ADVERTISEMENT

Harry Redknapp: Jordan not fit enough to beat Australia

Jordan have potential but need plenty of work behind-the-scenes, according to Harry Redknapp after his team's 5-1 thrashing in Australia.

___4857929___https:______static.pulse.com.gh___webservice___escenic___binary___4857929___2016___3___29___19___harryredknapp-cropped_xy528xmvlyp51j4a5phmendff_2

Harry Redknapp felt Jordan suffered due to Australia's superiority in all departments after watching his side slump to a 5-1 defeat in Sydney.

Redknapp's first game in charge of Jordan ended in an 8-0 thrashing of Bangladesh but the concluding part of his two-match World Cup qualification brief ended in vastly different circumstances.

Victory would have secured Jordan's place in the next stage of the AFC section but a first-half brace from Tim Cahill set the hosts on the way to a dominant triumph.

Jordan must now wait on other results to see if they progress as one of the four-best runners up, and Redknapp believes the team has plenty of progress to make on all fronts.

ADVERTISEMENT

"It was as difficult as I expected it to be," he told a post-match news conference. "There was a big gulf in class, in all honesty. We stepped up a level and it was difficult.

"They looked much fitter. Australia looked great tonight. But if Australia played Spain next week you'd be looking at them and thinking, 'they’re not very good'.

"That's how the game is. Australia have been in the big competitions over the years and the quality was the difference.

"We lost our way [after Cahill opened the scoring]. You need to be solid to not concede another goal but we did."

Irrespective of whether Jordan now progress, Redknapp insists the country's football association must review an international set-up that left him largely unimpressed.

ADVERTISEMENT

"The whole structure of the setup needs work. There is so much work needs doing," he added.

"We had no analyst on the opposition, no sports scientist.

"The players all play in Jordan, most of them. They are short on fitness. So when they play better teams they struggle for fitness.

"What can you do?"

JOIN OUR PULSE COMMUNITY!

Unblock notifications in browser settings.
ADVERTISEMENT

Eyewitness? Submit your stories now via social or:

Email: eyewitness@pulse.com.gh

ADVERTISEMENT