Australia's Asian Cup squad announced

Reformed bad boy Robbie Kruse plans to seize his chance after capping a remarkable
turnaround by earning a spot in Australia's 23-man squad for next month's Asian Cup.
The 22-year-old Melbourne Victory striker was rewarded for his stellar domestic form
on Tuesday when he was one of four A-League players named by coach Holger Osieck for
the January 7-29 tournament in Qatar.
Brisbane Roar's Matt McKay, Gold Coast's Jason Culina and Wellington's Jade North
were also among a strong squad that contained a sprinkle of surprises but all of
Australia's available big guns including Tim Cahill, Harry Kewell, Mark Schwarzer
and Lucas Neill.
Kruse said he had turned his life around since off-field problems plagued a stint at
Brisbane Roar two seasons ago and credited his Victory teammates for the stunning
improvement which has seen him net 10 goals in 15 games this season.
"I wasn't really expecting to get in the squad especially with most of the
overseas-based players getting chosen but it's a massive honour and privilege,"
Kruse told AAP.
"... I've really improved my attitude off the field and the players at Melbourne
Victory have to get a lot of credit for that.
"Guys like Kevin Muscat and Archie Thompson, the experienced players there have
really helped me turn my life around.
"I went through bad times in Brisbane and it really helped me resurrect my career.
Hopefully I can keep going.
"This is the next stepping stone and hopefully I can have a big impression on Holger
and the rest of the team."
While Kruse's cause was helped by the unavailability of the injured Josh Kennedy
(back) Osieck said the selection showed A-League players were clearly on the radar
for national team call-ups.
"I don't care where they are playing, I just care how they are playing," Osieck said
from Zurich on Tuesday.
"I have seen him (Kruse) a couple of times ... I think he played a good role for
Melbourne and why not give him the opportunity to show if he is already in the
position to make the same happen in the Socceroos team?"
Kruse was one of two uncapped players picked with Denmark-based goalkeeper Nathan
Coe earning a call-up ahead of Reading `keeper Adam Federici, who preferred to focus
on securing his club future.
Other notable selections included Leeds United midfielder Neil Kilkenny and AEK
Athens midfielder Nathan Burns while Sasa Ognenovski, Matthew Spiranovic and Jon
McKain were favoured for defensive spots ahead of a host of A-League candidates.
Osieck pinned his faith in goal-less striker Scott McDonald, who is expected to lead
the line after missing out on a place in Pim Verbeek's final World Cup squad.
Among the notable omissions were youngsters Nikita Rukavytsya and Tommy Oar, with
Osieck feeling the latter was better suited continuing his development with his
Dutch club Utrecht.
Also missing was 23-year-old defender Ersan Gulum, who opted to commit his
international future to Turkey despite still being eligible to represent his birth
country.
Osieck said he was pleasantly surprised by how candidly he was able to discuss his
high profile players' ability with their European managers, but stopped short of
declaring Australia had the squad to win the tournament.
"I have the confidence that this team is pretty strong and they are ready to really
produce something," he said.
"Of course we are going there to have the best possible success."
The squad will assemble in Dubai ahead of a friendly with UAE in Al Ain on January 5
before heading to Doha prior to their Asian Cup opener against India on January 10
at Al Sadd Stadium.



------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This email is intended for the use of the addressee only. If you receive this email
in error, please delete it immediately. This email may contain information which is
confidential and/or legally privileged. You must not use or disclose the contents of
this email, or add the sender's email address to any database, list or mailing list
unless you are expressly authorised to do so. The statements or views expressed in
this email are those of the individual sender and are not those of Australian
Associated Press Pty Ltd (AAP). These statements are not binding on AAP, except
where the sender expressly and with authority, states them to be. AAP is unable to
review the contents of all the email on its system. To the extent permitted by law,
AAP disclaims all liability for any loss or damage caused by the contents of this
email. www.aap.com.au