The Socceroos know they're not the main reason for the big crowd, cameras and screaming fans outside their Beijing hotel but are soaking it in ahead of their sellout clash with Argentina.
Graham Arnold's charges will take on the reigning world champions, including superstar Lionel Messi, in a rematch of their Qatar round-of-16 clash, at the Workers' Stadium on Thursday night.
"It's just been amazing since we've been here. The game is sold out - it sold out in one minute. They're expecting over 100 million viewers on TV, just here in China alone," Arnold told reporters.
"But for us it's a fantastic opportunity to play the world champions straight after a World Cup, which has probably never happened before for the Socceroos.
"The boys are in camp, the young boys are coming in with a lot of energy and the respect that we're getting here from the Chinese football fans has been quite incredible with hundreds and hundreds of people outside the hotel every time we try to go outside the hotel to go to training.
"So we're pretty, pretty much stuck in the hotel until we go to training and everything because the hype is so big because it's the first international event that has been put on since COVID finished here.
"It's a terrific occasion for the boys and Argentina obviously have got a very strong squad but I'm so excited for this because it's our way of building and rebuilding what's in front of us."
Jordan Bos and Aiden O'Neill will start but otherwise Arnold has flagged an experienced starting line-up and expects a strong performance against an experienced Argentina.
"You come into these types of occasions and see how the players handle these occasions," he said.
"But what they go out with after this type of game is they feel and they believe that they belong on the stage with them.
"So the performance is most important thing for me."
The Socceroos will wear black armbands to honour 1974 World Cup coach Rale Rasic, who died on June 8, aged 87, with Arnold making a point of reflecting on his impact on Australian football.
"Tomorrow night we'll do our best to respect him in the way that we always do with the Socceroos,' Arnold said.
"That is putting in 100 per cent and going out there and putting in a performance that he'd be very proud of."
