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AUSTRALIA DRAW GERMANY AND CHILE IN CONFED CUP

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Australia might not be too excited after the draws for the 2017 Confederations Cup were released on Sunday.


The Socceroos would be playing 2014 World Cup winners Germany and South American champions Chile – two of the World toughest footballing sides at the moment. An African side will join the trio after the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) in February next year.

Australia qualified for the tournament as the 2015 AFC Asian Cup champions. The 2015 CONCACAF Gold winners Mexico, the OFC (Oceania) Nations Cup winners New Zealand, Euro 2016 winners Portugal, and the hosts Russia are also participants at the tournament, a lead-in tournament to the 2018 World Cup.

The tournament, which will be played from June 17 – July 2, 2017, saw the three countries split in two groups. Three games at the group stage will see the top two nations from the groups qualify for the semi final stage, and then finals and third-place match. Russia, Germany, Chile and Portugal were in Pot 1, leaving the rest in Pot 2 before the draws.

“It’s exciting. Both Chile and Germany are at least as strong, if not stronger than they were three years ago. Both ranked inside the top five in the world. It gives you a great opportunity to measure yourself against that,” Coach Ange Postecoglou said after the draws in Kazan, Russia.

Australia will meet with Germany in their opening game on June 19. Both sides played a 2-2 in March 2015 in Kaiserslatern, but will meet next year in Sochi – hosts of the Winter Olympics. Aussies will face the AFCON winner next in Saint Petersburg on the 22nd before playing Chile three days later in Moscow. Chile thrashed Australia 3-1 in the last World Cup campaign, and would be a real test this time again. Australia are poised to play a World Cup qualifier against Saudi Arabia on June 8, but Postecoglou has said that the team will play a friendly before their Germany game as there is a 10-day window.

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