Preview:Venezuela vs Australia - prediction, team news, lineups

Australia will continue their preparations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup when they take on Venezuela in an international friendly matchup on Saturday.

While the Socceroos secured their spot in the 2026 tournament, la Vinotinto were unable to claim a place as they finished eighth in CONMEBOL qualifying.

Match preview

Venezuela went into the CONMEBOL qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup with their sights set on securing a place at the world's most prestigious tournament for the first time in their history.

While they initially got off to an encouraging start, with two wins, three draws and only one loss in their first six matches, seven defeats in their next 12 outings saw them devastatingly miss out on a top seven finish.

Back-to-back wins over Peru and Bolivia kept their dreams alive going into the final three fixtures, but three straight defeats allowed Bolivia to leapfrog them into the playoff spot in seventh place, courtesy of a stunning final-day victory over Brazil.

As a result, Venezuela finished two points behind Bolivia, extending la Vinotinto's record of being the only CONMEBOL side to have never qualified for the FIFA World Cup.

Fernando Batista was dismissed from his managerial duties following their failure to qualify, with Oswaldo Vizcarrondo taking charge of Venezuela's subsequent friendly defeat to Argentina, while Fernando Aristeguieta will be the interim manager for the November international break.

Aiming to end the year on a more positive note, Aristeguieta will be hoping to snap Venezuela's ongoing four-game losing streak with a victory over an Australia side eager to bounce back into winning ways.

Australia, unlike their opposition, secured their place at the World Cup with a second-placed finish in AFC qualifying Group C, and their inclusion at the 2026 tournament marks their sixth straight qualification, having appeared in every competition since 2006.

The Socceroos endured a challenging start to their qualifying campaign in Group C, shockingly losing their opening match 1-0 to Bahrain before drawing 0-0 with Indonesia.

Head coach Graham Arnold resigned after that underwhelming start, with Tony Popovic taking charge of the side moving forward, although the new boss also had a shaky start to life for the Socceroos.

Popovic won his opening match at the helm 3-1 against China, but Australia drew all of their subsequent three matches, leaving them in desperate need of a winning run in their final four fixtures as they battled against Saudi Arabia for a second-placed finish, with Japan leading the group at the top of the standings.

Australia did exactly that in their last four games, comfortably beating Indonesia (5-1) and China (2-0) before a crucial 1-0 win over Japan and a 2-1 win over Saudi Arabia, with the latter of those victories ensuring the Soccerooes secured second spot.

Popovic's side continued their winning run with three straight friendly victories before eventually losing 2-1 to USA last time out, leaving the manager eager for his side to return to winning ways and continue building momentum heading toward the World Cup.

Venezuela form (all competitions):

L L L L W W

Australia form (all competitions):

L W W W W W

Team News

Venezuela will be without Jefferson Savarino, Jesus Bueno and Pablo Anor due to the trip making commitments to their respective clubs, while Jon Aramburu and Jovanny Bolivar both pulled out of the squad due to injury.

Ronald Hernandez could start at right-back in Aramburu's absence, potentially featuring alongside Nahuel Ferraresi, Teo Quintero and Alessandro Milani in defence.

As for Australia, Al Hassan Toure, Paul Okon-Englster, Kai Trewin and Patrick Beach have all been called up and could make their first appearances for the national side, while 18-year-old Manchester United full-back James Overy could also make his debut.

Craig Goodwin is also back in the squad and could feature alongside Riley McGree and Nick D'Agostino in attack for the Socceroos against Venezuela.

Venezuela possible starting lineup:

Contreras; Hernandez, Ferraresi, Quintero, Milani; Lacava, Segovia, Casseres Jr., Mendoza; Anor, Marques

Australia possible starting lineup:

Ryan; Iredale, Degenek, Burgess; Miller, Irvine, Metcalfe, Overy; McGree, Goodwin; D'Agostino

We say: Venezuela 0-2 Australia

Venezuela have been on a poor run of form in recent matches, while Australia were on a sensational winning streak before their narrow defeat to the USA.

Australia will have the extra motivation to quickly return to winning ways as they look to build momentum heading into the World Cup, and we expect the Socceroos to bounce back with a win here.

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