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Sydney. Former Socceroos goalkeeper Zeljko Kalac says he believes Pim Verbeek will walk away from his job as Australia’s head coach after the World Cup in South Africa.

Kalac, who played for Australia at the 2006 World Cup in Germany, said Verbeek didn’t think there was enough talent coming through to the national team and that a number of key players were unlikely to be available for 2014.

“I think he knows what is coming,” Kalac told The Australian newspaper on Thursday. “He has nothing left to prove. Verbeek got us to the World Cup and Asian Cup finals again, but reading between the lines I don’t think he really believes there is much [talent] coming through.

“Once the World Cup is over, we are going to lose a fair slice of the squad that has produced so many great results for the national team over the last six to eight years. We are going to have to have a major rebuilding process.”

Kalac said “there were clear indications” Verbeek would take up a club coaching position either in Japan or in his native Netherlands.

Mark Schwarzer, Scott Chipperfield and Craig Moore plan to retire from the national team after South Africa, where Australia will play in Group D against Germany, Serbia and Ghana.

Harry Kewell, Lucas Neill, Brett Emerton, Mark Bresciano and Vincenzo Grella also have not committed to any plans to play in Brazil 2014.

Kalac, who has played in Europe for 15 years, says he believes Football Federation Australia will not deviate from the Dutch philosophy. Guus Hiddink guided the Socceroos to the World Cup finals in 2006.

Hiddink guided South Korea to the semifinals in 2002, before his stint in Australia. Verbeek was an assistant to Hiddink at South Korea, then became head coach of the Korean national team before moving to Australia.

“It’s an interesting call as to who will be the next coach,” Kalac said. “My gut feeling is that the federation won’t go far from the Dutch system. It’s been proven that we can adapt to that style and we have played well under the system.”

Verbeek told reporters in Melbourne on Thursday that he would make a decision on his future soon.

He was sitting beside FFA chief executive Ben Buckley at a news conference in Melbourne to discuss Australia’s May 24 World Cup warm-up with New Zealand when he said: “Ben and I, we have some discussions and I think it’s better [then] to come out and say everything to the media.

“Everything you read or hear is just speculation and the only people who know what’s going on are the two people sitting here.”

Verbeek said he would not keep the national body waiting long, even though he dismissed media reports he would decide this week.

“There’s no doubt about it, we’re not going to be sitting together for the upcoming three months,” he said.

“We’re going to make a final decision ... as soon as possible [but] not in the next 48 hours.”

The Socceroos meet trans-Tasman rivals New Zealand in a send-off game for both sides before they leave for the World Cup. However, Verbeek ruled out playing his best side in Melbourne.

“It’s not the World Cup itself,” he said. “The World Cup is most important. We’re going to use it as a very good training session to prepare ourselves for the World Cup.”



AP & Reuters