'It's sh*t': Graham Arnold lashes out as Socceroos sink to new low

The Socceroos' participation in the World Cup is looking bleak after being condemned to the playoff qualifications after a brutal 1-0 loss to Saudi Arabia.

Coach Graham Arnold is facing an uphill battle to retain his position as the Socceroos performed creditably in Jeddah against the already-qualified Saudi Arabia, but were ultimately undone by Salem Al-Dawsari's second-half penalty.

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The defeat is a crushing blow for Australia who now head into June's playoffs having won just one of their past seven qualifiers.

The string of losses means Football Australia will be under pressure to review Arnold's role as head coach before the sudden-death clash with the UAE.

Australia thought they may have grabbed a goal when a defence-splitting pass from Adjin Hrustic released Boyle who sprinted clear and rounded the Saudi goalkeeper, before slotting home.

But his celebrations were cut short as the assistant referee flagged for offside.

After a four-minute long VAR review, the decision was upheld despite replays suggesting Boyle was very close to being onside as he started his run.

Arnold once again lamented the team's fortune during qualification.

"We haven't seemed to get any VAR decisions the whole time," Arnold told Network 10.

"To be honest, I haven't seen it but I've heard it's very, very close.

"At the end of the day another pretty s*** penalty again and pretty disappointing."

Former players call for change in Australia coach

Immediately after the stinging loss, former Australia striker Archie Thompson said Arnold was not bringing out the best in the players.

"Is he getting the best out of the players? I don't know. I don't think so," Thompson told Network 10.

"It hasn't worked and it's not working still."

Former Socceroos defender Luke Wilkshire said a new coach was needed to revitalise the team ahead of two knockout matches.

"We need a shift and we need a change to re-ignite us," Wilkshire told Network 10.

"There's a lot of questions being asked and not too many answers."

Socceroos great and Melbourne Victory coach Tony Popovic has been touted as a potential replacement for Arnold.

If the Socceroos can get past the UAE on June 7, they'll then face South America's fifth-placed nation in a one-off match for a spot at Qatar 2022.

with AAP

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