SYDNEY (28 March 2018) – Danny Vukovic saved an 86th-minute penalty to secure the Caltex Socceroos a battling 0-0 draw against a strong Colombia in London.
Debutant goalkeeper Vukovic dived to his left to deny Miguel Borja and earn Bert van Marwijk’s men a morale-boosting result against the 13th-ranked nation in the world, who started the likes of James Rodriguez and Radamel Falcao.
Tomi Juric and Massimo Luongo, two of five changes to the team that was beaten by Norway, went closest to an Australian winner either side of half-time.
But the best opportunities came at the other end late in proceedings as La Tricolor twice hit the post either side of Vukovic’s penalty save.
“I’m always realistic,” van Marwijk told Fox Sports at the end of the game. “I keep saying, when you see this result in such a short time it’s a fairly big compliment to the players. I think everyone can see what we were working on.” – www.socceroos.com.au
