeeper, Arteta made the bold move to bring in Brentford’s David Raya on loan with an option to complete a sale for £30 million (AUD$57m).
Although the England international started the first three games, Raya took over in Arsenal’s fifth league game of the season has remained between the sticks since.
Yet the Spaniard has never looked an assured presence and cost Arsenal a goal in their 2-2 draw against Chelsea.
And when Newcastle scored the only goal of the game against the Gunners, Raya was once again called into question.
He was standing in line with his near post once Joe Willock crossed the ball in from just outside the 18-yard box, meaning he was always going to be on the back foot as soon as the cross came in.
David Raya’s starting position for Joe Willock’s cross was questionable. Picture: SuppliedSource: Supplied
Unsurprisingly, Willock’s cross was floated in over the back of Raya’s head as he completely flapped at the cross.
Newcastle’s Joelinton was there at the back post to nod the ball back across goal for Anthony Gordon to smash home.
Luckily for Raya, much of the focus around Newcastle’s goal was whether Willock actually kept the ball in as opposed to the Spaniard’s error.
But he has not escaped all criticism.
“What the controversy should not be allowed to mask, though, was that it was another mistake from the Arsenal goalkeeper, David Raya, who came for and badly missed an attempted punch in the build-up to the goal, which meant Gabriel had to try to intervene to stop Joelinton,” The Telegraph’s Luke Edwards wrote.
“If he had cut out the cross there would have been no danger of conceding from it.”
Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher went even further.
“I’m not sure they have, I don’t think they have. And when you think of vital positions where teams win leagues, it’s [in] both boxes.
“Right now, I’ve said this before, it wasn’t a mistake as in looking to replace Ramsdale. For me, Ramsdale’s not going to win you the league.
“But the guy he’s (Arteta) chosen right now to come in, Raya, is absolutely all over the place.”
Arsenal cop controversial defeat | 01:46
TOON STAR’S RECKLESSNESS UNDER THE MICROSCOPE
Newcastle midfielder Bruno Guimaraes has been a standout figure for the Magpies ever since he joined from Lyon.
But the silky Brazilian was extremely fortunate not to have cost his team by being sent off in the first half of Newcastle’s match against Arsenal.
Guimaraes attempted to snuff out a Ben White pass via a sliding challenge that the latter managed to evade.
In his efforts to continue chasing down the ball, Guimaraes looked to harass Jorginho who also passed the ball away just in time.
However, Guimaraes somehow escaped a red card when he elbowed Jorginho in the side of the head.
Although VAR looked at the incident, they did not deem it worthy of a sending off.
This was not given as a red card. Picture: SuppliedSource: Supplied
Guimaraes had another moment of madness late in the first half when he smashed a ball at Kai Havertz from point-blank range.
Arsenal’s Declan Rice didn’t take kindly to Guimaraes’ actions and went over to confront him, only for the latter to push him in the chest.
Remarkably, Guimaraes was given nothing more than a warning from referee Stuart Atwell.
In fact, the midfielder did not receive a yellow card until the 88th minute when he pushed Fabio Viera in the face.
Arsenal great Perry Groves described Guimaraes’ ability to escape punishment as “amazing.”
“He’s one of those brilliant players on the ball, his passing range is great,” Groves said on talkSPORT.
“We like that player with an edge. He has to probably commit four, five or six fouls before he even gets a yellow card. He’s very, very clever at it.
“The one he got booked for, that wasn’t (a yellow). It was far less than what he did on Jorginho.”
‘I feel SICK’ Arsenal coach unleashes | 01:11
REDS ‘NOT READY TO WIN THE LEAGUE’
For the fourth time in a row, Liverpool failed to win an away game at a newly-promoted team. This time it was a 1-1 draw at Luton Town, with a late goal from Luis Diaz cancelling out Tahith Chong’s opener.
Liverpool’s inability to win against the league’s relatively weaker teams – those who operate on a fraction of the budget of the big-hitters and are in the relegation mix – proves that the Reds aren’t title challengers.
Legendary Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher said on Sky Sports after the game: “Liverpool are not ready to win the league. Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool supporters know that right now.
“They want to get back into the top four.”
It’s a bold claim so early in the season, especially with the team in third and just three points behind Manchester City. But there are clear problems with the team, particularly their vulnerability on the counter-attack and their failure to convert chances up top – especially their first-choice striker Darwin Nunez.
Nunez had nine shots at Luton without scoring, with a second-half miss from close range extremely poor.
Never the most clinical striker in his 18 months in the league, the Uruguayan has been vastly improved this season but still lacks a first-class finishing touch.
Klopp APOPLECTIC after horror miss | 00:40
Carragher said: “He’s dangerous, he’s a handful, he’s never going to be the most clinical … But he just got to stop the memes on social media and people looking at the big chances that he misses. He’s got to be more clinical in those situations.”
And for all Liverpool’s attacking woes – credit must also go to Luton’s defence – there remain other issues across the park.
A more dangerous attacking rival could have punished Liverpool’s open defence in transition.
“Liverpool still aren’t as good as Man City at stopping counter-attacks,” the ex-Red said.
“Liverpool are a team who dominate possession, they have a lot of the ball, but they’re not quite as good as Man City off the ball so there are more turnovers and they lose the ball.
“Opponents do seem to find spaces a lot more to and attack and get in behind Liverpool. Luton didn’t have the quality to really punish them, except for the goal we saw.”
New signing Alexis MacAllister is sensational on the ball but doesn’t provide elite cover in front of the defensive line to shut down counter-attacks, while the defensive frailties of star fullback Trent Alexander-Arnold have been a major point of contention for multiple seasons.
So while Darwin Nunez must be more clinical in front of goal, for Liverpool to stand atop the Premier League podium again, Liverpool might need to bolster their issues further back the park first.
Carragher said: “In terms of challenging again, I think they need a holding midfielder and a top-class defender.”
Darwin Nunez missed a golden chance to score for Liverpool. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
WORRYING TREND EMERGES FOR DARK HORSES
Prior to their fixture against Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa had a chance to go clear into third place with a win at the City Ground.
Many would have expected Unai Emery’s side to pick up three points, too.
After all, they had rightly earned plenty of praise for their free-flowing football that had scored 26 goals this season, an equal-first figure in the Premier League ahead of this weekend’s fixtures.
But 90 minutes later and Villa remained in fifth as Forest secured a deserved 2-0 win at home.
“We took this match as a challenge to get into the top four teams, we didn’t achieve it and there is still work to do,” Emery said.
Result aside, the defeat to Forest continues an alarming trend Villa must buck at some stage this season if they are to turn their Champions League dreams into reality.
Of the four games the Midlands side have not won this season, all four have come away from home.
Granted, they beat Chelsea 1-0 at Stamford Bridge and Burnley 3-1.
But the inability to beat teams like Forest and Wolves could come back to bite them.
A 5-1 opening day defeat away to Newcastle also paints a grim picture, but Villa lost Tyrone Mings to a serious injury in the first half and had a large mental impact on the team.
Liverpool’s 3-0 win at Anfield also proved Villa have a lot to do if they are to truly prove themselves worthy of a Champions League place.
Villa’s next league fixture is against Fulham at Villa Park, followed by a daunting visit to the high-flying Tottenham Hotspur.
There’s no better stage for Emery’s troops to prove they can play away from their home comforts in Birmingham after all.
