Australia boss Graham Arnold admitted he is delighted to see Aaron Mooy land a huge move to Celtic and is convinced Ange Postecoglou will have him fit and firing on all cylinders by the time the Socceroos kick off their World Cup campaign in Qatar in November.
The 31-year-old ended a miserable time at club level after mutually agreeing to end his contract at Chinese outfit Shanghai Port and Postecoglou moved to land the player he worked with at international level and handed him a two-year deal at Parkhead.
Mooy struggled during his time in China due to the country’s tough Covid-19 restrictions. He even defied his club's orders to return to the Far East for duty so he could take part in the Socceroos’ World Cup play-offs last month, and played every minute of their wins over the UAE and Peru – and was one of Australia’s best players – despite having played no competitive minutes since February.
Arnold reckons the fact they are familiar with each other makes it the perfect move and, selfishly, he’s excited about the prospect of the player featuring in the Champions League. Australia kick off their World Cup 2022 campaign with a daunting clash against defending champions France in Al-Wakrah.
Mooy could play up to 22 competitive fixtures in the Scottish Premiership and the Champions League before he is due to fly into Doha for the World Cup. And Arnold is confident that gruelling schedule, together with Postecoglou’s demanding methods, will prime Mooy perfectly for what is to come.
He said: “We all know that Ange will get the best out of Aaron, and get him fit and ready. It’s just great that he’s going to a club where they’re playing in the Champions League, and he’s going to get plenty of match minutes. Obviously they’re a good team, Celtic, and he’ll have his work cut out to get him in the starting XI, of course.
“But the fact that he’s going to be playing a lot of football before the World Cup is a relief for myself and, no doubt, all the Socceroo fans back here in Australia to know that Aaron’s got his club future sorted out. He knows what to expect with Ange and Ange knows his game.
“Instead of a new player walking into a new club with a new coach who doesn’t really know his mindset and his character and qualities that well – it can take time for that new coach to get to know him. But he’s walking in on the other side of it, where the coach is very familiar with him, knows exactly what he’s getting. With better fitness, with more match rhythm, and under Ange, I expect that when he walks into Qatar he’ll be the leader that we need on the field.”
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